I have looked for alternative blades without success, including the rear one.
What I have done is purchase other wipers of correct length and swapped out the rubber blades themselves.
The process involves using a small screwdriver to lift up on the locking tabs holding the end pieces on.

Remove the end pieces.

Slide out the rubber blade and everything comes apart.

With a new rubber blade of suitable cross section reassemble wiper blade. I'm not sure how much difference there is between the OEM rubber parts, the Bosch ones and other much less expensive wipers. If they cease functioning properly, I change them.
I did the same thing, slightly different construction, for the rear wiper.
I will note that I have also previously had the dealer replace blades under warranty and also purchased new wiper blades from the dealer.

 

TRICO makes them

 

The Bosch blades are also sold at AutoZone. Trico is the least expensive option, but the connector protrudes noticeably higher than on the factory blades, or on replacement blades sold by dealers. Replacement blades with SOAxxxx part numbers are also different from those installed at the factory, in that their frames are wider.

 

I have had very good luck with Bosch wiper blades (Bosch Icon) which I have been using on our 2011 Outback. After the warranty expires on our 2021 Touring, I'll use Bosch blades on that car also.

 

I can not recommend Bosch wipers. I live in germany and i own an Outback Model Year 2019, it's the same like US model 2018. At spring 2022 i need new wipers and i bought a Bosch-set. Bad idea. 4 weeks ago, end of december 2022, the wipers loose their force and the view getting worst. The problem is, in germany you only can by cheap wipers and you can by Bosch wipers. The Bosch wipers are better than the cheap ones, but not that good. I haven't seen the "Bosch focus" brand in germany. Maybe they're better than our normal Bosch's.
Now I bought one wiper for driver side from Denso, and it looks very good for the first impression. Time will tell the truth....

 

The Michelin ones at Costco work fine

 

Last time I bought the Michelin wipers at Costco (December 2022) they did NOT have adapters to fit on my 2020 Outback.
They are great wiper blades and fit on our 2018 Forester and 2011 Forester.

 

Just one small point...if you are still within your OEM 3/26 warranty period, Subaru actually will replace your wiper blades under warranty. It's specifically listed in the written details as a wear item that is covered along with brake pads and clutch pads. Otherwise, it's good to see available alternatives for sure.

 

If you are going to purchase third-party wiper blades/refills, I recommend the Bosch Icon blades. I've used them on our 2011 Outback and they are both durable and do a good job of keeping the windshield (and rear window) clear.

 

Based on the warranty booklet, wiper blades are NOT covered under warranty in the Canadian market.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

It is an unfortunate change. The blades bought from subaru do remain the quietest and last longer than Bosch. I had a pair thrown in during sale. Then a pair with a voucher.

One thing that can be done is to remove the upper arm of the wipers from an older outback at the scrap yard. paint and replace the new arms that have the older fitment lock, which take most after market blades.

if you just replace the rubber. NAPA wipers fit well cost 8$. take about 5 min per blade to remove and feed in the new rubber. the wiper has a good reach to hit the glass

 

if you just replace the rubber. Namco wipers fit well cost nothing. take about 5 min per blade to remove and feed in the new rubber. the wiper has a good reach to hit the glass

Do you mean Anco?

 

I would definitely ask for blade replacement under warranty when the time comes. For others, Trico also has blades that fit Gen6

https://www.tricoproducts.com/find-wipers-trico?find=cars-light-trucks-subaru-2023-outback-425508255

 

What's interesting is if you choose 2020 Outback I don't get the same list as the 2023 MY. I'm not sure if that's an error on Trico's website or something changed between the 2020-22 MY's and the 23 MY. I'll have to check out the wiper blades at a local auto parts store.

https://www.tricoproducts.com/find-wipers-trico?find=cars-light-trucks-subaru-2020-outback-425291379

 

Tagged so I can find the post later.

 

Over the weekend, I did a pilgrimage to Advanced, O'Rielly's, and Auto Zone, looking for wipers.

Advanced and O'Reilly's carried the Bosch Focus, but it was not listed in their computers as compatible with the GEN6. I asked very nicely, to have the parts lady both open up the FS26A and FS26OE wipers and physically look for the Bosch #6 Toplock/Denso adapters. Neither 26" blades in the Focus flavor carry the #6 adapter. I also had them open up the Bosch Icon 26A and 26OE blades. Neither 26" blades in the Icon flavor carry the #6 adapter. The Icons came with one less adapter in the package vs the the Focus.

AutoZone carries the Envision line, but not the Focus. My understanding is the Envision IS thee Focus, with the addition of a chemical tag that turns yellow when the blade is shot....at a $5 a blade up charge.

The way Bosch lists their part number schema on the BEAM STYLE is as follows:...for the sake of example...

XX20(A/B), or XX20OE, or 20(A/B), or 20OE.

"XX" decodes the series.
"FS" is Focus
"EN" is Envision
"H" is Rear
"B" is a three piece set.
...I'm a nice guy, but I'm not going to decode the entire line up.

"20" decodes the length.

On GEN6 OB, you want 26 for 26" driver, 18 for 18" passenger.

(A/B) denotes two things.

"A" is driver side.
"B" is passenger side.
-and-
No inclusion of adapters, as they are intended as a direct fit to the most common mounting option.
-and-
It doesn't really matter on an OB or any other conventional wiper config car, but when you get into an odd set up like Chrysler MiniVans with the center folding wipers, beam style wipers are "handed" there is a left and a right blade, due to the way the spoiler is molded into the beam arm.

"OE"

...Is Bosch's way of saying OEM fit. These ones include the adapter packs.

Here's the pics...



The front of the box for the wiper that fits the driver's side.



The back of the box for the wiper that fits the driver's side.



Factory mount on the passenger side.



Bosch mount with #6 TopLock/Denso adapter on the drivers side. It sits a bit higher, but I'll take it! It's a good blade.

I only purchased the driver blade from AZ. The original was torn. I wanted a known fitting Bosch blade in-hand, to do some research on the interwebs to see if I could find them cheaper than AZ prices. Bosch has the Envision blades listed on the corp website. They do NOT have the Envision series listed on the Bosch corp Amazon storefront. I'm not sure, but these may be an AZ exclusive blade. $34.99 a blade, doesn't matter the size. $70 a set is a bit pricey. All three stores had a Trico, Anco, Hella, or combo of the brands available, cheap. All three brands suck, and I was not going to waste my time with the budget blades, as they usually will tear after two winters. You can do both Subaru Genuine for $35'ish. IMO, those suck too. At $70, I realize I'm paying double the price, for double the blade. I really don't care. I don't want to have to mess around with something as simple as a wiper blade.

 

No inclusion of adapters, as they are intended as a direct fit to the most common mounting option

Bosch mount with #6 TopLock/Denso adapter on the drivers side. It sits a bit higher, but I'll take it! It's a good blade.

Sorry, but I am confused. You did need the adapter for the drivers side? And it came with the wiper blade? Thanks for the helpful post!

 

I gave up and just paid Subaru for OEM blades, a little pricey but a perfect fit and they last 3 years, which is really good in AZ.

 

Having read through this thread I know what I'll be doing.

First I'll be reading the warranty for the 2024 myself and verify that they are still covered for the first three years, and then about a year from now (bought the 2024 three weeks ago) I'll buy a pair of the subaru ones to store in the car until needed. If I'm near a dealer when I need new blades I'll let them do them for free, but the price of the subaru blades are cheaper than what I've been paying for high end blades that I put on my other cars and probably not worth the hassle of waiting for a dealer to put them on for free.

When I read about Subaru requiring you to use their blades I expected them to be $25 -30 each, surprised that the price was actually reasonable.

 

I recently purchased third party blades and have had good luck with this set. Took two minutes to pop on once I had the right angle.

No issues with EyeSight or any of the safety systems.

Replacement Blades

 

If you're in Canada, Canadian Tire Reflex wipers are available for all 3 positions. My car came with new front wipers, so I have only verified the rear wiper fitment.

Ivan MacKenzie.

 

Wow! What a stupidly long thread (NO offense to the people here... it's Subaru that I am growing to despise. It wipers! I've changed wipers for decades on other cars with no problems. Wasting too much time with this goofy connector.

And on the rear wiper...

Subaru's website for the 2020 Outback says it's 14".

2020 Subaru Outback Base Glass Wiper Blade Refill. Windshield Wiper Blade Refill. 14 Wiper Blade - SOA591R614 - Genuine Subaru Part

Glass Wiper Blade Refill. Windshield Wiper Blade Refill. 14 Wiper Blade (Rear, Back). 2020 Subaru Outback Base. Genuine Subaru Part - SOA591R614 (86548XA09A, SOA591R514)

parts.subaru.com

A SUBARU dealer's website says 16 inch.

Subaru Wiper Blade Rear - SOA591R616 | Subaru Online Parts

Buy Subaru Wiper Blade Rear - PN: SOA591R616 online! Choose SubaruOnlineParts for affordable oem parts & save up to $4.36. Order Now!

www.subaruonlineparts.com

As does Trico. WTF?! I called subaru corporate - who's right - your website or dealer's. I want to buy online and install it myself. Oh we'll get back to you.

They reply a couple days later:

Thank you for contacting Subaru of America Inc. Please reach out to a Subaru retailer and they will be able to further assist you and provide the correct wiper blade size you would need.

So they don't care if their website is inaccurate?

My wife likes the car itself, but we've had to call corporate several times in these 3 years.... and I don't think it ever was a smooth resolution.

 

What is a third party wiper blade? If OEM is first party then aftermarket would be second party, or am I missing something? If aftermarket is third party, what blades are second party? Is someone at Subaru selling black market OEM blades under a different name? Busaru maybe? Or Usarub? If so, and if it can save me a buck or three, I want some.

 

I measured my 2020 Outback rear wiper and it's 16" not 14"

 

Such a simple solution.

Front Passenger 18 inch - Click Here (Use included adapter 6)
Front Driver 26 inch - Click Here (Use included adapter 6)
Rear 16 inch - Click Here (No adapter included nor needed)

 

@SilverOnyx yes that simplifies things : ) Measuring. But 'that's not the point'. Would you expect the manufacturer to have the correct info on their website?

@Alex_W Yeah, I've wondered that too - why are aftermarket always called third party, not 2nd party.

Goolging, there's loads of pages about 3rd party vs. oem.

A quick look and I only see 1 about 2nd party vs. oem:

Third-party lens vs second-party lens vs OEM lens: Open Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

Expert news, reviews and videos of the latest digital cameras, lenses, accessories, and phones. Get answers to your questions in our photography forums.

www.dpreview.com

related to contact lenses: 2nd party lenses would be a lens that is designed by say Nikon but licensed to be manufactured by someone else (eg Sigma), as opposed to a 3rd party lens which is designed and manufactured by someone like Sigma.

Oh, and they talk about 2nd part and third party checks!? (financial checks)...

 

@SilverOnyx yes that simplifies things : ) Measuring. But 'that's not the point'. Would you expect the manufacturer to have the correct info on their website?

I understand that a manufacturer's website should be 100% accurate but this is reality. If information has a discrepancy sometimes it's easy to figure out what's what, like measuring a wiper blade, but sometimes it's much more difficult.

If we insist on perfection we will be no doubt disappointed. To think that Subaru "doesn't care" when 99.99% of the parts are correct but for whatever reason some of them are bizarrely wrong, is a reach.

Of course Subaru wants their website to be correct. Suppose they provided a button to click "report wrong information" they will be flooded with people insisting things are wrong when they're actually right. It's not a simple task to keep millions of parts correct - it's not as if Subaru employees make the website directly - no doubt they hire a subcontractor that might even use overseas labor to do data entry.

I think we're making a mountain out of a molehill here.

 

@wtumrd0 here's the links.

@SilverOnyx certain don't expect things to be 100% correct! At the same time (my psychologist says that's better to say than 'but'), when someone takes the time to point out confusion / an error, they ignore it / no interest in fixing it. THAT'S what I take issue with. And this is a common thread with Subaru. Again, the car is great. It's calls to corporate that disappoint. Consistently.


Subaru's website for the 2020 Outback says it's 14".

2020 Subaru Outback Base Glass Wiper Blade Refill. Windshield Wiper Blade Refill. 14 Wiper Blade - SOA591R614 - Genuine Subaru Part
Glass Wiper Blade Refill. Windshield Wiper Blade Refill. 14 Wiper Blade (Rear, Back). 2020 Subaru Outback Base. Genuine Subaru Part - SOA591R614 (86548XA09A, SOA591R514)
parts.subaru.com

A SUBARU dealer's website says 16 inch.

Subaru Wiper Blade Rear - SOA591R616 | Subaru Online Parts
Shop Subaru Wiper Blade Rear - PN: SOA591R616 online! Choose SubaruOnlineParts for affordable oem parts & save up to $4.36. Order Now!

www.subaruonlineparts.com

 

From a psychological perspective, if you hold a corporation on a pedestal, it's easy to be disappointed/disillusioned and feel betrayed. The world's largest most high tech corporations do many screw-ups, so much so that one might even think it's their business model.

Intel, Microsoft, Boeing, Google, Tesla, Apple - and in the big picture, there are some kinds of screw-ups that have more impact than others. Getting the windshield refill wrong on the parts website could indeed cause someone to buy the wrong insert. I get it. But when I searched for wiper blades on Subaru's parts website that item didn't come up for me - in fact I couldn't find any wiper blades. Maybe it's my lack of skill in finding the parts, or maybe the way the website is set-up is just awful, but it it is what it is and I just find work-arounds for the realities of an imperfect world, and it's frustrating. I get it. Something that should be so simple conceptually, just in the real world somehow get missed. It just seems so bone-headed. Google's own guidance on their products are so out of date that they tell you to use options that no longer exist, things like that.

I'm not trying to defend Subaru - I too wish they were "better" and I feel the same way about almost everything. But to me it's like wishing I didn't have to watch out for pests in my garden. One simply has to deal with the limitations of whatever it is.

If that's a litmus test for you I guess you can check the parts websites of other brands and find the ones that have the correct refills listed and buy that brand of car? (tongue in cheek obviously)

 

The key to happiness is to keep your expectations low. Not just regarding automobiles, but in all things. By expecting below average performance/behavior/durability or whatever you can be assured that you will be pleasantly surprised most of the time. High expectations, on the other hand, will more often lead to disappointment. The higher the standards, the greater the likelihood that they will not be met.

The people that one meets who profess to have "very high standards" or who "demand excellence" tend to be miserable jerks. This is the cumulative effect of perpetual disappointment.

Think about it.

As for wiper blade fitment; What kind of man does not own duct tape?

 

I always figured Subaru was the first party of the sale contract, I was the second party, and whoever supplies the non-OEM part is the third party.

 

NAPA's exact fit works the best; it is OE equipt.

 

The Bosch front wipers are also OE and exact fit. The rear window is an exact fit, too.