As the title says, my front screen washers have stopped working. I still have the noise of the pump and a tiny dribble of water from the driver's side jet, but not enough to reach the screen. (06 reg 1.1 in case that makes any difference)
My guesses are:-
A. There's a blockage somewhere in the system?

B. There's a leak?
or

C. The pump isn't working properly?

The rear washer works ok (well, enough to do the job anyway) so that suggests to me that the pump isn't completely goosed.

So what would you experts suggest, and is fixing it a viable task for someone with basic tools and limited mechanical experience? (but reasonably practically minded)
Any links to guides, videos etc would be welcome. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Hi. As the rear washer is still working the pump and it's pickup in the reservoir are probably Ok. although the pump runs one way (say clockwise) for front and the other (say anticlockwise) for the rear (can't actually say which way is which) So it's most probably a blockage in either the nozzles or pipe to the front. If it's a broken pipe I would expect to see water dribbling under the car when the motor is pumping?

The reservoir hides under the driver's front wing and you'll need to peel back the arch liner to get at it (I've never had to access ours so don't know how much is involved in that) I'd first try sticking a fine needle into the spray nozzles and giving them a jiggle. If it then sprays you know you've found it. However it may block up again very quickly due to residue in the pipes. You should be able to pull the pipes off and try pumping again to clear them - be careful not to damage the hard plastic parts. If all else fails then you'll have to bite the bullet and go for the pump on the reservoir under the wing.

By the way, it's not unusual for "organic gunge" to build up in the reservoir tank if you never clean it out which will block up the fine filter on the pump intake. Using a quality additive - NEVER dishwashing liquid - can delay this but won't stop it altogether. I stick my garden hose into the reservoir - right to the bottom - and flush it out a couple of times a year which stops this happening. A proper additive will also have a lubricant which will greatly benefit the pump too.

Whereabouts are you?

If you've left it out on a frosty night without sufficient additives in the screenwash, you've likely found the cause of your troubles.

The Panda screenwash system is susceptible to frost damage; functionality does not always return once thawed out.

The jets can be rotated 180 degrees using a screwdriver into the end of them. This is the normal adjustment process, but turning them around allows the water pressure to push out any gunge stuck behind the tiny holes.

But! That might make them loose, requiring new ones, so turn with care.

There used to be a problem with the little cylinder with the holes in gently pushing out sideways. Usually this would cause a bigger 'jet', but insufficient pressure to hit the screen, but can in just the right place stop the flow. Chance of that happening on both at once is low.

The plastic panel they are fitted to can be lifted (a few screws) to access the pipes. Pull off the pipes and see if the motor pushes gunge out. If motor runs but pressure is too low, needs a new pump. Usually a whole pump/reservoir unit, so eBay might be the source for a pump only.

jrkitching said:

Whereabouts are you?

If you've left it out on a frosty night without sufficient additives in the screenwash, you've likely found the cause of your troubles.

The Panda screenwash system is susceptible to frost damage; functionality does not always return once thawed out.

Click to expand...

Oh yes. By the way, never operate the pump if you suspect the fluid may be frozen. Sure fire way to wreck the pump. - And, whilst on the subject, if it's frosty just lift each wiper blade from the screen to check if it's frozen to the screen BEFORE turning anything on. With modern self parking wipers, once triggered, even if you immediately release the stalk/turn off the switch, the blades need to complete a cycle before the power is switched off to the motor. If the blades can't move you are either going to burn out the motor or damage the arms/cranks/gearing.

Thanks for the replies so far. I'll see if any of those do the job as soon as I have the time.
The car is parked outside but I'm sure I've never tried to use the washer in icy weather. This current problem occurred a few weeks ago and we hadn't seen any frost or ice for a while then.
I've always used proper screen wash, never household washing up liquid in the 3 years+ of ownership.

Just one supplementary question; is the plastic panel at the base of the screen not attached to the rubber windscreen seal? Wouldn't want to cause more damage trying to fix one problem.

try pushing a pin down the jets. Doubt all 6 would block at the same time.

Hi Ratchart

From the symptoms it sounds like the passenger side washer jet feed pipe has come off somewhere below the windscreen, they can get hard and lose grip over time and pop off under pressure. you might find that when you run the washers it filling the area under the screen and is not dribbling out under the car as your duckbills are blocked too.

I hope this helps

Tim

ratchart said:

Just one supplementary question; is the plastic panel at the base of the screen not attached to the rubber windscreen seal? Wouldn't want to cause more damage trying to fix one problem.

Click to expand...

No. It has its own seal against the screen, it just lifts off. Might be able to get enough access without removing the wiper arms.

Thanks all, just need to find the time to do it now.

Progress report:-

I got the hoses off and the main hose from the washer bottle gushes water like a good 'un, and the hoses to the jets have no blockages so the problem seems to be the Y shaped connector between them. I tried washing it out in warm water and there's a slight improvement in flow now (at least the water reaches the bottom of the screen) but probably not good enough for MOT.

Does anybody know the part number for the Y shaped connector? I can't find any numbers on it, just says "Sweden" on the bottom.

What we see there is actually two pieces. The elbow part is listed as a connection, 71732948, and the divider is listed as 'valve' 7667888.

With the pipe off, what you may see is plenty of flow, but not pressure. Might still be a failing pump.
To confirm which, can you by-pass the splitter, and connect the pump to either or both jets, and see if pressure is adequate.
Whilst the rear washer works, it has one hole, I think, so puts less restriction on the flow, and only has to allow water to dribble down the back, so working ok may mask a failing pump.

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