[Edd Beesley]

I thought I’d run out of screen wash, topped it up and then tried to clean the screen - nothing front or back. I don’t hear the pump trying to run, has anyone else had this failure, and or know where the pump is and how to access/replace it?

 

[dk6780]

The pump is just in front of the o/s front wheel - you need to ideally remove the front bumper (a major task) or the front splash guard in the front wheel well at the bottom by the front bumper and you will see and just about be able to reach it through the gap. It "just" plugs in and out but there is a retaining catch at the top which is very stiff.

Before getting desperate and rolling around on the floor, have you tried disconnecting the washer tube and blowing air back down the system. It isn't unknown for screenwash to crystalise if you mix different types which on a secondhand car is bound to happen. try and blow it back through with an airline.

The pump itself is cheap. Also check the fuse (third from bottom right in "glovebox" fuses - 10 A).

I hope that you don't have to change it!

EDIT - all of the above is on Sunderland built cars - yours may be different if it is a Japanese one

 

[Edd Beesley]

Thanks @dk6780 , it is the Japanese spec car but hopefully similar. Fuses and crystal gunk sound good places to start!

 

[Drewby80]

Thanks @dk6780 , it is the Japanese spec car but hopefully similar. Fuses and crystal gunk sound good places to start!

I had the screenwash pump pack up in my X1 BMW some years ago.

I eventually found out that BMW in their infinite wisdom put a pre filter IN THE BOTTLE BEFORE THE PUMP! (where it was totally inaccessible without removing the inner wing) 🤬

This was blocked with crystallised screen wash as described above.

I used air to free it up a bit and get it to trickle (also as described above).

I eventually got it to unblock by siphoning all of the old screen wash out of the bottle and then putting a couple of litres of deionised water in there which I had pre heated with a saucepan to about 45’c or so.

This dissolved the blockage in the filter in under 2 minutes of pulsing the pump.

It’s always the simplest things that are the biggest pain in the arse!

May be worth a try prior to getting the spanners out if you can get any flow through the pump.

 

[Edd Beesley]

Well, fuse is intact so it's not that. If it's blocked would I hear the pump trying (I don't) or does the pump just stall instantly and make no noise? MOT due in a few weeks so really needs fixing!

 

[The Disconnector]

Well, fuse is intact so it's not that. If it's blocked would I hear the pump trying (I don't) or does the pump just stall instantly and make no noise? MOT due in a few weeks so really needs fixing!

The pump should run blocked, empty or whatever.

 

[Edd Beesley]

Got the (assume!) defective pump out today. Tried taking the scuttle panel at front of the engine bay - doesn’t help at all. Went for the wheel arch liner, power connector came off ok, pump then just pulls out with a bit of force. Tried applying 12v to the pins on the extracted pump, nothing happens and a continuity tester reads a dead short across the pins (not sure if that’s normal for a DC pump like this though). Just trying to source a suitable replacement now.

 

[srichards]

Halfords have universal pumps from what I remember. Should do the job ok if you can't get a Nissan specific one quickly enough.

 

[Johnno83]

Got the (assume!) defective pump out today. Tried taking the scuttle panel at front of the engine bay - doesn’t help at all. Went for the wheel arch liner, power connector came off ok, pump then just pulls out with a bit of force. Tried applying 12v to the pins on the extracted pump, nothing happens and a continuity tester reads a dead short across the pins (not sure if that’s normal for a DC pump like this though). Just trying to source a suitable replacement now.

Edd any pointers for removing the wheel arch liner? My wife clipped a dog the other day (not her fault and long story, but the dog is ok!) and the o/s front drl is hanging off and the screenwashers don't work! It leaked all the screenwash fluid out onto the road but I need to get under and look to see what has actually happened.

 

[Edd Beesley]

Sure, turn that wheel out, then there’s a series of push rivets (or pop clips) to remove, which is easy enough with a medium sized flat blade screwdriver, but expect to have to replace a few as they go brittle with age. The liner has a kind of fold at the top the arch, I didn’t remove the liner, just took out enough clips (about six) in the arch, and where the liner wraps under the front bumper. There’s also some (I think) 10mm bolts here, but mine were rusted to hell, and when applying some torque either snapped or started spinning the clips. I left them alone, and so could really remove the liner, just push it down at the “fold”, and made enough space to get in.

your scenario there’s three possibilities
1) the hoses going to front/rear screen came loose, and with the liner bent you can reconnect them, they are just push fit. Least likely I’d say, as mine were on very tight

2) the pump was popped off the side of the tank during impact and the pump is now just hanging free. I think that’s most likely, as there’s no fittings or fixings to hold it in, just an interference fit into a rubber bung

3) the bottle split on impact, if yours is an older car it could be brittle. If this is the case you will need to remove the bumper, no way to replace it via the wheel arch.

hope that helps!

for me I tried to order a pump from my local Parker’s today, they wanted £64. Tried online and have one on the way for £20.

 

[Johnno83]

Sure, turn that wheel out, then there’s a series of push rivets (or pop clips) to remove, which is easy enough with a medium sized flat blade screwdriver, but expect to have to replace a few as they go brittle with age. The liner has a kind of fold at the top the arch, I didn’t remove the liner, just took out enough clips (about six) in the arch, and where the liner wraps under the front bumper. There’s also some (I think) 10mm bolts here, but mine were rusted to hell, and when applying some torque either snapped or started spinning the clips. I left them alone, and so could really remove the liner, just push it down at the “fold”, and made enough space to get in.

your scenario there’s three possibilities
1) the hoses going to front/rear screen came loose, and with the liner bent you can reconnect them, they are just push fit. Least likely I’d say, as mine were on very tight

2) the pump was popped off the side of the tank during impact and the pump is now just hanging free. I think that’s most likely, as there’s no fittings or fixings to hold it in, just an interference fit into a rubber bung

3) the bottle split on impact, if yours is an older car it could be brittle. If this is the case you will need to remove the bumper, no way to replace it via the wheel arch.

hope that helps!

for me I tried to order a pump from my local Parker’s today, they wanted £64. Tried online and have one on the way for £20.

Mega thanks!