8V A3 Rear Wiper Issue

[rnm37]

Hi All,

So I have an issue with the rear windscreen wiper on my 63 plate A3 (3 door 1.6TDI SE). Had noticed rear windscreen washer leaking in to the boot space a while back, however had temporarily solved (ignored) this problem for the time being by just not using the rear washer.

As of the past couple of journeys, the rear wiper has gained a mind of it's own, coming on whenever it feels like it. Some rudimentary googling has highlighted this is/was a very common problem on the 8P A3 and other VAG cars of the time, with the hose typically becoming disconnected and shorting the motor?

Have seen less examples of this on the new model so just wondering if anyone has any experience of this happening in their 8V A3, and can advise on how difficult it is to remove the tailgate trim to have a look at what's going on?

Any info on parts etc. I might need to replace (I think worst case I could be looking at a new motor?) would also be appreciated.

Cheers.

 

[Retroman]

As you say, haven't seen an 8V rear motor failure on this forum - but your symptoms sound very typical. My 8P started to behave erratically inside 5-years. I eventually changed it as the car just about turned 5-years old and there was historical evidence of water leaking and the motor was full of brown, watery "mud". So I would guess these can start to fail at around 4-years. Sadly, your car may be one of the first 8Vs to suffer

The OE manufacturer for the 8P was Valeo and they can be bought for around £60 on ebay. On the 8P (I would guess the 8V is very similar) the rear hatch inside trim has two screws to be removed by the handle and it then just pulls out with a sharp tug, being held in by metal prongs. The motor is then easily accessed and requires the removal of 3 X 10mm nuts, the plastic water feed pipe and electrical plug. Ideally you need a wiper puller to remove the wiper arm from the outside.

Hopefully someone will come along to this thread and confirm the removal of the 8V hatch trim is similar

 

[rnm37]

Thanks for this mate! It does look like I might be one of the first to suffer from this kind of annoying that Audi apparently didn't see fit make this set-up more robust as part of the model update.

I've just had a go at doing this today with my Dad and it looks like we've succeeded. Getting the trim off was relatively straightforward and comes off exactly as you've described - two screws inside the compartment which contains the hazard triangle followed by pulling it off all of the metal clips. Sounds a lot worse than it is (heart was in my mouth a couple of times...)

Fortunately nothing appears to be obviously wrong with the motor - although the manifold which houses the gearing for the wiper did appear full of brown "gunk" as you refer to - think this is mostly grease but definitely evidence of leakage.

Look like the hose had become detached both at the main connection and was also leaking at the sealing face as it passes through the motor (apologies never took any pictures).

Re-sealed the hose on the outside and used silicon sealant to help make the joint inside the motor and appears to have fixed the problem. No more leakage and noticeably increased washer fluid flow rate onto the window through the nozzle so I was obviously losing a fair bit into the boot beforehand. Touch wood this repair will hold up!

Hardest part of the job was re-attaching the trim - those metal prongs are a nightmare to get lined up correctly.

 

[Retroman]

I would keep a watchful eye on the situation. 1) keep the jets clean so that you get no back pressure when trying to squirt water and 2) the brown gunk is usually grease from inside the gear housing mixed with water and subsequent rust. The problem is that the shaft containing the water runs down the centre of the motor in this VAG integrated unit and water leaks into the gear mechanism (seals fail) where it eventually impacts on the electric part of the motor.

 

[rnm37]

Yeah I will do thanks - hoping to trade it in for something else in the (relatively) near future so trying to avoid unnecessary expenditure. Is a needle or something similar the best way to keep the jets clear?

Might go for the A3 saloon next time to make sure I never suffer from this again