wipers and water

[andymw54]

1.9 DCI, 2006.
I have two problems
1,the wipers have stopped working on auto/intermitant and on the low speed,they work on the very fas speed but do not park, has anyone had this problem
how do I go about sorting it without the cost of a garage.
2, There is a water leak into the footwell of the car that looks to be coming from the centre atound the heater/fan, it is clean water so it is not a leak from the heter matrix I suspect through the fan , is ther a drain that is blocked or any other help would be welcome.

[Toodeep]

You might find that water has collected in the bulkhead well below the windscreen where the wiper motor is situated. The drain holes get blocked with leaves and dirt quite readily so you'll have to find the drain holes and poke them through. Presumably the water then overflows, ending up in the car. I sealed the join between the base of the windscreen and the shield with clear silicone - the shield can be lifted just enough while in situ. This seems to have stopped a lot of the water which runs down the screen into the well.

In my case the wiper motor had failed completely so I had to change it. Someone else may know whether it's possible to fix yours and how.

If you have to get another motor, I got one secondhand from JustRenaults who I found through www.partsgateway.co.uk

I paid about £60 against £150 for a new one but in my case it came with the linkage attached (a separate component from Renault) which saved a bit of work.

[tyler_565]

i had same problem on a 306 had to get a new motor so sounds like the motor has gone. around £60 for a decent second hand one. as off water leak, i aint to sure mate.

[andymw54]

Thanks for the help, I removed wiper blades and the plastic cover to find the starboard side drain blocked,this was rodded out and is now OK.the car is parked on a side slope with this drain and the wiper moter downward so the motor was submerged whe parked, also the air inlet to the car is around this point so this is where the watrer gained access to the inside of the car. The wiper moter as I said is working on the high speed without self parking so I will give it a week or two to see if it will dry out.
Thanks Andy.

[Toodeep]

Good spot. I'm gonna suggest you get yourself a bottle of RainX as the wiper motor is just as likely to go the other way and stop altogether as fix itself. On my goddaughter's car, she reported the wipers "acting funny" a few days before they packed up. I smeared RainX over the screen in the hope it would get her out of trouble in the event it rained before I could fix it. This was, I admit, pretty irresponsible and highly illegal but it worked well during a brief shower. She said (in her own way) that the water just beaded up and blew away.

I got the replacement motor the next day using the site I mentioned in my previous post.

Good luck,
Alan

[andymw54]

I ordered a wiper motor complete from the above web link on next day delivery, it arrived without problem. I removed the original wiper system (three bolts) but before replacing with the new item I removed the plastic cover over the gearbox to find a couple of wiper contacts that looked clean and OK, there is one more contact that connects to earth that was quite dirty so this was cleaned then the lid was replaced using silicon to seal it up. I then plugged the motor to the electrics and rested it in place for a trial run to find that it is now working fine. It looks like a small amount of water may have got into the gearbox area and caused corrosion at the earth contact area. I have now replaced the original back on the car and all is well.
I have a spare motor/gearbox if anyone wants one

[Toodeep]

It's unreal how many issues these cars have with water. Anyone would think they were built in Saudi Arabia! Renault missed a trick in their ads when likening the Megane to women with, shall we say, ample 'junk in their trunk'. They could also have mentioned it'll end up with more silicone than Pamela Anderson.

[andymw54]

Good point well put.

[andymw54]

The problem reoccurred, so the motor was again removed , I took the cover of the motor (two screws) to find that there was a rusty water line in the inside of the cover so the motor had had some water ingress, the rusty water had got to one of the thee brushes and sized the brush in the holder. Everything was cleaned and reassembled, the motor now works.

[Ski22]

My car is a 53 plate, 1.6 Dynamique.

I have both these exact problems! So glad I found this thread! However, as this is my first car and I know extremely little about them, I do not completely understand what was suggested as a remedy for the water leak. Could you please describe in complete laymans' terms and with the upmost description, of the places I need to de-clog and how to de-clog. I do love my car..only had these problems so far, I've only had it 3 months though. Such a smooth, fun drive! Also, especially on longer journeys, it is extremely economical.

[Toodeep]

Below the windscreen there is a 'trough' or 'well' (can't think of a better description) in which the wiper motor and linkage sits. Obviously direct rain water, water from washing and water cleared from the screen can easily get into this area as it can in most cars. At the bottom of this well there are drain holes which are intended as an exit point for this water so that it does not build up with the consequence that the wiper motor would become submerged and the overflow could get into the cabin. The Megane seems more than usually prone to these drain holes clogging up with leaves, dirt from the screen which forms into mud and other debris making it necessary to unblock these holes periodically.

It might be possible to do this without removing anything but if you already have a problem with your wipers and you probably don't yet know where the holes are, you'll have to remove the shield below the windscreen. With the bonnet open you first have to remove the two plastic clips at either bottom corner of the windscreen and some little foam spacers. The clips are held in by some white fasteners of the type that always seem to break rather than pull out so get hold of a handfull beforehand and note how the clips fit around the screen. Mark the position of the wipers on the screen with masking tape or something then unbolt and remove them. They may be stubborn to get off but a few liberal sprays of WD40 or penetrating fluid and a lot of wiggling should do the trick. The other bits you have to remove and the method for doing so should be obvious from here on.

If there is a pool or two of water you'll just have to feel around removing debris until you find the drain holes then use a pencil or something to poke the holes clear. In my case I replaced the wiper motor while andymw54 was able to repair his. Possibly, given time, my motor would have dried out and resumed working.

When putting everything back together it was clear to me that the meeting point of the glass screen and the semi-rigid plastic shield at its base was not water tight and that all water running down the screen must therefore end up in this well. I endeavoured to stop most of this by sealing the join with clear silicone. It's impossible to say whether or not this is having any effect since the drain holes are also clear at the moment.

Presumably once you know where the holes are you could poke them through with a wire coat hanger or similar without having to remove everything. Not sure.

[megane10]

I was wondering if anyone can help, I have a 52 plate Renault Megane II, since I brought the car there has been a leak in the windscreen water cylinder. However, if filled around 3/4 of the way up it would not leak. (So I'm guessing the hole would be on the top end of the cylinder) The problem now is that the windscreen wash does not squirt onto the windscreen or the back screen, could this be down to a blockage, if so how could I fix this problem? Also is there anyway I can stop the leak from the cylinder? My friend once brought a substance that blocked a hole in his water cylinder, has anyone ever heard of this type of fix?

I would be grateful for any replies.

Thanks.

[AlexB]

What screen wash are you using now and in what concentration?

[davelowe]

Alex is, I think, alluding toward your jets/piping being frozen because of an incorrect dilution of screenwash and water.

Can you hear the motor running when you try to spray the screens?

As for the substance used to block holes, it sounds suspiciously like Radweld. Opinions on its use are mixed, but I would avoid it like the plague (it's not for that purpose anyway).

[megane10]

Thanks for your quick responses.

I tried to listen out for the motor, however, there seems to be no noise, the only thing that happens is my wipers move up and down.

I have tried cleaning out the water cylinder with hot water, as suggested on other forums. I have also tried pushing a needle through the jets and also checked the fuse (which seems to be fine).

I presume the motor has gone. Any ideas on how much this would cost to repair?