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E46 windscreen wipers

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rpennington View Drop Down
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    Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 6:23pm
Hi
I am hoping someone can help me with this problem.
Due to a rainy day yesterday & icy this morning I had fairly thick ice on the car. I started the car this morning to warm it up whilst I scraped the Windows but not realising I had left the wiper stalk in the intermittent position from the day before & the wipers were slightly frozen to the windscreen, the drivers side wiper became unstuck & sweeped the windscreen but the passenger side stayed stuck to the screen. Now all that happens is the drivers side works as it should & the passenger side moves very slightly.

I can try & post a video if it helps.

Regards
Rich
1999 E46 323i se Saloon - sold
2011 E90 325d msport - sold
2014 F30 335d xdrive msport plus pack
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dteagles View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote dteagles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 6:32pm
Rich,
There is a good chance the splines have been rounded off on the post, to confirm undo the nut and pull the wiper off, you might be able to get it to grip again (by cleaning and re-tightening) but will probably need to renew the section that the wiper arm connects to.

Darren.


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rpennington View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote rpennington Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 7:05pm
Hi Darren
Thanks for the reply, that was one of the things I thought it might have done or the wiper relay as it is a double relay.
Just to confirm,when you say the splines being rounded off, do you mean on this part?
1999 E46 323i se Saloon - sold
2011 E90 325d msport - sold
2014 F30 335d xdrive msport plus pack
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote dteagles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 7:21pm
I'm not familiar with that type of fixing I'm afraid, I doubt it's the relay as the two sides are connected via an arm so linked together mechanically. 

I assumed it would be a spline actually on the end of the stub that sticks out through the cowel, perhaps it isn't on yours? Best thing to do is to take the arm off and see if the shaft is moving with the wipers on. If it is then the part you show above is probably the cause, looks easy to replace....if it is that...

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rpennington View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote rpennington Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 8:18pm
Thanks Darren, looking on realoem the stub that sticks out through the windscreen trim looks like it is part of the wiper mechanism & not a separate bit & looks like it is threaded but I didn't look too closely at it when I removed the wiper arms when I replaced the windscreen trim.
The part in the pic in my earlier post sits inside the wiper arm when it is attached to the stub.
I'll have a better look over the weekend & hope it is an easy & cheap repair.

Rich
1999 E46 323i se Saloon - sold
2011 E90 325d msport - sold
2014 F30 335d xdrive msport plus pack
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RParkinson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jan 2017 at 10:58pm
Could be either the shaft or the whole in the wiper that's stripped.  I'd think it's more likely to be the aluminium alloy arm than the steel shaft.  

It's also possible that it's just the retaining nut that's come loose previously and the blade being stuck to the screen has caused the spline to separate.  If that's the case, just tightening the retaining nut may be sufficient.
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rpennington View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote rpennington Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Jan 2017 at 10:30am
Thanks guys for the replies.
I rang my local Bmw dealer yesterday morning about 9.30 to see if they had the parts in stock that I thought I'd need but they hadn't, I was told if they were ordered before 10am they would be there to collect by mid-day so I ordered them & they were true to their word, I got their for mid-day & left with my parts & got my usual discount.

I decided to change the metal grooved spline first & check to see if that worked & it did, so was a cheap fix in the end as I ordered both wiper arms, although I would only need one I got both so they would match up with the finish, both splined collars & both retaining nuts because Bmw say they need to be replaced,so it cost a few quid more.
All parts came to about £120 with my discount as the passenger arm is about £55 & drivers arm is about £48,splines & nuts were about a fiver then on top was £20 vat. So it was a costly mistake if I decided to change everything over so I've learnt my lesson.

The old splined collar is not much different to the new one & the same on the wiper arms in comparison,I'll try & add photos later as it is saying they are too big.

Thankfully I can take the un-needed arms back for a refund because they hadn't been fitted.
Regards
Rich



Edited by rpennington - 22 Jan 2017 at 10:32am
1999 E46 323i se Saloon - sold
2011 E90 325d msport - sold
2014 F30 335d xdrive msport plus pack
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rpennington View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote rpennington Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Jan 2017 at 2:06pm
 
As the above pic shows there isn't a big difference in the grooved splines between the old one on the left & the new one.
 
 
As this pic shows there isn't much difference between the old wiper on the left & the new one on the right either.
 
 


Edited by rpennington - 22 Jan 2017 at 2:15pm
1999 E46 323i se Saloon - sold
2011 E90 325d msport - sold
2014 F30 335d xdrive msport plus pack
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