Wiper blade options for Model S

[Racerx22b]

Unless your arms were defective or bent or they made a change in the design, I fail to see how this could solve the issue. I changed to the Bosch Ikon blades yesterday and those solved the problem for me. It was raining throughout the day yesterday varying from sprinkling to heavy and they worked without any chatter. Smooth and quiet. I have Rain-X on my windshield.

You fail to see how this could solve the issue??? The sentence prior to this one in you post explains why this solved the issue. Clearly, something was not right with my original wiper arms. I thought that was fairly self evident. That is precisely why getting replacement arms solved the 3yr long problem. I suggested replacing the wiper arms after their first attempt at fixing and they said it would make no difference. It took my about 2.5yrs of working the service staff to get them to basically force through a warranty claim on my wiper arms and it was an immediate fix. It was so validating!! I actually told them to order them and I'd pay for them and I think that is what prompted them to force it through. If that didn't do it I was going to replace the windshield.

I've tried about 8 different wiper blades including the Bosch ones and several different size blades.

Tried no water repellent treatment.

Had the windshield completely polished.

Tried several types of water repellent.

Different types of glass cleaners.

Left car with Tesla service on 3 separate occasions and was told it was fixed but it wasn't.

I literally TRIED EVERYTHING except replacing the windshield and wiper arms.

 

[barjohn]

In any case I'm glad it fixed your issue as there must have been something wrong with yours. Did you compare the two to see what it might have been?

 

[Fusion]

It does seem that the center of the driver side pushes down with too much force which screws up the wipers. You will see if you inspect the wipers that the center portion which wipes poorly is always cracked in that same section after using it for a while.

 

[orangem]

Just FYI for Canadians, I replaced mine with Trico Ice Extreme Winter wiper blades from costco.ca . I love them.

 

[PrGrPa]

For the life of me, I can't figure out how to remove the wipers. I pinch down on the clips under the wipers and even push that center square and can't seem to remove them. Anyone got some tips or maybe even a video on how to remove them?? I've taken wipers off before but this one has me stumped.


BTW I order some Valeo wipers and will chime back on how well they work.

If they're the Bosch wipers, you push firmly down on that centre triangle/square, pull the blade out of the end of the arm, and the blade smoothly slides off the wiper arm. Be sure to have a towel on the windscreen under the arm in case it slips out of your hand and whacks the windscreen.

 

[Fusion]

If they're the Bosch wipers, you push firmly down on that centre triangle/square, pull the blade out of the end of the arm, and the blade smoothly slides off the wiper arm. Be sure to have a towel on the windscreen under the arm in case it slips out of your hand and whacks the windscreen.

Thank god someone finally responded since Oct 23, 2016 ......

Thank for sure!

LOL

I did go with the Valeo and it seems to have the same problem after a while where the center streaks. After a while I could see cracks in just the center portion like the other brands. Either defective arms or too strong of a spring used.

 

[PrGrPa]

Thank god someone finally responded since Oct 23, 2016 ......

Thank for sure!

LOL

I did go with the Valeo and it seems to have the same problem after a while where the center streaks. After a while I could see cracks in just the center portion like the other brands. Either defective arms or too strong of a spring used.

Doh! I felt for the poster, didn’t notice the date. I had to look at the replacement wiper instructions to do it right.

 

[Bill Price]

Did some research and found that the recommend Bosh ICON wiper for the front left is the 28AOE. Digging a little further is seems that the spoiler for the 28OE is designed to be used for either left or right side whereas the 28AOE spoiler is specifically designed for the air flow at the Left side location. Bosh does say either will work but they specifically recommend the 28AOE. This is the first replacement for my early 2013 MS40 (we don't get much rain here in southern Calif!). For the front Right side the 180E is recommended as several posts here have already noted.

 

[Bill Price]

After doing MUCH research, I found that the one recommended by Bosch for the driver's side model S is the 28AOE. An earlier post claimed the only difference between the AOE and OE is extra parts. Not so. Besides having the spoiler that is specifically designed for the air flow on the left side location. The "AOE" is Bosch's "ClearMax 365" rubber compound which combines a soft rubber core with a powder coated shell which:

Protects the wiping edge from ozone deterioration, snow, sleet, rain and road debris for longer life.
Reduces wiper friction for quieter performance.
Resists contaminants such as fluid, salts, insects and other road debris for streak free visibility.
ClearMax 365 boasts superior performance at all speeds due to the asymmetrical spoiler which maintains consistent blade contact with the windshield.

The ClearMax 365 (28AOE) comes in a black box as opposed to the regular ICON series (28OE) which comes in a blue box.

I tried to quote an earlier member's response in this post, but no being familiar with how to do that resulted in my post of ONLY his quote. Hopefully, this post will clear that matter up. PLEASE try the 28AOE as opposed to the 28OE. You will not regret it! I promise! I will never use a different wiper blade on the driver's side than the 28AOE after experiencing the difference.

 

[brkaus]

@Bill Price what is the matching passenger side blade?

 

[Bill Price]

18OE is the recommended blade for the passenger side. The AOE is recommended for the drivers side because of the longer blade and shudder problem you have with the OE blade on that one. Guess you COULD buy the 18AOE, but it probably wouldn't be any better than the OE.

@Bill Price what is the matching passenger side blade?

 

[brkaus]

18OE is the recommended blade for the passenger side. The AOE is recommended for the drivers side because of the longer blade and shudder problem you have with the OE blade on that one. Guess you COULD buy the 18AOE, but it probably wouldn't be any better than the OE.

Thanks. I didn't find an 18AOE from a quick search.

Glad this thread popped up. My driver blade leaves two lines down the window and it drives me crazy. I've tried cleaning, etc. Must have a small tear.

 

[SammyA]

After doing MUCH research, I found that the one recommended by Bosch for the driver's side model S is the 28AOE. An earlier post claimed the only difference between the AOE and OE is extra parts. Not so. Besides having the spoiler that is specifically designed for the air flow on the left side location. The "AOE" is Bosch's "ClearMax 365" rubber compound which combines a soft rubber core with a powder coated shell which:

Protects the wiping edge from ozone deterioration, snow, sleet, rain and road debris for longer life.
Reduces wiper friction for quieter performance.
Resists contaminants such as fluid, salts, insects and other road debris for streak free visibility.
ClearMax 365 boasts superior performance at all speeds due to the asymmetrical spoiler which maintains consistent blade contact with the windshield.

The ClearMax 365 (28AOE) comes in a black box as opposed to the regular ICON series (28OE) which comes in a blue box.

I tried to quote an earlier member's response in this post, but no being familiar with how to do that resulted in my post of ONLY his quote. Hopefully, this post will clear that matter up. PLEASE try the 28AOE as opposed to the 28OE. You will not regret it! I promise! I will never use a different wiper blade on the driver's side than the 28AOE after experiencing the difference.

That's great info thanks. My first winter driving between Toronto and Montreal with Model S and just ordered these. Will update on how they work.

 

[David29]

Thanks. I didn't find an 18AOE from a quick search.

Glad this thread popped up. My driver blade leaves two lines down the window and it drives me crazy. I've tried cleaning, etc. Must have a small tear.

My car needed new wiper blades, and a snow/rain a storm is coming this weekend, so I wanted to get new blades today if I could. I know that Pep Boys carries the Bosch Icon blades, so I popped into the Pep Boys store near me. I found the 28AOE for the driver's side, but I did not find an 18E or 18 AOE, and indeed there was no space for them on the rack. I took the 28" blade to check-out and figured I would go to another store for the 18" blade. At the check-out, the guy asked me about the other one and I told him what I was looking for. He said he had not heard of an "18E" and got out his Bosch book to check. The Bosch book said that the Model S uses the 19OE in the passenger side, and they had it in stock. I was worried it might be too long, but the counter guy said they would install the blades for free and be sure they fit. I moved my car over to the service door and the mechanic fitted the blades. The 19OE fit just fine, and the blades worked beautifully. So, at least for my 2015 Model S, the 19OE seems to be the right choice in the Ikon line.

And, by the way, the Pep Boys people could not have been more helpful. They had also helped my spouse recently with her wiper blades, and she was very pleased with their service.

 

[one5n1neSDoo]

Anyone install the Bosch Clear Advantage wiper blades? I ordered these like a year ago and always felt the adapter wasn't as snug as the OEM one. I finally said "the hell with it" and installed it tonight but wanted to see if anyone else have been using the same... And how reliably attached it is for you.

 

[hybridbear]

Why no mention of Rain X wiper blades? I put the Bosch Icon blades on my car & they were awful. They were streaking within less than 2 weeks.

 

[ChrisPDX]

I tried them a few years ago. They worked well enough with no real issues in performance. However, it wasn't until after I started using them in heavy rain that I started hearing a clicking sound (wipers were running full speed). Turned out the passenger side was poorly built and the arm mount was offset from the center of the blade by about half an inch (hard to notice unless you had a ruler). This caused the end of the blade to slap against the pillar and rub off the paint! Once I replaced the blades, I was able to use some touch-up paint and it's not very noticeable, but still it never should have happened.

The Bosch blades have always worked great for me. I make sure the glass is super clean when installing new blades to avoid streaking and premature wearing. If there's any oil buildup on the glass, it will streak no matter what the blade is used.

 

[Bill Price]

Why no mention of Rain X wiper blades? I put the Bosch Icon blades on my car & they were awful. They were streaking within less than 2 weeks.

You need to use the clearmax 28AOE (driver's side) and 18OE on the passenger side.

 

[Rogue Synapse]

I switched from the Bosch Ikon to Costco’s Rain-X wipers (which have worked just fine on all my other cars) and immediately regretted it. Major chatter and started streaking quite quickly. Made sure the windshield was spotless before installing. Not sure why Rain-X didn’t get along with my Model S when they’ve worked so well for my other cars. Got the Bosch ones off amazon and all is right again.

 

[Vinc]

My car needed new wiper blades, and a snow/rain a storm is coming this weekend, so I wanted to get new blades today if I could. I know that Pep Boys carries the Bosch Icon blades, so I popped into the Pep Boys store near me. I found the 28AOE for the driver's side, but I did not find an 18E or 18 AOE, and indeed there was no space for them on the rack. I took the 28" blade to check-out and figured I would go to another store for the 18" blade. At the check-out, the guy asked me about the other one and I told him what I was looking for. He said he had not heard of an "18E" and got out his Bosch book to check. The Bosch book said that the Model S uses the 19OE in the passenger side, and they had it in stock. I was worried it might be too long, but the counter guy said they would install the blades for free and be sure they fit. I moved my car over to the service door and the mechanic fitted the blades. The 19OE fit just fine, and the blades worked beautifully. So, at least for my 2015 Model S, the 19OE seems to be the right choice in the Ikon line.

And, by the way, the Pep Boys people could not have been more helpful. They had also helped my spouse recently with her wiper blades, and she was very pleased with their service.

Just curious. Still OK with the 19 size? For some reason, they are cheaper on Amazon than the 18 size. No issues like the earlier post that showed them to be a tad too big?

The 190E is too long! It catches on the A pillar (photo 1) and does not return to the park position (photo 2) unless you force it by hand. You definitely want the 180E. Fortunately only a $20 mistake!


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