3 Series Headlamp Washers, Fell To Bits In Snow
Discussion
We have a 2009 335i that was fitted with headlamp washers, I say was but now they are both missing along with the bumper covers.
It seems that what has happened is that due to the recent snow on the bumper / possible freezing of the washer fluid within them, they have parted company with the car.
The car was in for a service last week and the problem was reported to the service agent who advised that replacement would cost about £250 and was not covered by warrenty! I decided to call BMW customer services who also refused the warrenty claim and said that the freezing of the pipes was due to not having used the recommened BMW washer adative which includes a anti-freeze agent. I asked if it was possible to disable the washers to which they replied it was as legal requirement with zenon lights so it was not possible to disable them.
They also advised clearing the snow from the bumper before each journey to allow operation of the washers!!
Anyone else suffered from this?
It seems that what has happened is that due to the recent snow on the bumper / possible freezing of the washer fluid within them, they have parted company with the car.
The car was in for a service last week and the problem was reported to the service agent who advised that replacement would cost about £250 and was not covered by warrenty! I decided to call BMW customer services who also refused the warrenty claim and said that the freezing of the pipes was due to not having used the recommened BMW washer adative which includes a anti-freeze agent. I asked if it was possible to disable the washers to which they replied it was as legal requirement with zenon lights so it was not possible to disable them.
They also advised clearing the snow from the bumper before each journey to allow operation of the washers!!
Anyone else suffered from this?
How do they operate? On the e46 they are recessed under the light and the washer unit comes out on a stalk when washing. I have lost the caps that cover these stalks before (popped/snapped off). New caps came to around £2 each iirc from BMW which come primed (they're so small that you can rattle can them up).
Has not happened on current car (2009 330i coupe) but has happened on previous cars (2001 330Ci and on 1999 318Ti). It also emptied the washer bottle all over the road after becoming disconnected in the ice - not good for a clear screen. I thought the problem would have been designed out by now. In both case it was fixed free of charge - which suggests costs on those cars were more in line with the previous poster.
It happened to me yesterday. I've a 2008 M sport 325i which had been on my driveway for 2 weeks. I managed to drive to work on Monday and then noticed both washer units had gone missing. Took it to BMW today as I thought it had to be a fault with the design, and they claim it must have be vandalised, costing £300.00 to fix! They said they knew of the caps popping out but not with the the jets. A joke!!
Edited by thebeetleking on Wednesday 13th January 14:32
Edited by thebeetleking on Wednesday 13th January 16:50
Don't know if this will be the same or of any use http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&am... doesn't look too bad as a diy or local (cheaper) garage.
And to follow on from what Sticks posted above from the z4-forum, once fixed I'd suggest deactivating the headlamp washers to stop it happening again. I've done it with mine on my Z4 - I found them bloody useless anyway - by removing the appropriate fuse, hence easily reversible for MOTs etc. I was just paranoid about losing a cover from one.
They were also a problem on a previous car: Clio 172 which ejects the "balls" in the headlamp wash on a frequent basis. I can understand Renault getting it wrong but not BMW - even my mate's J-reg Pug 405 SRI's headlamp washers still work and that's a 20-year old design FFS!
They were also a problem on a previous car: Clio 172 which ejects the "balls" in the headlamp wash on a frequent basis. I can understand Renault getting it wrong but not BMW - even my mate's J-reg Pug 405 SRI's headlamp washers still work and that's a 20-year old design FFS!
baz_4 said:
Guys, any update on this? will BMW cover it??
As it seems to be caused by the cold weather, how can BMW give a guarantee on it if you didnt have the correct mix of antifreeze in the screen wash and it would be almost impossible for you to prove that you did.....so i doubt very much that they will fix it free, unless you can prove it was caused by something else, that was a fault of theirs....Morning,
I got a call from my dealer last night, they said bmw would not pay but I should call customer services on 0870 5050160 as it is going to cost me over £300 plus vat. In their opinion BMW should pay and they had told 'a lot' of people the same thing.
I have just called them, spoke to a very nice lady who said that the stance was that it was not their fault. I had a nice chat with her and asked to be escalated to someone else as bits falling off a £40k car at the onset of a little snow is hardly fair. She came back to me and said that they were reviewing it (they have had a lot of calls) and will ocme back to me by the end of the day.
So, if you are in this situation please call customer services on 0870 5050160
Let me know how you get on.
Cheers
D
I got a call from my dealer last night, they said bmw would not pay but I should call customer services on 0870 5050160 as it is going to cost me over £300 plus vat. In their opinion BMW should pay and they had told 'a lot' of people the same thing.
I have just called them, spoke to a very nice lady who said that the stance was that it was not their fault. I had a nice chat with her and asked to be escalated to someone else as bits falling off a £40k car at the onset of a little snow is hardly fair. She came back to me and said that they were reviewing it (they have had a lot of calls) and will ocme back to me by the end of the day.
So, if you are in this situation please call customer services on 0870 5050160
Let me know how you get on.
Cheers
D
2008 320i m coupe, both popped off on motorway the garage were going to cover the warranty work, but I ended up trading it in before the repair. Initially they said it was vandalism but after a chat they agreed it might happen.. I've had lots of cars with headlight washers and none have failed before - it must be poor design.
Edited by brenflys777 on Sunday 24th January 11:15
Still happening...http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=72&t=947349&mid=185814&nmt=Headlamp%20Washers
Does disconnecting the fuse actually stop the caps from falling out? I thought it was the pressure from the screenwash freezing and not the acutal use of the washer which caused the issue?
Does disconnecting the fuse actually stop the caps from falling out? I thought it was the pressure from the screenwash freezing and not the acutal use of the washer which caused the issue?
I am sure the pressure from the ice freezing isn't enough to make them pop off.
On the same subject I found that my windscreen wipers stopped working completely about a week ago after 80 miles of a 110 mile trip. When I got home I noticed the spray units had come out the bumper, had sprayed fine and then frozen into a big blob of ice and so they wouldn't retract into the bumper. For some reason the windscreen wipers stopped too.
I got a couple of bottles of hot water onto them and they popped back in with no damage.
I thought the car was useless in the cold, the heated washer jets have about as much warmth as Anne Robinson and the heated mirrors are hopeless too. My old golf used to be no problem, everything would be heated enough to thaw and use without a problem. Instead the BM just froze, and it was more dangerous as it made you stop to clear the screen.
The crux is these are German cars, where temps can be far lower, so why is a new car going backwards on a car from 1994?
I would keep pushing on those claims with BMW with not fit for purpose argument under the sale of goods act, it seems resonable a car would not damage itself under normal operating conditions.
On the same subject I found that my windscreen wipers stopped working completely about a week ago after 80 miles of a 110 mile trip. When I got home I noticed the spray units had come out the bumper, had sprayed fine and then frozen into a big blob of ice and so they wouldn't retract into the bumper. For some reason the windscreen wipers stopped too.
I got a couple of bottles of hot water onto them and they popped back in with no damage.
I thought the car was useless in the cold, the heated washer jets have about as much warmth as Anne Robinson and the heated mirrors are hopeless too. My old golf used to be no problem, everything would be heated enough to thaw and use without a problem. Instead the BM just froze, and it was more dangerous as it made you stop to clear the screen.
The crux is these are German cars, where temps can be far lower, so why is a new car going backwards on a car from 1994?
I would keep pushing on those claims with BMW with not fit for purpose argument under the sale of goods act, it seems resonable a car would not damage itself under normal operating conditions.
Like I said in a previous post a few weeks back I have had this problem on a 06 e92.
Before I told the dealer this was an 06 model they asked me to take the car in and they would test the concentration of the screen wash and if all was well they would replace foc, once I told them this car was over 3 yrs old that was the end of that.
At the same time one of my main wipers also stopped working and I could see that liquid was coming out but not from the wiper jets, I took the plastic cover off and found that one of the pipes has come of the jet mechanism. This just slips in and could come off very easily again however its an easy fix.
This was again down to the freezing weather, now I am putting 2 bottles of BMW screenwash to every tank and have had no more problems.
Before I told the dealer this was an 06 model they asked me to take the car in and they would test the concentration of the screen wash and if all was well they would replace foc, once I told them this car was over 3 yrs old that was the end of that.
At the same time one of my main wipers also stopped working and I could see that liquid was coming out but not from the wiper jets, I took the plastic cover off and found that one of the pipes has come of the jet mechanism. This just slips in and could come off very easily again however its an easy fix.
This was again down to the freezing weather, now I am putting 2 bottles of BMW screenwash to every tank and have had no more problems.
BMW dealers almost always won't fix it free of charge for you if this happens if you are not using correct strength screenwash. BMW warranty are not paying the dealers to repair this unless they have tested the screenwash and found it to be the correct freeze protection.
The problem is most people don't want to pay BMW prices for screenwash when they can buy other brands or put something else in the bottle to clean the screen. Trouble is although other stuff is cheaper it does not always stop freezing to much extent. Other chemicals and washing up liquid etc usually end up blocking the bottle and washer pump filters, usually costing lots to fix too.
From experiance its better and cheaper in the long run to use BMW fluid and mix correct ratio and i have not had any problems at all since sticking to this.
The problem is most people don't want to pay BMW prices for screenwash when they can buy other brands or put something else in the bottle to clean the screen. Trouble is although other stuff is cheaper it does not always stop freezing to much extent. Other chemicals and washing up liquid etc usually end up blocking the bottle and washer pump filters, usually costing lots to fix too.
From experiance its better and cheaper in the long run to use BMW fluid and mix correct ratio and i have not had any problems at all since sticking to this.
Does anyone have any info on repairing the passenger side headlamp wash on 99 328ci. The problem with mine doesnt appear to be the actual jet that pops out the front but maybe a pipe or connector as the bottle is emptying from behind the headlight washer jet/bumper. I cant see exactly where this is but dont know how to get to it to look.
Is it bumper off? headlight out? if so is this a difficult job to do?
Is it bumper off? headlight out? if so is this a difficult job to do?
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