Windshield Wiper Not Working - Fix

[BigWalmac]

Hey guys,

On my wife's 2001 3.0 X5 my wipers were not working and I was having trouble finding a fix. I finally fixed them, so I figured I'd post the solution here to maybe help others.

My wipers did not work. Naturally I searched here.

1) I checked the fuses (I think it was either 27 or 40) both were OK
2) I found that a common problem are the wiper motor bolts coming loose...

http://www.xoutpost.com/articles/x5/...wiper-fix.html

I tightened the bolts, but this was not the problem.
3) I checked the wiper relay
http://www.bmwmotorsports.org/BMW_do...lectronics.pdf See page 6

I cleaned it, no luck, purchased a new relay from getbmwparts.com... and presto, wipers work.

Notes:
The Relay is located in the "E box" it is on the passenger side of the engine bay, under the air dam, basically touching the fire wall. You need to take off the cover to work in there. To do so, you need to pull out part of the funel for the cabin air filter (pulls straight up). Also note, when pulling the Relay out, pay attention to how it came out. It's hard to see how to put it back, so best to pay attention.

[SlickGT1]

Chalk that one up to another relay failure. I swear I see this more often than the actual part component failure itself.

Good job.

I have a case of relays sitting in the garage just for this reason.

[RRPhil]

The Range Rover appears to suffer from the same problem (yet the dealer told me he'd never sold a single relay before when I bought mine). Does it look like the same one as used in the E53?

fullfatrr.com - View topic - Blocking protection problem - front wipers

Phil

[BigWalmac]

yep. looked exactly lkike that tan relay

[Tapia]

Thank you forum members! Wipers stopped working and I knew where to turn. I found a solution here and was back on the road after tightening the wiper motor bolts (10mm). It was a piece of cake!