Hi there, The Man has it spot on. If your washer pump is functioning and you have an inadequate blast of screen wash in the manner you describe then it is very likely to be the gauze rubber grommit fitted between the screenwash reservoir and screenwash pump. This fitting is an absolute magnet for any contamination which invariably finds its way into your screenwash reservoir. To gain access to this grommit you need to do the following....
1. Loosen the wheel nuts on the near side (passenger side) front wheel. Raise the vehicle and remove the wheel.
2. Remove the protective plastic wheel arch panel. (On my Vectra cdti '55 plate you need to remove 4x screws and several pop rivets which you push in from the centre and end up losing as they are fiddly bits of cr**). Manhandle the panel out of the arch. If you look to the left inside the arch you will be able to view the windscreen washer bottle secured in place by 3 nuts.
3. Simply lift the screenwash motor out of its port. It is held in place by friction so don't worry about using a bit of elbow grease if it's a little tight. (there should be two plastic hoses attached to the motor, you front and rear wash hoses. It isn't necessary to remove these from the pump).
4. Using a blunt screwdriver, manipulate the BLACK RUBBER GROMMET out of its port. You will notice that the end of the grommet has multiple pores, give this a good clean. I used an old toothbrush to unclog the pores.
5. Pour plenty of water into the reservoir fill port to clean it out, a garden hose is ideal if you have one.
6. That should be you sorted! (And saved from some dodgy garage trying to charge you for a new motor that you probably didn't need with their generous labour charge to go with it!)
7. Reversing the sequence, put your car back together again!
All the best and happy driving! No more filthy windscreens for you!
Ross K, January 2011
