Wiper Blades Revisited

[X5Flyboy]

Oh, little note - when installing aftermarket wipers, you have to remove a small clip on the driver's side wiper to have the wiper sit flush on the window

[SuperGreg]

Originally Posted by chefwong

So awhile back, someone did mention about what wiper blades ya'll preferred.
Having had the X for a lil over 2 year & stock blades ....I would be somehwhat familiar with the blades...I've had them replaced at least 2-3X already.

Anyhow to be fair, I did have the dealer put on new blades.
Prior to this, I cleaned the windshield with Autoglym Glass Polish and then followed up with a coat of Aquapel. Aqualpel is PPG's version of RainX.

With the new blades, it still always left a haze on the windshield with each pass. The winter season is just around the corner, so $40 later, I've got a set of Bosch Ikon blades. These look similiar to the Valeo blades at around $22-24 per blade. The Bosch # for the Ikon series that you will need is 422A and 424A.

The passenger side does not follow the curve as a perfect match. About 1 inch does not sit on the windshield in the resting position. HOWEVER, the blades are truely a night & day difference between the OEM ones as far as haze/streaking in concerned. It looks nicer to boot also....

Sorry no pics fellas. Maybe this evening.

I also added the Icons a while back. The 22" blade is too long for the passenger side. I bought the 421B or 21" for the passenger side, and it is a MUCH better fit than the 22". Just keeping you informed .

[SuperGreg]

Originally Posted by X5Flyboy

Oh, little note - when installing aftermarket wipers, you have to remove a small clip on the driver's side wiper to have the wiper sit flush on the window

, this is VERY important!

[fln8tive]

It has been raining like an exterior night scene in Blade Runner here....I wish I'd seen SuperG's post on the 21"s....but my blades should be here soon--I need them.

FYI the 18" Icon on the rear is perfect and would make a Manhattan window washer proud.

[SuperGreg]

Originally Posted by fln8tive

It has been raining like an exterior night scene in Blade Runner here....I wish I'd seen SuperG's post on the 21"s....but my blades should be here soon--I need them.

FYI the 18" Icon on the rear is perfect and would make a Manhattan window washer proud.

The 22's work just fine, they are just too long. The 18" does work perfectly on the rear window .

[TWALK]

It wouldn't hurt to go with a 17" on the rear window either.
I have had issues with some 18" blades bumping the rear brake light on the underside of the rear spoiler. Just a heads up

[xrob]

Hi there.

To sum up, can someone post what Bosch Icon blades (with part numbers if you have them) are the best fit for the X5? Does it matter by year? If so, I have a 2005.

I assume the A and B designation has something to do with driver and passenger side?

Looks like a 24", 21" and maybe a 17/18 for the back?

Thanks for the confirmation,

Rob

[SuperGreg]

Originally Posted by xrob

Hi there.

To sum up, can someone post what Bosch Icon blades (with part numbers if you have them) are the best fit for the X5? Does it matter by year? If so, I have a 2005.

I assume the A and B designation has something to do with driver and passenger side?

Looks like a 24", 21" and maybe a 17/18 for the back?

Thanks for the confirmation,

Rob

I believe the "B" blades have more "curve" to them when compared to the A's. I have 424A on the drivers side, 421B on the passengers side, and 418B on the back. Mine is a 2002, should be the same on a 2005.

[xrob]

This is excellent. Thanks for the help. Anyone else have any different experiences?

[TWALK]

As I posted before... I had to go with a 17" on the rear because it was tapping the rear spoiler/brake light at the peak of it's swing... That caused the whole wiper to lift slighly off the glass leaving an untouched verticle spot on the rear window