# How to - Mk1 Leaking washer bottle fix



## John-H

*How to fix a leaking washer pump.*

I've just had to fix a leak from the windscreen washer bottle on my 225 TT which had emptied itself on the garage floor within a week :x . I was quite shocked when I got it apart! 

I had read some reports of smells from mixing different screen wash solutions. I had even heard of tales of failing aliens if you don't use Audi fluid! :roll: I don't know what fluid had been in the car previously but I've been using Halfords £4.99/5litre concentrate for years so had been using that since I got the car.

The leak was apparent from the rear of the wheel arch where the bottle is hidden under the liner. I removed the wheel arch liner (just a load of torx screws) and could then see the bottle, along with some collected mud and leaf debris, behind the bottom rear of the liner, under the bottle. I also noticed some gooey white gelatinous mould. I cleaned up the muck and removed the bottle.

It had been leaking from around the screen pump. When I tipped the remaining contents into the kitchen sink I was shocked to see that it was less like water and more like a gooey gell with the consistency of a very dilute wallpaper paste! 

I think there has been some bacteriologigal infection of the water which might explain the smell and goo - sort of battery acid / bad egg smell. :?

I suspected bacteriological material had crept past the seal interfaces and started a capilliary leak. I took everything apart and cleaned up the rubber seals with IPA. I also poured bleach into the bottle to remove the gunk. The bottle had no crack and was in perfect condition after a clean.

I discovered a leak in the screen (not alien) pump by blowing into it. In the photograph I'm pointing to the input flange joint under which the impellor spins (click to enlarge).










I tried taking it apart but it resisted, so I decided to seal the leak externally. I cleaned it out with IPA, dried it, cut off some 40mm diameter heatshrink tubing (note the hole/slot for the output pipe) and applied some hot melt adhesive all the way round the flange joint.










I then heated the heatshrink tube onto the end of the pump, melting the hotmelt adhesive, clamping the flange and sealing it all in the same process.










I also noticed that the alien pump (the one at the bottom of the bottle) was split near the electrical connector (pointed at with tweezers). This was not leaking and was probably not important but I put some heatshrink over this too.










I then assembled the bottle again, applying a little IPA for rubber seal assembly lubrication - it will eventually evaporate leaving a tight clean rubber sealed joint.


















Then it went back under the wing.










I've never had a problem with Halfords screen wash before and will continue to use it, as the system is now clean and all the Audi fluid (or whatever) has been flushed out (spent some time pumping the Aliens).

I noticed, that there is no filter gause in the bottle design, to stop debris entering the pumps. The pumps have a shredder input design to pulverise any semi-solids, but I don't think this is good for the fine jets in the Aliens!

I think it might be a good idea to:

1) Flush out your bottle with water before adding a different fluid
2) If you get a bad smell - remove the bottle and clean it! (Or possibly add a little bleach to kill off bad bugs)

Anyway, it's all fixed now, for naff all cost, just time... Hope this helps someone else. 

*ADDENDUM:*

If fuse 33 (20A) keeps blowing you could have a seized high pressure pump due to internal seal failure causing the pump to rust and seize up.

Blockages in the Aliens could cause too much back pressure possibly but the aliens should still pop out due to the water pressure reaching them. You could pull the pipe off the pump and then see if the pump works without back pressure and doesn't then blow the fuse. If it blows the fuse like this then you may have a duff pump.

Another test is to measure the resistance between the metal pump body and either of the two electrical connector pins. It should be an open circuit. If it's shorted it's a sign of rust inside. A rusty stain is often a give away too.

The Audi pump is *P/N: 3B7 955 681 @ £39.38*

The original early pump is no longer made, so the above pump is its replacement but the connector body is different (different key feature), so you will need to get a different connector body:

*P/N: 1J0 973 722 A @ £4.81 *

The connector bodies have a locking slide which allows the contacts to be pulled out from the back of the connector body. You'll also need to press back the barbs on the connector pins to free them. This can be done with the correct tool or paper clip made into two prongs and pushed into holes at the sides of the connector pin. Push the wire further into the connector housing to lift the pin contact barbs from the internal shoulder features first, which will allow the prongs to push the barbs back. Make sure the prongs are then fully inserted, then a tug on the wire should allow the connector pin to come out.

If the old connector pins are in good condition (open out the barbs if they got pushed back) they can simply be pushed into the new connector body until the barbs go click. The locking key can then be pushed in and the rubber seals inserted fully around the wires. A little IPA serves as a lubricant for assembly.

*Observe correct polarity! * You don't want the pump to suck :wink: (actually it won't suck but it might not produce the same pressure.)

*A cautionary note (16-03-2015):* My pump went again despite the replacement. It had leaked internally, gone rusty, shorted and blown a fuse. The first I knew is that it wasn't working and I hadn't investigated yet.

I had noticed a cheap replacement pump on eBay for about £10. Not knowing the cause of failure I didn't want to buy a new Audi pump (now £62) and find it was just a bad connection, so decided to buy the eBay pump - if it was a bad connection I had a spare pump for £10 - if it was a failed pump I could try it out. Seemed to make sense at the time.

With the new pump installed I tried it off the battery direct. It made a convincing noise and pumped the aliens out with a quick drop in fluid in the reservoir - so it had the volume - but with aliens at full extent it produced a pathetic dribble - so little pressure with a water stream that didn't even reach the headlights but fell off the aliens and made a puddle on the floor. Complete rubbish :evil:

Off to TPS for a new pump - now fitted and the difference is stark. The same test got me drenched with spray. The rubbish pump is going to get refunded. Beware imitations as they say :wink:


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## aidb

Excellent "How to" John.


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## Rad TT

Cheers john ,I intend doing this tomorrow...thx again for the "how to" m8


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## Wak

John, nice write up

one tip maybe be safer than bleach as I used it to clean a fuel tank filter once....

you could probably try spraying the bottle with mc2/virosol and then jet wash it if you didnt want to risk bleach.


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## John-H

Cheers  Still leak and bug free using Halfords concentrate since September 2005.


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## les

John-H said:


> *How to fix a leaking washer pump.*
> 
> I think there has been some bacteriologigal infection of the water which might explain the smell and goo - sort of battery acid / bad egg smell. :?
> I suspected bacteriological material.
> 
> FWIW the bad egg smell is Hydrogen Sulfide and yes it is the result of oxygen deficient anerobic baterial action. [smiley=toilet.gif]


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## John-H

Thanks for that Les - that seems to confirm my suspicion :wink:


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## KenTT

Thanks John

Another exellent write up, I think I had probably check mine next time I have the front wheels off, just as a preventive measure 

Also a good set of supportive pics.


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## gt russell

Hi John 
Ive been on for the past few weekends trying to get my aliens to work and your post is fab. But mine refused to work so I had a rethink and now its sorted.

Here goes
I unplugged the pipe leading to the aliens from under the nearside intercooler and conected a foot pump, It took 20 P.s.i. to get the alliens out but when conected back together they would pop up but no water no matter how many times I tried , then it hit me the allien pump does not come on long enough to bleed the water through. What I had to do was first make sure there were no obstructions in the system (you cant back flush them BTW as there is a one way valve in the aliens) I conected a hose pipe to the feed pipe and used a jubilee clip to hold it in place then pressurised the system by turnig on the water, after about one minute I conected everything back to gether and directley wired the pump to the battery so that it would run perminantly, after about 15 seconds it bled through and now they work. 
the problem is when they are activated its just for about 2 seconds and this isnt enough to bleed through

I hope this is also useful for any one else, I used up about 25 hours time to work this one out


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## John-H

Hi Russell,

I didn't have a problem with my Aliens starting up again. I guess that's because the pipe stayed filled with water. Useful tip about running the motor directly if anyone has a similar problem :wink:


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## gt russell

Cheers John, 
It caused me a real headache over the past three weeks I think there may have been a blockage at first, then after pumping the alliens with air and forcing them to work Its obviously emptyed the feed pipes causeing massive air lock. I just needed to take time out to think. I even thought the pump was not strong enough :lol: Lesson learnt


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## J55TTC

The air lock happened to me when I converted to the V6 front end and the remedy was simple.

Get a good friend to grab the aliens and hold them out as they pop out for the first time and continue to pump the aliens from the washer stalk. Your friend will get a bit wet but it did the trick in a matter of seconds.

The aliens do not allow water to pass through them unless they are fully out and there isnt enough time to get enough water through on a cycle.


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## keith.bailey

Hi, I am doing some research ahead of tackling a leaking washer bottle on my Mk1. I found this article and figured it would help me become familiar with what I was likely to see when I get the wheel and liner out of the way. However, although the text is very helpful, I am unable to see many of the pictures as they are replaced by the infuriating symbol that means the picture cannot be displayed. When I attempted to enlarge the other pictures I was also foiled. Is it possible to reconstruct this valuable "How To" please..... Or is there a setting on my pc that is stopping me seeing the pics???

Thanks,

Keith


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## petesky

My aliens haven't worked for a couple of years but the windscreen washers have been fine throughout.
Only ever used Audi screenwash and Central Scotland tap water which should be soft.

The thread has raised some useful information on removing any build-up goo and how to bleed the system. I'll prize the alien "doors" open and see if I can bleed the aliens that way.

Cheers all, another great thread and guide started by John-H.

Peter


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## landwomble

Thread revival!

My aliens don't work. Just had the wheelarch liner off and I can see the wash bottle. The bottom most pump is working - (a large elastic band looped around steering wheel and the washer stalk let me test this by myself!) - is this the screen or the alien pump? I'm thinking the alien pump is the one in the middle of the washer bottle.

Are both pumps the same, or different part numbers? I was thinking I could prove a point by swapping them around....also seen one on eBay but am uncertain if it's washer or screen jet...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AUDI-TT-WASHE...h=item27a986cb21&ssPageName=RSS:B:SHOP:GB:102


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## SVStu

From memory, its a while since I changed mine :roll:

The two pumps are different, they have different electrical connectors and outlet positions. I used a couple of pieces of wire inserted into the connector and touched these to the pump to see if it works, or you could just cut the tab off the electrical connector on the pump.

The bottom one was windscreen and the middle aliens (I hope I'm not wrong  )
Edit 3 - I may have guessed wrong see link
http://www.********.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=160224&p=1629144&hilit=alien#p1629144

Aftert changing with official Audi ones I noticed a design fault and got a "cheap" version that had one piece cover and never had a problem since.

I'll have a look at my old posts to see if I can come up with a part number, although I thought John H had these on his write up??

Edit - just looked at the e-bay one and it has a 2 piece case so you may get water ingress eventually again!!

Edit 2 - Pics of smelly goo, pump case and internal rusting from water ingress where case splits


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## landwomble

Thanks. Is it easy to get hte washbottle out of the wing, but still connected up so I can see if both pumps are running? 
If the pump *is* working I'll try a hosepipe attached to the aliens pipe and see if I can push them out with hosepipe pressure I guess...


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## John-H

Yes, the alien pump is the one at the bottom.


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## bainsyboy

Thanks for the write up. My aliens packed up last week. Tackled them today with this write up. 
Phoned up audi dealer this morning, had the guy that is useless, he reckons two pumps, 1 pump per headlight  Queried this with him, he assured me one pump per headlight. Price to fit £215 per pump, Didnt query it further, as havent seen any mention at all about two pumps anywhere, apart from my mates facebook page as we call him two pumps :roll: will phone up the dealer monday as the guy there is useless.
Anyway thanks for the write up, not sure what I done to fix but,blew through the hose for the aliens with tyre pump, they popped out but no water...several times. Water was coming out of the tyre pump end though, so think I may have had a blockage. Put together and everything now seems to work fine. The water pump for the aliens though, seemed to be dead to start off with, could this have been caused by a blockage in the line ?

Just read rest of the thread, I swapped pumps ie windscreen pump in alien socket and vice versa. They both fitted and the windscreen one did whirr into action when in the alien socket.

Washer pump for Aliens part number, from what I got off of it is VWAG 1j0955681 MS3 this is on my 53 plate


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## lunavega

Mine haven`t worked since I`ve had the car (2 years) and it`s never been a problem. Just found out that if fitted they are required to work for the MOT  . My MOT is due to run out Friday,  
Thought I`d found a quick fix when I discovered the fuse blown. Changed the fuse, still nothing. On my Octavia the headlight washers only operate when the headlights are on. Is this the case with the TT?
If it fails I`ll be taking tomorrow off to fix them for re-test Friday.


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## John-H

Yes, ignition on, headlights on, pull wash stalk for two second min. If your fuse blows again I'll bet it's the high pressure pump shorted following a leak.


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## lunavega

Bit lax in updating. The car passed, phew!  Now the washer bottle is leaking big time (2 days full to warning light!!!) :x . Just going out to have a look see. Will keep you posted.


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## lunavega

lunavega said:


> Bit lax in updating. The car passed, phew!  Now the washer bottle is leaking big time (2 days full to warning light!!!) :x . Just going out to have a look see. Will keep you posted.


Right, as promised, an update. 
Blinking cold so decided to do the work in the garage. 
First time taking a wheel off so had to figure out exactly where the front jacking point was! Jacked up and on axle stand with wheel off (no flies on me). All the inner wheel arch liner screws out, the 2 Dzeus type fasteners were knackered, something for another day (quick fix?).
Everything caked in muck and bullets. Lots of accumulated mud behind liner at the bottom, front & rear. 
Disconnected and removed the bottle. Found lots of crap in it but no sludge.
Removed both pumps and checked for external signs of damage, nothing obvious. Noted that the screen wash pump wasn`t original. :-| 
Gave everything a good once over and a thorough clean. Checked all the seals, grommets, pipes and the pumps for watertightness. Top tip: Make sure the `O` ring seal on the alien pump outlet is in good condition and not too loose. I found that it tended to ride up out of its slot when trying to slide the plastic 90 deg hose connector on. This will leak!!! 
The w/s washer pump was a bit suss, but double checked and it seemed OK. Checked both pumps for operation, satis. Put it all back together with a bit of RTV sealant strategically placed and, as they say in Haynes manuals, fitted back into car in reverse of removal! Filled bottle, appeared to be no leaks! Everything working! Yippee! :lol: Put liner back, refitted wheel, jobs a good`un .
Next morning washer contents on floor of garage  :x [smiley=bigcry.gif]  
Decided to replace iffy w/s pump. Stealers wanted £41.80. Amazon/eBay about £12. Local motor factors £19.67 and in stock. Long story short, bought & fitted, satis!!!  
Turns out to be the seal on the electrical motor drive shaft leaking.
Only one alien squirting, but that`s a job for warmer weather.


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## vwjim

Been reading all the posts about leaks for the washers this evening and all the posts seem to be about removing the LHS wheel / arch liner to get to the washer bottle & pumps .

My leak appears to be linked to the RHS headlight washer, (oh, by the way, why are the referred to as aliens?), as the fluid was running out the RHS front bumper. Do you gain access to this by removing the front RHS wheel and arch liner? I assume the leak was cased by the extremely cold weather we just had and either a hose has split or come loose.


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## lunavega

vwjim said:


> Been reading all the posts about leaks for the washers this evening and all the posts seem to be about removing the LHS wheel / arch liner to get to the washer bottle & pumps .
> 
> My leak appears to be linked to the RHS headlight washer, (oh, by the way, why are the referred to as aliens?), as the fluid was running out the RHS front bumper. Do you gain access to this by removing the front RHS wheel and arch liner? I assume the leak was cased by the extremely cold weather we just had and either a hose has split or come loose.


  Because mine had never worked I too wondered why aliens. When I finally got them working I immediately realised why  I just burst out laughing,  it is such an apt name.


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## John-H

It is an apt name - if you've seem the film Alien. There's a clip on You Tube somewhere if anyone is still puzzled - one of the neatest things on the car. My daughter's jaw dropped the first time I showed her :lol:


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## vwjim

Thanks guys. Great explanation on the alien reference.

Now, what's the best access path to get to the leaking area?


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## John-H

If you take the undershield off you can get to the back of the aliens and follow the tubing around.

Here's a video I found showing the aliens in operation:






And one of the Alien in operation:


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## mullum

Is it possible to activate/deactivate the aliens ? Ive only had the car a couple of months and Ive not seen them working (I am INSIDE the car after all  ) After filling the reservoir its empty a day later without activating anything - unfortunately I think the self fix may be beyond my capabilities ....


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## John-H

To test, make sure the bottle is full and turn the ignition on (no need to start the engine). Then turn the headlights on. Now pull the windscreen wiper stalk into the windscreen wash position and hold it on for more than two seconds. At about two seconds of windscreen wash/wipe puming action you should then hear another additional high pressure pump start up and the aliens should operate for about two seconds and then turn off. So after four seconds it should all be over - and ideally you should see water all over both headlights. If not you have a problem.


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## mullum

Done, unfortunately - as I'd suspected - the aliens are not functioning. I hear the secondary pump sound - but nothing happens. And after just a few tries the previously full reservoir is empty again. I don't suppose there's any way to know which component has gone wrong without getting stuck right in - is there ? I'd prefer to find my own parts in advance of getting someone to fix it (otherwise I'd probably end up paying twice - once for diagnosis and again for the repair AFTER finding parts).


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## John-H

A clue would ne to see where the water is leaking out from but unfortunately without getting stuck in you won't know precisely. For example, one of your aliens may be detached from its feed pipe - this would stop them popping out as there would be no pressure and instead the water would dribble out from the bumper or under tray. Or one of the aliens maybe cracked with the same effect. You could have a poor seal on the bottle which may just need a clean or a cracked and leaking pump. Who knows until you get in there.


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## djsmudge

Ive just had a look as my aliens are not working :/

I took the water bottle out, bad smell inside, so I cleaned out the bottle with a bit of bleach. I also blew the 2 tubes connecting to the water bottle, 1 blew fine, the other was blocked. I assume as my windscreen washers work while the headlight washers dont!

No leaks from bottle anymore, any idea of where to look for the stoppage? Ive read this forum, but still unsure! Why did they have to make it so complicated!

Edit: Ive sorted it now! As soon as I wrote this, I was thinking of all the steps, one thing I didnt check was the fuse. Took it out and it had blown! Changed the fuse and it all works! I must say it is funny to watch!!


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## mullum

djsmudge said:


> ... one thing I didnt check was the fuse. Took it out and it had blown! Changed the fuse and it all works! I must say it is funny to watch!!


Did you hear the sound (of what I think is the secondary pump for the aliens) activate before you changed the fuse ? Did your bottle seem to run out of liquid very quickly ?


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## Welshwizard

Request for help.

Car (2004 V6) failed MOT on Aliens and headlight level sensor. According to by local Audi these became part of the MOT 1st March 2013.

Found all the great write-ups and suggestions very useful, but still no joy.

First fault blown fuse, traced to rusted pump. Repalced with new pump off ebay (Meyle), and expelled air in pipework using a hosepipe. Great working, but off-side spray only a dribble. Followed suggestions on using a weak bleach mix and also removed jets and soaked in water/washing up liquid. Some debry released but little improvement. Continued to flush through, 4 washer refills, and then the replacement pump packed in. Sourced another from ebay, Febi this time. Fitted, aliens popping out but no water. Removed connector and wired to battery, great spray, cleaned the whole car. Replaced connector, aliens popping out but again no water. Asked Audi if pump on-time could be altered, but told purley pressure driven. Can't find any leaks in the system. Started to think pump is under powered, but not sure. Also grabbed one alien and could pull out further, held out and activated a 2nd time with some water dribbling out. Suspect the aliens only spray on full extension.

Would appreciate any help from those that have had simillar problem.


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## John-H

If it all works Ok direct from battery it suggests there is a high resistance dropping volts somewhere. Check contacts in loom connector are not corroded. This sometimes happens if motor is rusted because of leak. It can affect crimp terminals to writes too. Can you measure voltage at pump when operating and from +ve side to Gnd? Could be bad earth return too.


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## SVStu

Go to audi and get the grommit that the pump fits into as thats where the water dripped from on mine but I only found this out after three pumps and god know how many fuses  
















Best replacement pump I have found is a non audi one with a one piece plastic cover.

Like you I thought something was up but then this goo shot out after burning out one pump and five fuses, dont think its designed to pump treacle!!!









Edit - Ahh just re-read they worked from battery, I'd check connector and wire next.


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## Welshwizard

Thank you for your suggestions, i wil check the voltage on the loop connector. Although I am not sure if this is the problem as the 1st replacement pump did manage to spray, on the same connector. The reason I believe the 2nd replacement pump sprays when connected directly to the battery is becuase of the longer 'on time' allowing for the pressure to build up.

Update: changed pump again with one from Meyle and finally working. Guess the febi one was slightly under powered.


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## Martyn7836

I bought a 225 on Thursday and the washer bottle light came on when on the test ride. Never thought of anything really when filling the car with fuel I topped up the water and within a couple of miles heading home light came on again. At first I thought the worst and thought the dash was faulty washer still came onto screen but then next time nothing (must have Been what little was left in the line/tank) anyway I'm going to try and have a look today. 
As I'm not to mechanically minded I hope it's ok for a beginner to look at? Guess the first thing is to fill up with water and see if it shows a leak. Check for the headlight washer etc. can you confirm where the washer bottle is located. Fill it up on passenger side but sure I've read somewhere it under the rear arch. Going to try to see if my local halfords has a Haynes manual.


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## John-H

The bottle on the right of the vehicle (UK driver's side) at the back left of the engine bay as you look at it is the engine coolant expansion tank. That should only be filled with G12++ antifreeze and distilled water mix.

The washer bottle is filed on the other side, on the wing edge (blue plastic cap pokes through).

There is no Haynes manual for the TT. Check out the knowledge base and use the search for most things.


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## Martyn7836

Cheers John for that and thanks for all those how-to sections you have done. Sure they have helped plenty of people like me out. See your another cheshire folk. I'm living in Northwich so prob not to far away.


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## John-H

You'll have to come to one of Dani's events or one of her regular monthly meets which last time was a drive and curry:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=323449

By the way, the Knowledge base index is here and includes many different people's contributions:
viewtopic.php?f=56&t=172190


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## Martyn7836

Thanks for that link. Will deffo be up for the next meet. Will be making myself a member once I get paid just seem to be paying out a but at the moment as I want the car to be 100%. Where do you take your car for work. I'm looking at getting a head unit of here as my volume button seem to be faulty but just been told it will need to be hooked up to a vag com not sure what audi will charge for this but sure somewhere else will e able to help at the fraction of the price.


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## Trig

Another thread revival on this one...

Just been outside and checked the bottle on the other half's TT as it was dropping the water out in pretty short order...

Appears that the alien motor had dropped a bit and letting water out, took everything to bits, cleaned the tank out (read some one comment on no filter, there's one on the top of the bottle on ours..) in it attempts to empty itself the alien connector got wet and now blows fuses, I've left it unplugged for now to see if it dries up, not holding my breath tho..
Will check ebay for a replacement...


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## manikm

thread revival, as theres SOME REALLY good stuff in this thread for those with washer issues


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## John-H

Thanks. I'd forgotten to put it in the Mk1 Knowledge Base - it's an old one


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## automotive

Hi, I should have posted a comment somewhere first about how happy I am with my 'new' TT (04 225) rather than my first post being about a problem, but alas I did not... I've been reading this thread and I've definitely got the same problem. I noticed a leak from the back of the passenger side front wheel arch and thought at first it was water as it's been raining a lot, but soon after, my washer fluid light came on - having filled it up completely about four days earlier! It's still washing the windscreen, but the 'aliens' aren't working. I've pulled them out slightly and cleaned them, but that's not worked either. As I can hear both pumps, I'm assuming the fuse isn't the problem either, so I'm going with the washer bottle leak. Is it possible a pipe has just popped off and simply needs reconnecting? Or is this likely to be a pump cleanup/replace job? I'll try to jack it up and remove the front wheel in the next couple of days so I can remove the wheel liner and have a good look.


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## Hoggy

Hi automotive, Welcome to the TTF.
If pump is running I expect it's a hose, but wheel & arch liner off is only way to find out.
Hoggy.


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## John-H

Well it could be a pipe come off/split or it could be the pump itself leaking. Best have a look


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## John-H

Beaten by Hoggy by four minutes - pah! :lol:


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## Hoggy

John-H said:


> Beaten by Hoggy by four minutes - pah! :lol:


Hi John, [smiley=dude.gif] 
Hoggy.


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## automotive

Thanks to you both! Will have a proper look in the next couple of days. Merry Christmas!

Also got a squeaking from driver side front and groaning from driver side rear wheel - I'm guessing it's a bearing or something, but the car's throwing up more issues than I thought it would be at this early stage...


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## automotive

OK, I took the wheel and arch liner off today and removed the washer bottle for a proper look. I took off both the windscreen washer pump and aliens pump and both looked alright. I ran water through them and no leaks were apparent. The only thing that looks a bit iffy is the wiring going into the aliens pump connector. Its plastic coating has come away slightly due to the tight entry angle and the wires are slightly exposed.

Anyway, I put it all back together, ran both the pumps and everything seemed fine. No leaks, the windscreen washers both worked fine, as did the aliens - lots of pressure in the passenger side one and less water pressure in the driver side one, but both headlights were wet, so I assume both worked.

After a brief drive, the bottle emptied most of itself in a car park, so I still have the leak! As it didn't leak on the drive when I did the work, I think it was triggered by working the pump(s) while I was driving, so I'm tempted to buy two new pumps and replace them myself, or else a whole washer bottle assembly.

Any alternative suggestions?


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## Hoggy

Hi, Find out where it's actually leaking from first, before replacing anything.
Hoggy.


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## John-H

Yes, the pumps are not cheap.

You may have a leak at one of the aliens which dribbles back along the outside of the pipe making the leak appear to be elsewhere.

Did you read my guide where I mentioned about the fungal growth under the bottle seals? That would empty the bottle in a day or two. It looked Ok but it was the fine fungal stands getting under the seals which caused a capillary leak. I cleaned all my seals and reassembled and have not had a leak since.


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## mullum

Anyone know the part number for the earlier model of aliens pump ? I bought one a while back and it had the wrong connector.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## John-H

mullum said:


> Anyone know the part number for the earlier model of aliens pump ? I bought one a while back and it had the wrong connector.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


As listed for my APX:
8N0 955 102 - pressure cylinder (alien) Right
8N0 955 101 - pressure cylinder (alien) Left
3B7 955 681 - pump (also use 1J0 973 722 A)

The "also use" is the two pin female connector so perhaps the original pump had a revision. You can get the connector housing from Audi and you can also buy made up pigtails to splice from eBay.


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## mullum

Thanks John-H


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## automotive

I opened it up again and the washer fluid level didn't actually seem that bad. However, there seemed to be a leak from the windscreen washer pump. I had ordered an entire replacement system (washer bottle and both pumps), so I replaced this pump and it seems to be working now. I'll be watching it closely over the next week and if the washer fluid level light comes on again, I'll be delving back in to try to resolve the issue...


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## grooverider1980

landwomble said:


> Thread revival!
> 
> hi i got same problem the water run right down bottom of wheel arch when i filled water up how much will it cost as looks tricky to get too


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## Hoggy

Hi, Could just be a loose/split hose.
Remove passenger side wheel & arch liner for access.
Hoggy.


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## grooverider1980

but is it easy to take off wing and get it back on ?


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## John-H

Wheel off and just a Torx bit gets the liner off and the rest is obvious when you see it.


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## gvij

Mark


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## M1cks

John-H said:


> *How to fix a leaking washer pump.*
> 
> I've just had to fix a leak from the windscreen washer bottle on my 225 TT which had emptied itself on the garage floor within a week :x . I was quite shocked when I got it apart!
> 
> I had read some reports of smells from mixing different screen wash solutions. I had even heard of tales of failing aliens if you don't use Audi fluid! :roll: I don't know what fluid had been in the car previously but I've been using Halfords £4.99/5litre concentrate for years so had been using that since I got the car.
> 
> The leak was apparent from the rear of the wheel arch where the bottle is hidden under the liner. I removed the wheel arch liner (just a load of torx screws) and could then see the bottle, along with some collected mud and leaf debris, behind the bottom rear of the liner, under the bottle. I also noticed some gooey white gelatinous mould. I cleaned up the muck and removed the bottle.
> 
> It had been leaking from around the screen pump. When I tipped the remaining contents into the kitchen sink I was shocked to see that it was less like water and more like a gooey gell with the consistency of a very dilute wallpaper paste!
> 
> I think there has been some bacteriologigal infection of the water which might explain the smell and goo - sort of battery acid / bad egg smell. :?
> 
> I suspected bacteriological material had crept past the seal interfaces and started a capilliary leak. I took everything apart and cleaned up the rubber seals with IPA. I also poured bleach into the bottle to remove the gunk. The bottle had no crack and was in perfect condition after a clean.
> 
> I discovered a leak in the screen (not alien) pump by blowing into it. In the photograph I'm pointing to the input flange joint under which the impellor spins (click to enlarge).
> 
> View attachment 6
> 
> 
> I tried taking it apart but it resisted, so I decided to seal the leak externally. I cleaned it out with IPA, dried it, cut off some 40mm diameter heatshrink tubing (note the hole/slot for the output pipe) and applied some hot melt adhesive all the way round the flange joint.
> 
> View attachment 5
> 
> 
> I then heated the heatshrink tube onto the end of the pump, melting the hotmelt adhesive, clamping the flange and sealing it all in the same process.
> 
> View attachment 4
> 
> 
> I also noticed that the alien pump (the one at the bottom of the bottle) was split near the electrical connector (pointed at with tweezers). This was not leaking and was probably not important but I put some heatshrink over this too.
> 
> View attachment 3
> 
> 
> I then assembled the bottle again, applying a little IPA for rubber seal assembly lubrication - it will eventually evaporate leaving a tight clean rubber sealed joint.
> 
> 
> View attachment 2
> 
> 
> Then it went back under the wing.
> 
> View attachment 1
> 
> 
> I've never had a problem with Halfords screen wash before and will continue to use it, as the system is now clean and all the Audi fluid (or whatever) has been flushed out (spent some time pumping the Aliens).
> 
> I noticed, that there is no filter gause in the bottle design, to stop debris entering the pumps. The pumps have a shredder input design to pulverise any semi-solids, but I don't think this is good for the fine jets in the Aliens!
> 
> I think it might be a good idea to:
> 
> 1) Flush out your bottle with water before adding a different fluid
> 2) If you get a bad smell - remove the bottle and clean it! (Or possibly add a little bleach to kill off bad bugs)
> 
> Anyway, it's all fixed now, for naff all cost, just time... Hope this helps someone else.
> 
> *ADDENDUM:*
> 
> If fuse 33 (20A) keeps blowing you could have a seized high pressure pump due to internal seal failure causing the pump to rust and seize up.
> 
> Blockages in the Aliens could cause too much back pressure possibly but the aliens should still pop out due to the water pressure reaching them. You could pull the pipe off the pump and then see if the pump works without back pressure and doesn't then blow the fuse. If it blows the fuse like this then you may have a duff pump.
> 
> Another test is to measure the resistance between the metal pump body and either of the two electrical connector pins. It should be an open circuit. If it's shorted it's a sign of rust inside. A rusty stain is often a give away too.
> 
> The Audi pump is *P/N: 3B7 955 681 @ £39.38*
> 
> The original early pump is no longer made, so the above pump is its replacement but the connector body is different (different key feature), so you will need to get a different connector body:
> 
> *P/N: 1J0 973 722 A @ £4.81 *
> 
> The connector bodies have a locking slide which allows the contacts to be pulled out from the back of the connector body. You'll also need to press back the barbs on the connector pins to free them. This can be done with the correct tool or paper clip made into two prongs and pushed into holes at the sides of the connector pin. Push the wire further into the connector housing to lift the pin contact barbs from the internal shoulder features first, which will allow the prongs to push the barbs back. Make sure the prongs are then fully inserted, then a tug on the wire should allow the connector pin to come out.
> 
> If the old connector pins are in good condition (open out the barbs if they got pushed back) they can simply be pushed into the new connector body until the barbs go click. The locking key can then be pushed in and the rubber seals inserted fully around the wires. A little IPA serves as a lubricant for assembly.
> 
> *Observe correct polarity! * You don't want the pump to suck :wink:


Hi I'm a newbie mark one owner of a 1.8 quattro, having a similar problem with water not holding in the fluid washer, do you know if there are any step by step videos on YouTube that show how to fix?

Thanks.


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## John-H

I've not seen one. I just fixed the leaks as shown and described what I did. You may well have a different leak than me. Thing to do is find where the water is leaking from and investigate. If it's leaking from the same places as mine my post should help. If you don't fix the pumps you can always replace them.


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## M1cks

John-H said:


> I've not seen one. I just fixed the leaks as shown and described what I did. You may well have a different leak than me. Thing to do is find where the water is leaking from and investigate. If it's leaking from the same places as mine my post should help. If you don't fix the pumps you can always replace them.


Okay thanks.


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## Trig

tbh you dont really need a video, the instructions are pretty simple and once you have the arch liner out of the way its all pretty intuitive.


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## mullum

John, was the cheap pump white or black in colour?
I'm looking at a tenner jobbie on ebay which is white but it says genuine OEM made by Hella ;-)


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## John-H

I bought one for £10 that looked like a genuine one (black) but it could not produce a high pressure. I got a refund.


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## JJBTT

Hi all, 
Just collected my TT from the dealer this afternoon, noticed washer level light came on as I drove off. Refilled, light gone, but back on within about 10 mins, and nothing from jets. I'll have a look at the tank over the weekend hopefully, but it looks like a substantial leak somewhere, hopefully just a hose come off or something.


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## John-H

Could be a few places leaking; from pumps, bottle seals, to cracked aliens. The water can run on the underside of pipes and drop somewhere else to fool you.


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## JJBTT

Thanks John, as I only tried to wash the screen once, between filling it at it being empty again, I'm thinking the bottle end is most likely? Would you agree?


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## rusTTy_racer

Double trouble for sure... If it's flooding out that fast why can't you go back to the dealer? I have known if no antifreeze/screen wash in bottle when seriously cold bottle can freeze and split but unlikely. On mine there is a join in front of L/H (N/S) wheel to allow bumper removal or it's the motors/rubber bungs. Bungs are around a quid each from dealer and worth replacing to be able to inspect the whole system.

As Hoggy always says headlamp washers, if a standard fitment, are a MOT requirement so get the dealer to fix if you can


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## John-H

Possibly but can't be sure. Try parking it on dry ground and filling the bottle. It might drip out obviously.


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## CoppullTT

OP I had this exact same issue when I picked up my TT. Used the washers once and the reservoir emptied itself. Holds liquid when the washers are not used, as soon as washer is used emptied again. Turned out to be a shagged alien, using the washers caused a siphon effect through the broken alien and emptied the reservoir. Only cure is to swap aliens, easy but involved, front bumper and a thousand bits of trim to remove. Temporarily you could plug the outlet to the aliens and remove the power plug on the alien pump, that will get you by and let you use the washers. Now of course you could leave it that way but could be an MOT fail. Replacement aliens that work are near impossible to find used, I went new sourced from the US in the end. If you want contact details let me know.


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## JJBTT

Oh bloody hell, I was hoping for just a simple pipe come off or similar, the dealer is not particularly helpful but I will try based on the fact that it was mot'd last week (theoretically) .


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## JJBTT

CoppullTT said:


> OP I had this exact same issue when I picked up my TT. Used the washers once and the reservoir emptied itself. Holds liquid when the washers are not used, as soon as washer is used emptied again. Turned out to be a shagged alien, using the washers caused a siphon effect through the broken alien and emptied the reservoir. Only cure is to swap aliens, easy but involved, front bumper and a thousand bits of trim to remove. Temporarily you could plug the outlet to the aliens and remove the power plug on the alien pump, that will get you by and let you use the washers. Now of course you could leave it that way but could be an MOT fail. Replacement aliens that work are near impossible to find used, I went new sourced from the US in the end. If you want contact details let me know.


I'll keep my fingers crossed that it's not a shagged alien then, though those contact details would be great thanks!


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## JJBTT

Finally had the chance to look at this today, inlet to left alien snapped off. Arse. Temporarily disconnected the alien pump and plugged the line so I can at least continue using the windscreen washers. Now to source an alien and find time to pull the bumper off.


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## foz231167

Hey guys......first time poster so please forgive any newbie errors. I'll meander slightly off-topic but get to the point in the end - promise.

Bought my 02 TT 225 coupe just a few years ago. She'd been loving maintained by the previous owner with plenty of time spent at TTS in Bedford. However, I live over here in Middle Earth aka Hereford so had entrusted here to the main dealer for maintenance. So far so good (though live in dread of the "free health check" as they always find something!) until last months MOT. O/S rear coil spring was broken and main dealer showed little interest in fixing a car with aftermarket shocks. One new set of Bilstein coilovers later (and a chance meeting with the previous owner - hey Colin!) and we're good to go.

Back to main dealer for the free retest which is surely a formailty......and now they fail her on Hazard lamp warning lights inoperative offside (1.4.B.1b) & Headlamp cleaning device obviously defective (1.7.2)......neither of which were picked up before....WTF????

Main dealer sucks his teeth and starts making noises about full diagnotsics and faulty central computers. I consult TT Forum and see its nothing more than hazard light relay. As for the headlamp washers, N/S is working fine, O/S is more a spurt than a strong spray but still functioning.

Relay fixed at local indie than returned today for 3rd time to main dealer for another free retest.....and it fails again.....this time citing insufficent pressure on the O/S. Main dealer offers to fix it for £180. I tell them to jog on, take it straight back down to the local indie who did a full retest for £35 and passed with flying colours.

Anyway, if you've made it this far and have stopped laughing at all the school-boy errors I've made, I just wanted to say thanks to all previous pages of advice and fixes. Appreciate that I've just managed to forestall a problem that will probably emerge again in 12 months.....but at least I now know how to go about fixing it.

No visible leaks btw......so hoping just a partial blockage that needs clearing.

Loving your work!


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## John-H

The washers are driven by pressure combined with flow. A worn pump may make a noise and spin but could be leaking past the impeller. If it's a bit slow it may not maintain pressure against the outlet restriction. The outlet restriction may be lower than it should be due to seals that leak only during alien operation dribbling past the extending shaft. The pump doesn't have a filter to block but instead a masher that chops up goo.

I tried a £10 eBay pump - I gave it the benefit of the doubt but it couldn't produce the pressure/flow with only a dribble from both washers. I got my money back and they didn't want it returning which says a lot. A new pump from Audi blasted the lights and drenched the car. Chalk and cheese.


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## Dodgster1

Sorry to jump on this thread but the windscreen washer reservoir and aliens have been the bane of my life over the past two weeks.

Today was the second time I have taken the wheel arch trim off, taken the bottle off to clean and check things out, only to have the contents of the water bottle to empty out onto my drive!

This time, I didn't button everything up but noticed that there is no leak coming from the bottle. The leak appears to be coming from (or the water exiting there) the passenger side of the front of the car.

I have checked the rubber lead by touch running to the passenger side alien and it is bone dry. I do not however know where the lead is that runs to the driver's side alien as I guess this is the one that is leaking. Does anyone have a diagram or is this a case where the front of the car has to come off [smiley=bigcry.gif]

I've recently had an aftermarket belly pan put on and I'm thinking that maybe the rubber hose leading to the driver's side alien may have been snagged then.

I also think there's another issue with the aliens as I checked the fuse that was in the fuse box before I initially took everything off and it was blown, I changed it and the driver's side alien worked then the bottle dumped its contents on my drive....this is when I initially took the bottle off and gave it a clean, inspected all grommets and checked the pumps which all work fine.

Any help guys as I'm at the end of my rope with this..... [smiley=book2.gif]


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## rusTTy_racer

I think you are over thinking this... The set up is so simple; a high pressure pump forces the screenwash through the pipes to force the headlamp washer out. Lack of pressure prevents 'aliens' coming out. Pumps don't last forever - you can pull the bottom off the pump and inspect the motor (my guess is it will be covered in rust). Could be somebody has put a screw through the pipe so try to get a look under to see


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## Dodgster1

I've inspected both pumps. They are sound. The water is oozing out from under the belly pan so I guess the hose leading to the driver's side alien has perished or its come away. 
Going to have to find where this leak is as I hear it's an mot failure...


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## KevtoTTy

Dodgster1 said:


> I've inspected both pumps. They are sound. The water is oozing out from under the belly pan so I guess the hose leading to the driver's side alien has perished or its come away.
> Going to have to find where this leak is as I hear it's an mot failure...


Hi Dodgster, rusTTy_racer & John-H

I have a similar problem with water leaking from somewhere central at the front of the bumper. What's puzzling me is how water literally gushes out without either the windscreen pump or alien pumps are running? I would have thought there would have been no pressure in the alien pipework unless the alien pump was running. I have checked the water bottle and everything looks okay (which wasn't a surprise as the leak is in front of the wheel and well away from the bottle location).

Unfortunately I can't access the T piece that splits the water supply between the two aliens as it is behind the centre lower grill. I can access both aliens and neither appear to be leaking - so I am assuming its either the T piece is broken or there is a split in the pipes attached to it.

What was the outcome of yours Dodgster?

Does anyone know if its possible to remove the lower centre grill (V6) from the front i.e without removing the bumper?

Many thanks in advance

Kevin


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## rusTTy_racer

Assuming the bottle is full some of the water would run out under gravity and then the rest by suction I guess. Have you fitted a splitter as it could be the pipe got cut? I found that I could get a hand up behind bumper and look through with a torch but no substitute for removing the bumper lol.

You can get a split if below freezing and no screenwash added.


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## John-H

Yes, gravity will be doing it. I think the aliens shut off when there's no pressure but if there's an open split it will likely fall out. It could be a pipe off our a split alien. From memory, with the engine under tray off you can get to or at least see the pipe connections but I may be getting confused with my S3.


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