Wiper blades

Searching historical posts it looks like a Volvo insert is a sensible economic replacement for the standard, are there any downsides to doing this? Do they work as well as the Renault part?

+1 for the volvo part. Very easy to fit apart from a tiny bit of trimming as mentioned above. Crazy to do anything else.

The wiper design is proprietary to Valeo I think, which potentially applies to the insert as well (not sure), and I think they're only applied to a few Ovlovs and the A110. The point I'm trying to make is that the Volvo part is essentially the very same as the Alpine, so yes - they work just as well.

The sole 'downside' you might find is if your existing end clips are no longer serviceable. Mine had broken their internal tangs (which are needed to hold the assembly together) so I had to use the Volvo parts, which are embossed with, er, VOLVO. This might drive some people nuts but I find it easy to ignore, and if I ever actually notice/remember, quite amusing.

Nick

Don't you then lose the windscreen washer function - I can't see how you wouldn't.

I've done the Volvo replacement. There is a tiny clip in the end caps that needs moving sideways (not upwards!); helpfully, the Volvo end caps have an arrow moulded into them to show this.