Intermittant Wipers and Water all over windscreen on heavy braking

[Kazumz]

So after all the talk about Scuttle panels, when I brake hard, water sprays all over the windscreen, even on a dry day from the left and right side of the windscreen.

My wipers also stop on medium speed whenever they please. It used to be fast mode, but now it's happening on medium speed. Is this the dreaded drainage holes causing damage?

 

[montana]

If there's water in there it's likely to be submerging the wiper electrics , get it sorted asap

 

[Jimmy]

Does sounds like the drainage holes may be blocked and have caused damage - have you checked them to see if they are, or checked for water in the wells?

 

[Chris]

Sounds so. Easy to check, there's a guide in how to!

 

[Kazumz]

So all, I've just confirmed they are indeed blocked.

About half of the scuttle it filled with water, just below the wiper wires. I've rammed a long screw driver in there and moved it around without damaging the pipe, managed to drain a fair bit but it's only going to rain again soon.

I'm going to do it tomorrow. Any ideas what I should use to unblock the holes? Something that can't damage but strong enough to shift it?

 

[Jimmy]

Someone recently suggested Mr Muscle drain cleaner?? Or if you have a hose pipe, a flow of water, but nothing too powerful obviously. Perhaps get your fingers in there first to shift as much muck as you can.

 

[Kazumz]

Well...

I've done both sides this morning, took about an hour. They're not spotless but they're unblocked and I've cleaned and oiled the top mounts and surrounding areas.

I used Drain cleaner but not for the 30 minutes specified on the bottle as I was worried it would eat through the rubber piping. After 10 minutes I poured hot water down there with soap and it all just dropped through. Hell of a mess, my hands were beaten and stinking, it's just a horrendous job. It's not just the pipe you've got to unblock but cleaning the entire area both sides.

For all the nervous DIY mechanics, it's mega easy. You only need to take the top of the scuttle panel off, not the entire thing, so it's one clip each side, not two.

People need to be more aware of this as I found my top mounts rusting. The car has only got 25k on it!

Wipers are difficult to get off as they seize on. A few smacks with the palm of your hands will shift them.

There's about three inches of water in the picture above. I could submerge my entire fist in water.

 

[Kazumz]

I'd like to announce that my wipers are working on fast mode and medium mode again!

Consider that a symptom.