Replacement wipers

[Martyn P]

My windscreen wipers are just about to give up, so I have ordered a replacement pair from Alpine - price as expected is high.

Looking on the web, it seems Valeo offer replacements at a third of the price BUT they seem to be listed for left hand drive cars only.
Has anyone tried these on UK cars? Can RHD cars really have bespoke wiper blades?

I know others have replaced the wiper blade only but I want to swap the whole thing as the little water holes are getting blocked with limescale.

Cheers,

[worldwidewebs]

There's a Volvo part that does the job: 32237898

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=112yY94pGWw

[s111dpc]

You can just change the rubbers for the Volvo part without having to change blade they for into - very simple job.

[Martyn P]

Thanks for the responses - was hoping for a cheap easy option rather than a DIY project!

[Miserablegit]

I live in a hard water area and so only ever use premixed screen wash.
Another reason to do so on a car is to avoid bacteria build up- a friend from London (think water is softer) had a significant bill when his screw washers packed up- there was a load of black gunk in his water bottle and washer system which had grown in the water/screen wash mix because he didn’t use the car very often and so didn’t replace screen wash regularly.

[fuzzy-si]

You dont need the Volvo wipers.

I replaced my wiper insert with a Halfords one for £9.

Getting the end cap off the Alpine wiper is a bit tricky, so be careful as you need to retain that.

[Martyn P]

fuzzy-si said:

You dont need the Volvo wipers.

I replaced my wiper insert with a Halfords one for £9.

Getting the end cap off the Alpine wiper is a bit tricky, so be careful as you need to retain that.

Hi Fuzzy,

Thanks for the heads up. I could not find suitable Halfords replacement refills (too short) so went with Bosch Aero Twin 24" and 19" and cut them down to size (AM 980 S). Slightly deeper blade but it fits perfectly into the wiper body and on the windscreen. Very reasonable at £16.

To take the Bosch wipers apart was tricky and destructive - in comparison the Alpine wipers are specifically designed to use refills rather than replace the whole wiper blade (just use a small screwdriver to release the end cap).

That has saved me over £160 for half an hours work.