Review: RainX Latitude

[Lobo1186]

So one of my pet peeves is wind-shield wipers. I hate the inneffectiveness of the blades or when they miss parts of the windshield etc

So I decided to pick up a pair of RainX Latitude wind-shield wipers. for the boxster they are 22".

First: appearance. They are very sleek and look very nice on my car. No more is the trussed bridge look of many wiper systems out there.



Second: ease of use. Just pops on there not much more. Ive used some where you need to wipe the blade with a little wetnap they give you. not these (of course most wipers are easy to throw on so it is a non issue for the most part)

Thirdly: Performance. Like you would expect from RainX since their normal wind-shield treatment is pretty awesome (first time I used it almost felt like i didnt need wipers) but these are no different from a standstill to highway speeds no difference in performance it just worked.

Lastly: price not the cheapest but modest in range. I got mine for 19ea some went up to 24 Napa's wipers were 22ea ?!?! overall not bad (not really cheap either)

I know that wipers are such a small thing. But to me I hate not having a nice crystal clear windshield (and out here in the cali dust that is a tall order) but these are a great little thing that just help make my rides in my Box just a little bit better. and largly they look sleek too. (pics will follow.)


(sidenote Ironically i got caught in the rain the afternoon after i had put them on...)

for those of you that got them and like them lemme know how you feel! and if your wipers are old and piss you off. I recommend picking up a pair.

[vath2001]

Thanks for the info. Sound like they may be cheaper the factory blades... which cost $30 a set from Suncoast.

[paulv]

How are those wiper blades with respect to noise? Besides the effectiveness pet peeve, noise is another thing that aggravates me. That RainX wiper design is similar to what Mercedes put on their cars and the MB wipers are notoriously noisy. I think the next set of wipers I buy will be PIAA's silicone -- they have a curved wiper for the passenger side and the driver's side has the spoiler built in like the OEM blades.

Regards,
paul...

[jmatta]

Glad to hear they work well for you...I can't remember the last time I used the wipers on my car (wipers and top down motoring just don't go together).

[rangersplash]

Originally Posted by vath2001

Thanks for the info. Sound like they may be cheaper the factory blades... which cost $30 a set from Suncoast.

He said $19/ea which would be $38/set. Just something to keep in mind as they would not be cheaper.

[Quickurt]

I bought a set of Latitudes nearly two years ago.....at this age the time goes by so fast, it could be over two years.....anyway, where was I?? Oh yeah, the wipers...I got them for my DD, Mazda CX7.
I was not particularly impressed with them, however the CX7 driver's side is about 7 feet long, so the design may have a problem with that span.
Now, two interesting points:
1-the blades are STILL on the car and in the Florida sun, NOTHING lasts two years. They work as well, or better, now as they did new and-
2-I give much credit for the fact to Aerospace 303 vinyl treatment.http://www.campingworld.com/search/index.cfm?Ntt=aerospace+303&N=0&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=p_keyword&Nty=1&Ntpc=1
The stuff works great on all the Boxster seals and trim pieces. I was out in the front yard treating the Box and the CX7 was sitting over there looking ignored so I walked over and did the 303 cleaning job on the wipers. It just so happened to rain the next day and the difference in the blades was apparent. SInce then I do the wipers on ALL of our cars about every 6 months and it works!

[lizBox]

Originally Posted by Quickurt

I give much credit for the fact to Aerospace 303 vinyl treatment. I do the wipers on ALL of our cars about every 6 months and it works!

We just bought an Acura and I've been going thru all of their service bulletins and found this in the "Acura Service News Sept 2009":

After some extensive testing of current protectants available in the market, we recommend 303 Aerospace Protectant from 303 Products, Inc. When
it comes to Acura dashboards, we’ve found this product offers even better protection than what we’ve offered before with Acura Leather & Vinyl Protectant (P/N 08700-9209A) so we’re asking you to use it instead. You’ll find 303 Aerospace Protectant at many retail auto supply stores, as well as hardware stores, and marine, RV, pool & spa, and camping supply stores. For more info, check out the 303 Products website at www.303products.com.

I haven't had a chance to try it yet but sounds like good stuff. I would have never thought to put it on wiper blades, gotta try that too.

[JTP]

I picked a set two weeks ago for my daily driver, VW GTI. I was hesitant to get these because of the plastic design. Plastic And rubber pieces tend to get brittle and shatter in the arctic cold but at 36 below zero they were fine and didn't chatter at all when wiping the windshield. Stayed very quiet unlike my old set which make a ruckus due to the brittle rubber. Our snow is very dry so I only use the to clear the dust build up using the washer fluid. Overall I'm very eased with them.

[Quickurt]

I love the stuff for all the vinyl on the Boxster. My only complaint is it obviously does what it is advertised to do, replace volatiles from the polymers. The loss of monomers from the vinyl, through evaporation, is what literally dries the material out and makes it shrink, crack and deform. UV degradation is the other major contributor to the same effect, and I'm surely not expert to say which is worse.
The 303 replaces the monomers that evaporate and therefore are there to evaporate again. This puts a film of same monomers on the inside of the windsheild to now be cleaned!! Let's just hope Windex doesn't add another problem to the viscous cycle!
The other big point of 303 is UV protection, so it's also sunscreen for your dash and other vinyl.

[JTP]

I recall reading that 303 is good on vinyl windows. I used it for the first 4 years on my 74 Bronco's soft top with good results, still clear after 12 years. Scratched up by off roading but clear. Has anyone tried it on the early Boxster rear window?

[Quickurt]

I am very happy with 303's canvass top conditioner. It was easy to use and did a wonderful job.

[RandallNeighbour]

I've owned my boxster for six years now and I can count the number of times I have used my windshield wipers on one hand!

I will say thought that the wipers that come free under BMW's warranty program must be from the same source as the MB ones... noisy as anything!

But they're free and I make them replace them anytime they make a racket to get my money out of that warranty

[Lobo1186]

Originally Posted by paulv

How are those wiper blades with respect to noise? Besides the effectiveness pet peeve, noise is another thing that aggravates me. That RainX wiper design is similar to what Mercedes put on their cars and the MB wipers are notoriously noisy. I think the next set of wipers I buy will be PIAA's silicone -- they have a curved wiper for the passenger side and the driver's side has the spoiler built in like the OEM blades.

Regards,
paul...

noise... well besides the sound of the water "wooshing" (idk) away they are silent. no squeaks or anything like that.

as far as being stuck in the rain. well i dont like using wipers i dont like rain on my car. BUT the old ones (which i never used came with car) were all busted up and I decided that i didnt like how broken they were. So i picked up a new pair and out of no-where the rain rolled in that day and well i had to try them out. and like my review said i was impressed.


most of my problems with wipers is from previous cars. So i plan on throwing these on my mercury marine (when the time comes) and obviously I got them on the porsche.