I was picking up a replacement windshield wiper blade for my W210 and spare insert for my old blade when the parts guy at my dealership told me that MB will no longer sell the inserts separately, only with the entire blade. Not just the 210 either but all of them. Since the inserts are only $10 and the blade is $22, I bought the last 4 inserts he had left there which he claimed would be the last ones they ever will get in. Fastlane and others get $20 just for the insert, so this seems like a case where the dealership is the "bargain" place to shop.

If you replace the inserts only you might consider buying some if you can still get them. It maybe that he was making the whole story up to sell more of the inserts, but he seemed sincere.

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

Marty

What you were told is in fact true.
There may be some liability issue involved here ( people not installing inserts correctly ). That would'nt be any of us here.
Aside from that, you can get generic inserts at just about any automotive supplier.

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2007 C 230 Sport.

I think it is trickier to replace the blade than the insert!

Anyway, the only reason I went to the dealer in the first place was because that oddball blade for the single arm wiper was out of stock everywhere I tried to find one! I was pleasantly surprised to be able to buy the whole blade for $22 from MB as I think they are good quality...probably made by Bosch, but then why would the Bosch parts be more expensive than the MB version???

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

Blades pop on and off in about 2 secs.

The inserts are more of a hassle. You have to first pull the blade off the arm, then wrestle with removing and installing new inserts.

Too bad people are being forced into buying more than they need.

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Mike Murrell
1991 300-SEL - Model 126
M103 - SOHC
"Fräulein"

bought my blade insert for $3 at auto zone :

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1993 Lexus SC300
1987 Mercedes 300E ..totaled out..
1991 Saab 900Convertible ..gave away..

don't like this, those rubber inserts should be changed twice a year, and now they double ( or more ) the price for replaceing wipers.

couldn't leave well enough alone, are aftermarket rubber inserts any good?
who make the aftermarket?

Why buy these from the dealer? Everyone has the inserts, and they sell them by the pair. Try Pep Boys, AutoZone, Discount/Advance Auto or even better, your local European parts house, like FinishLine here in Miami.

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Semibodacious Transmogrifications a Specialty

1990 300D 2.5 Turbo sedan 171K (Rudolf)
1985 300D Turbo TD Wagon 219K (Remuda)

"Time flies like and arrow, yet fruit flies like a banana"
---Marx (Groucho)

The W210 body style with the single wiper is a bit of an odd duck. While the books at Pep Boys and VIP auto Parts listed a part number for the wiper blades and inserts from some of their brands none were in stock. It must be an unusual size I am guessing. Also, based upon my experience the Bosch inserts are superior to the $3 aftermarket ones and for a few extra dollars being able to see in bad weather is money well spent

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

The Benz Bin (thebenzbin.com) sells Bosch wiper blade inserts for the W210 cars.

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Fred Hoelzle

All of the online suppliers I check (inlcluding this one) carry the Bosch insert, but the prices are from $16-$22 each. At the MB dealer the MB brand is only $10...I can't understand that at all.

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

I really can't blame them for this.

Look around in a parking lot and see how many scratched-up windshields there are. A lot of them are from improperly installed wiper blades. Goofing up a $3.00 part can cause hundreds of dollars of damage. I notice that Advance Auto installs them for free...I'm not sure if they do inserts or arms.

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86 560SL
With homebrew first gear start!
85 380SL
Daily Driver Project

http://juliepalooza.8m.com/sl/mercedes.htm

I noticed recently that the Bosch inserts have disappeared from the chain auto parts stores. Must be the shape of things to come.

I noticed the same thing at walmart, inserts cost the same as the hole blade, i bought the whole blade for $2.44.
It won't be long b4 inserts won't be stocked.

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82 Rabbit diesel (first d), 84 Jetta turbo d (300k when sold), 83 240d (305k when sold), 84 F250 6.9d w/Banks turbo(parts truck), 86 F250 6 cyl.gasser(waiting for 6.9d), 84 300d ( 347k Sold 8/04), Y2k New Bettle TDI (185k miles), 95 740IL (wifes), 87 300TD (206k Sold 7/05), 05 Passat TDI Wagon

I went down to the dealer today to get a new insert, and I figured they would tell me that I can't get that anymore. But instead the guy just handed my what I wanted. Well I did have to pay... PN 000 824 36 27 01
So I don't know if they were ever gone but I can still get them here.
And the reason I don't use an aftermarket one is once I ordered a Bosch refill online and what was sent would not fit, the spline was much wider. So ever since I figured they would not work. Does anyone know why the Bosch would not fit my car but the dealer insert does? The guy I got it from insisted it was the correct one.

Mike

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

Seems to me last time I ordered online I got a package of 2 inserts. Is that the norm?

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Prost!