I know it's trivial but windshield washers are required to get my new car through the safety check.

I know it is fairly easy to jerry rig an electric pump - had to do it on the old car. But if the water valve is still working I want to try it stock - less time to get it on the road.

The valve that is screwed into the water bottle doesn't seem to be allowing air into the bottle. There is a little ivory bit in there that pushes against a tiny plunger. Looks like some sort of rig to keep you from draining all the air from the tire. I've managed to get air flowing twice now but just momentary and nothing that I can replicate.

Anyone delt with this before? Soak it in dish washer for a while? WD40?

Thanks

The check valve is there to keep the water from filling the tire, not the other way around .................... The Cap'n

Fair enough. Ever cracked one open to see how it works? Where it might fail?

what's the air-pressure in your spare tire?
Andy

about 38psi

Safety check for what? You have to demonstrate working windshield washers on a 1973 car to renew a license?

Makes me glad I live in a place where I can remove all the junk I want from my car and still drive it legally.

Sorry I'm no help. Here's some sympathy, and a cheer to good luck.

In Ontario we need a safety certificate whenever a car is sold. Can't plate it until that is done. And Yup, windshield washer is part of it

Sounds similar to the check valves Porsche used in later years (my car has been converted to an electric pump so I've never seen one).

I use compressed air to free them up. When a car sits for a while, they will dry out and stick, to the point where the pressure from the washer pump won't free them up.

just closing the loop for posterity.

Found a second one off the old car and it wouldn't work either so I figured it has to be just sitting too long. Sir Andy was pointing me in the right direction - tire pressure. According to Haynes the valve is intended to keep the tire pressure from dropping below 29 PSI. So it has to be just a simple spring valve in there that takes 29 psi to open. I figure the valves had been inactive too long and like every thing else was a bit crudded up. Pushed the tire pressure up to 40 psi (just a wee bit nerve wracking given the spare tire is about 25 years old) and sure enough she popped open.

That, of course, was immediately followed by a flood of biblical proportions in the cockpit. Oh well. Hooked up a quick and dirty electrical pump with new hoses just to get her through the safety. Pretty ugly but it will do for now. When I have her all fixed up and running (yeah - I know!!!) I'll come back and try to restore the air system.