Washer fluid hose replacement

[Grumpy]

My daughter's 97 Pathfinder has a hole in the washer fluid hose that supplies the pair of nozzles that service the windshield.

 

Washer fluid is leaking out behind the front wheel

 

This is the hose that runs from the rear of the hood down behind the inner fender, then to the pump / reservoir located behind the ditch side headlight

 

I pulled a fender screw at the reservoir area and was able to see 3 outbound washer fluid hoses. Ouch...

 

As it's 12 F with a wind chill of minus something or other with 17 new inches of snow here, it sure would be dandy to know which of the three hoses needs to be replaced without pulling the ice / salt/ & sand encrusted inner fender. (Did I mention I have no garage?)

 

Thanks

[Precise1]

Let me go out and look...

 

B

 

Well, I looked and wondered what you were going on about. It's very simple, on a 95... Sorry, can't help you.

Edited December 23, 2008 by Precise1
failed reading comprehension

[5523Pathfinder]

You are going to need another person run the switch while you search for the leak. Depending where its leaking, it may just be running down the fender. I would look near the windshield cowl and see if one didnt just fall off or is leaking. You can get inline repair fittings at any parts store. One of the pumps is for the rear window washer btw.

[Grumpy]

Thanks for the replies. A night's sleep helped clear the fog of where to start. I dropped the access panel below the washer reservoir, then used the braille method to figure out which pump services the windshield. My daughter actuated the windshield washers, and the buzzing pump was the one. That narrowed it down to two hoses. The hose nearest the vehicle front was the only outbound fluid source off of the buzzing pump, and so the culprit was found. From there I inserted a dual male hose barb between the new & old hose, and wrapped the union in electrical tape, which allowed me to use the old hose as a chase. I was able to pull the new hose into place without dropping the inner fender. The second hose at the windshield pump is apparently an air inlet hose that was taped to the fluid-out hose upstream. My yanking of the hose pulled the tape apart, and so I shoved the air hose back up hill so it would not act as a siphon. Had the ambient temperatures been a might warmer than 26 F, I probably would have taped the air hose into it's proper location. A heat gun allowed the tiny 1/8 hose to relax enough to push it home onto the mounting barbs, and all is now well with the world.

Edited December 25, 2008 by Grumpy