headlight washer cover broken

[Eddo1968]

It's normal in Paris to see VWs and Audis with these little washer flaps missing. As Parisians are incapable of parking without whacking the adjacent cars I suppose the flaps just pop out when they've been hit enough times. This is the main reason why I never park on the street here!

[albion80]

Is it the washer cover or the washer jet mechanism that is not retracting?

Looks like its the flap not closing, preventing the washer from retracting - seems the flap wedges under the washer because if I very gently pull the flap down away from contact with the washer, it then retracts..

So yeh - looks like its the flap lol..

So as mentioned - will I have to replace the entire front end of the car to fix this? lol

[2.7 S-line]

Looks like its the flap not closing, preventing the washer from retracting - seems the flap wedges under the washer because if I very gently pull the flap down away from contact with the washer, it then retracts..

So yeh - looks like its the flap lol..

So as mentioned - will I have to replace the entire front end of the car to fix this? lol

if it is the same fault i had then a new bumper was needed

though if your warranty period had passed it is an expensive repair - i'm not sure what one of those plastic repair type companies could accomplish....

[jon_iz]

Looks like its the flap not closing, preventing the washer from retracting - seems the flap wedges under the washer because if I very gently pull the flap down away from contact with the washer, it then retracts..

So yeh - looks like its the flap lol..

So as mentioned - will I have to replace the entire front end of the car to fix this? lol

It depends.
I have read on other forums that the washer can just need re-positioning to make it retract.
The issue is once the washer has retracted, does the cover close properly on it's own, without you helping it?
If it doesn't, gently open it to check the hinges and lugs. If they are good, it will pivot cleanly against it's spring, if not, it will wobbly side to side slightly.
Try comparing it against the other side, you cab pull it down gently with a thumb nail or a thin credit card.
If the lugs are broken, then you will be able to see them move with the hinge arm of the cover.
If they do, welcome to my world, new bumper time.

[albion80]

*UPDATE*
After inspection, it looks as though the offending article is the washer itself,

Comparing it with the other side, it pulls and pushes with far less resistance, leading me to think that maybe the winding mechanism has lost its grip with the washer, meaning the flap wedges it when its out,

If this is the case, surely something other than replacing the whole bumper can be done???

*UPDATE 2*

FIXED!!!!!
If anyone else gets this issue, grab hold of the washer periscope and drench it with suitable lube ( I used Wurth ULTRA 2040 PTFE non-silicone) then plunge it in and out a few times so that the lube gets down into the mechanism

Hope this helps!

J

[NHN]

TBH the newer design of just having the flap fixed to the bumper is ok, but as said if the flap fixings get broken maybe from weathering, brittle, which they shouldnt, then yeap its a new bumper, whole point was to make taking the bumper of easier, but still leaving fogs part of the bumper was a bad move as you still have to pee about with unplugging the looms anyway, so defeats the object imho, also the fixings for the caps arent maybe imho strong enough, they are just 2 studs you push the cap fixings into with a very flimsy wound spring, it works, but could be better.

I recently did a headlight washer system install for a customer & had to adjust the bumper socket where the caps sat in as it sat proud, audi's QC is lacking tbh of recent years.

As for the jets, although you shouldnt manually pull the jets out as it can affect the sping pressure, but if it works then all good for us, but they make a big deal of warning you, dont pull them out manually.

[albion80]

TBH the newer design of just having the flap fixed to the bumper is ok, but as said if the flap fixings get broken maybe from weathering, brittle, which they shouldnt, then yeap its a new bumper, whole point was to make taking the bumper of easier, but still leaving fogs part of the bumper was a bad move as you still have to pee about with unplugging the looms anyway, so defeats the object imho, also the fixings for the caps arent maybe imho strong enough, they are just 2 studs you push the cap fixings into with a very flimsy wound spring, it works, but could be better.

I recently did a headlight washer system install for a customer & had to adjust the bumper socket where the caps sat in as it sat proud, audi's QC is lacking tbh of recent years.

As for the jets, although you shouldnt manually pull the jets out as it can affect the sping pressure, but if it works then all good for us, but they make a big deal of warning you, dont pull them out manually.

I did hesitate when tackling the washer jet issue but decided the pros outweighed the cons, especially with the prospect of it becoming damaged anyway by being wedged, stuck out at 75mph on the m4 or forgetting to push it back in and it becoming knocked or vandalised whilst parked! Thanks for the info tho!

[hawkesbaynz]

Currently glueing an offending broken stud back onto the bumper on my 58 plate A4 S-line. A mechanic friend did this for me last summer and it lasted a few month (doubt my bodge will).

Anyone know if the headlamp washing mechanism can be turned off my the computer? Damned if I am going to spend £700 on an unnecessary repair. Does not effect the use of the car

[NHN]

It can be disabled, but mot bay will test it as its present & fail you because of this.

[Mcdxb]

Currently glueing an offending broken stud back onto the bumper on my 58 plate A4 S-line. A mechanic friend did this for me last summer and it lasted a few month (doubt my bodge will).

Anyone know if the headlamp washing mechanism can be turned off my the computer? Damned if I am going to spend £700 on an unnecessary repair. Does not effect the use of the car

I wanted to disable this flap and came across this post.

Did you ever manage to actually disable it?

I want to stick a number plate over it so I don't want it to come out anymore.

Do you know how I go about disabling this?

Thanks.

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