Okay, so call me unobservant, but when scrubbing/detailing my MINI the other day, I noticed that my two wiper blades are different. The driver side has this odd, thick extra thing on the bottom of it, whereas the passenger side is normal. Does this sound right? Am I missing the odd thing on the passenger side? Have I had something snatched I didn't even realize was there in the first place?

 

You aren't missing anything. The "odd, thick extra thingy" is a "wind wing" which a)keeps the driver side blade firmly pressed down and b) prevents a nasty howl that the wiper can make at higher speeds.

Aside from the driver's side wiper being more important, I haven't quite figured out why it isn't on both.

 

Ah, well that explains things. And yes, it is odd that it isn't included on both. Can you buy an extra and add it yourself? I'm a little o.c.d. about symmetry sometimes, and now that I've noticed that, it may start bugging me.

 

I've heard some have purchased two OEM driver side wipers (although I think the sides vary in size).

Or, albeit I haven't figured out how, I think you can buy a new OEM driver side wiper and pop off the wing and put it on another blade. (but that's just speculation)

 

Okay, well probably more trouble than it's worth. Thanks for the info.

 

Or replace both with some Bosch Icons and get rid of the driver's only side spoiler:

 

Agreed, Icons were the best thing I've put on my car so far.

 

I've been looking for those wipers!!! Where'd you pick them up? I'm assuming the R53 and R56 wiper arms are the same, right?
THANKS

 

Icons didn't work on my car.

At freeway speeds they lifted off the windshield.

I think the winglet is there for a reason, I trust the engineers on this one.

 

Look around. A wing only on the drivers side wiper is very common. It was the case in my previous car (VW) and I've seen it on numerous brands and models.

 

.

 

True. Thinking about it now, of cars that do have the 'wing', I don't believe I've ever seen it on both sides. Always the drivers only...

 

BOSCH Icons... best wipers I've ever used.

As a resident of Ohio with our crazy snow and ice, I need wipers that clear snow and ice... and can stand up to constant salt... no complaints so far!

 

I just went with the sizes that they listed for the car for other wipers. I believe I used the B version that was in stock and available. I took my wipers off in the parking lot, and brought them in the store for a direct comparison.

I think the reason they don't list them for the Cooper is because the passenger side curve doesn't allow the wiper to contact the windshield at the very bottom corner by the pillar (not a big deal to me, however). You could just use a shorter passenger side wiper so that it doesn't extend out that far, and that would help. For example, I ended up putting the 19" one on the driver's side, and the 18" one on the passenger side, even though most application guides have it the other way around.

Other than that, I've been very happy with them. They don't chatter, they work well, they don't collect ice and snow like traditional wipers (important for me in Chicago), and they offer a nice clean look.

 

I was wondering about that as well, great idea!

So has anyone with an R56 done this??? Not sure if anything pertaining to the install has changed from the R53...

 

how much for each icon?

I assume that replacement inserts are not possible and you need to replace the entire blade as needed?

 

Icons are about $20 per blade.

 

tirerack sells the Valeo blades which are similar to the Icons, still on sale buy 1 for $20, get the 2nd one free. Only problem i could see with mounting a shorter wiper on the passenger side is if you have the auto wiper option, the shorter wiper may not sweep where the sensor is.

 

I got those 1st from tire rack and they suck plus the mounting piece is HUGE unlike the low profile Bosch Icons They are like Honda ricer bosch.
I guess that is the reason for the buy one get one free.

I have the Bosch Icons now and I am dumping them because they lift and streak and yes I have clayed and cleaned them. They are great looking and I bet are perfect for a Longer Flatter windshied but that is not what teh Mini has....I am order the PIAA SS.

Maybe I will put a set PIAA SS refiles in my Bosch Icons.....
That would be the best of both worlds...look sweet and function.


Philly PA winter weather sucks and by the amount of salt we have on our wet roads you would think we had a blizzard not a dusting. DOT Idiots...

 

So for those who have replaced the OEMs, does not having the driver side wing thing make any difference?

 

I first replaced the blades with Bosch MicroEdge blades without wings and they worked OK, better than the OEMs. Then I installed a pair of 19" PIAA Super Sporza Silicone blades with the wings and they are simply outstanding. Better than the Bosch. Noticeably better.

///Rich

 

I've had the Bosch Icons on thru most of the winter (and, yeah, it rains all the time here in Washington state), and I am very satisfied with them. Streak free, clean well, look good, and absolutely no lift at high freeway speeds.

 

Yep, I still am happy with my Icons through winter as well. I'm not driving fast enough in rainstorms to know if they are lifting at speeds over 70mph, though. At those higher speeds, water tends to get off the windshield on it's own, anyway.

 

Yup, I thought that the Bosch Icons were the best wipers I had ever used, too, except that the passenger side iced up on the far edge this winter during storms, so I tried the PIAA silicone wipers - and Holy Crap! - a night and day difference, even over the Bosch blades!! I'll never buy any other kind of wiper blade again. They're that good.

 

Ok, so I've not put them on the Mini yet, but I've put Silblades on my wife's Sienna minivan, Camry, and on my Acura MDX. They are silicon, I guess like the PIAA ones that I just read about, and really seem to be working well after > 1 year on the cars. They have a 5 year warranty (!) - I guess they are confident about their blades.
We live in the hot south (TN), where the rubber ones break down quickly, and thus far, these seem to be holding up.

For the MINI, I see the 18" and 19" blades for the front, but was trying to find out if they had a rear blade that fit the strange OEM rear look. Still can't find the size of that dang thing. I'll have to measure it when I return to Nashville.

http://www.silblade.com/

So are the PIAAs similar to the Silblades?