E90 Windscreen wash jets

[Benny Pavier]

Afternoon guys,

A bit of advice need please, I went to use my screen washers the other day to clear the windscreen and they do work, but the fluid is coming out in but dribbles... so I thought maybe they were frozen but after pouring warm water on them no improvement.

The pump does appear to be working as I can hear it, but not drawing enough fluid through.

I've heard about a filter which could be blocked and is located with the bottle under the off side front arch liner?

Any ideas totally appreciated...

Cheers,

[mattman]

Benny - had exactly the same problem on my E39 - 1st check the pipes under the bonnet that none have popped - if they are ok, remove the wheel and arch liner to get to the washer bottle - mine was behind the drivers side wheel against the bulkhead - there were 3x pumps for me - the middle one was the washer jets - just took the pump out - you have to lift up and out - then removed the rubber grommit the pump sits it - that had got bunged up - and rubbed to clean.

You'll know when its OK as the water suddenly starts flowing out quite heavily.

Good luck - should be a 20-30min job with luck

[Benny Pavier]

mattman said:

Benny - had exactly the same problem on my E39 - 1st check the pipes under the bonnet that none have popped - if they are ok, remove the wheel and arch liner to get to the washer bottle - mine was behind the drivers side wheel against the bulkhead - there were 3x pumps for me - the middle one was the washer jets - just took the pump out - you have to lift up and out - then removed the rubber grommit the pump sits it - that had got bunged up - and rubbed to clean.

You'll know when its OK as the water suddenly starts flowing out quite heavily.

Good luck - should be a 20-30min job with luck

Cheers for the help mate, well see how it goes this weekend... when it first happened my heart sunk... and i started to think lots of money would be needed lol

but hopefully it'll be a easy one!

Thanks again for the help man!

[pete]

This is a common problem by all accounts, and of course only happens when you need your washer jets the most! You need to get the washer tank out and clear all the gunk out from around the filter and pump as the previous poster says. Unfortunately to do that on my E91 you first have to remove the front under-tray and driver's side wheel arch liner, which makes a simple job into a couple of hours of grovelling around on the garage floor.

My dealer told me it was common if you use concentrated screenwash, as the concentrate precipitates out of solution or just doesn't dissolve properly in the first place. Since I've used ready mixed stuff, the problem hasn't recurred.

Incidentally my dealer refused to sort this under warranty, citing my failure to use BMW screenwash. BMW UK said the same

Cheers,
Pete

[Benny Pavier]

pete said:

This is a common problem by all accounts, and of course only happens when you need your washer jets the most! You need to get the washer tank out and clear all the gunk out from around the filter and pump as the previous poster says. Unfortunately to do that on my E91 you first have to remove the front under-tray and driver's side wheel arch liner, which makes a simple job into a couple of hours of grovelling around on the garage floor.

My dealer told me it was common if you use concentrated screenwash, as the concentrate precipitates out of solution or just doesn't dissolve properly in the first place. Since I've used ready mixed stuff, the problem hasn't recurred.

Incidentally my dealer refused to sort this under warranty, citing my failure to use BMW screenwash. BMW UK said the same

Cheers,
Pete

H'mm Cheers Pete,

Interesting point there, would squirting a hose pipe or pressure washer down the pipe possibly clear it?

I'd rather not start taking arch liners out.

Regards,

[Benny Pavier]

pete said:

This is a common problem by all accounts, and of course only happens when you need your washer jets the most! You need to get the washer tank out and clear all the gunk out from around the filter and pump as the previous poster says. Unfortunately to do that on my E91 you first have to remove the front under-tray and driver's side wheel arch liner, which makes a simple job into a couple of hours of grovelling around on the garage floor.

My dealer told me it was common if you use concentrated screenwash, as the concentrate precipitates out of solution or just doesn't dissolve properly in the first place. Since I've used ready mixed stuff, the problem hasn't recurred.

Incidentally my dealer refused to sort this under warranty, citing my failure to use BMW screenwash. BMW UK said the same

Cheers,
Pete

H'mm Cheers Pete,

Interesting point there, would squirting a hose pipe or pressure washer down the pipe possibly clear it?

I'd rather not start taking arch liners out.

Regards,

[mattman]

wouldn't think it would work to be honest - the gunk would have to go somewhere so if you don't remove it it won't have anywhere to go?

Guess you'd need to run the tank as dry as possible as well to make sure you get to the bits you need?

Also the distance between the filler top and the tank is quite a bit so not sure if you'd still get the pressure you need at the point you need it?

Of course, I'm probably talking total bks! its got to be worth a try before getting the spanners out

[pattyg]

This happened to my car just after I got it...it is not an easy fix cleaning out the resevoir by all accounts.