No flow from rear screen washer

[mjt]

Hi Folks, new poster here - I usually belong on the Focus forum.

My son has a 2013 S-Max (1.6 diesel I think) and the rear screen wash has recently stopped working. Just gets a few drops out. He can hear the pump running so we assume it's a blockage somewhere. We don't have a Haynes for the car so I'd be grateful if someone could tell me if it's possible to remove the rear washer jet and also how to access the pump. Ideally I'd like to disconnect the pipe at each end to try to localise the fault.

Apparently on my Vitara there's a non-return valve above the headlining at the back (someone with an identical problem started a thread on that forum). Is there anything similar on the S-Max?

[Jimpster]

stick a pin in the washer hole and jiggle it see if it clears, if not you'll need to trace the pipe, its usually aquarium grade silicone and very rarely fails so blocked  [assumed] yes i know lol

[mjt]

3 minutes ago, Jimpster said:

stick a pin in the washer hole and jiggle it see if it clears

He's already tried that without success, hence why I wanted to investigate further. I don't think the pipe has fractured, there's no evidence of fluid finding it's way into the boot or tailgate.

I'm assuming that, as with the Focus, front and rear washers both use the same pump which just reverses. Can someone confirm that?

[alanfp]

29 minutes ago, mjt said:

there's no evidence of fluid finding it's way into the boot or tailgate

Hopefully that's the case, but I did have a fractured pipe once (rear of a VW Sharan) even though I never saw any evidence of stray water , so I wouldn't rule it out completely. 

I would suspect that any blockage is either at the jet or at the gauze filter at the pump (although if blocked I THINK that would also affect the front, assuming the arrangement is similar to the Focus with just one pump). Or if it is like the Focus, one of the non-return valves might have got blocked or stuck in the closed position.

[unofix]

Yes they use the same pump for both front and rear screens. Common failure point of the pipe is in the head lining just before the tail gate. On some models there is a non-return valve but on others it is just a straight coupler which can snap.

This is the parts catalogue for the rear screen wash on the S-Max

https://ford.7zap.com/en/car/38/code.dr,1.24442,2.10330,6.1112,7.1276,10.32097,12.39889/0/1576/15810/69177/

[Paulius55]

I just had exactly the same problem on my S-Max. There is a non-return valve about 6" before the nozzle and that had failed. This shouldn't lead to leaks as I believe the pump is an impeller type rather than positive displacement and so will not try and force fluid through the blockage. It was a very simple fix. Firstly prise out the high level stop-light and unclip the nozzle, then unclip the top plastic panel from the inside top of the tailgate. It is just held by clips, no screws. Then reach into the cavity and pull the washer tube into the car. You should see the non-return valve in a wrap of foam. Just pull the pipes off the valve and either replace it with a new one or, what I did was to replace it with a simple joiner from Halfords for about £2.50. All the non-return valve does is to stop the fluid falling back into the tank and ensuring a quick response from the pump. However, without the valve the delay is insignificant and so I have just left the simple joiner. Then just re-assemble in reverse order.

[mjt]

Thanks Unofix and Paul. That's very useful information. I'll let you know what we find. It'll probably be a few weeks before we have an opportunity to look at it.

[mjt]

Just a quick update: my son has now reported problems with the front screen washers so it looks as if it's related to the pump. My guess is that the strainer is blocked with bacterial growth. As my son is not mechanically inclined and I'm now much too old and creaky to go grovelling under the car removing the wheelarch liner it looks as if he'll have to bite the bullet and take it to the professionals.

I'll let you know the outcome in due course.

[mjt]

Just so you don't think I'm never coming back to this thread this is to report that so far my son hasn't done anything about getting the problem fixed . I think his car is due a service imminently so hopefully something will get done then and if it is I'll report back.

[mjt]

At last I have something to report. My son has just messaged me to say it's fixed and the problem was:-

"the pipe to rear washer has a pipe join clip and it had perished and blocked the pipe. New connector fitted and solved the issue."

I've no idea whether this "connector" is the non-return valve. He's probably just repeated what he was told. It appears the front washers are now working without any fault being found which is a bit of a mystery although he does say the flow seems a bit weak.