[aullah]

Hi all,

The windscreen washer fluid warning light remains illuminated on my current vehicle, the Hyundai i30 1.4L Petrol Manual (Comfort, late 2009).

Usually when I top up the fluid, the warning light turns off immediately. It's been on for weeks/months and I'm looking at replacing the level sensor.

Everything works as normal, including the jets and there are no leaks on the washer bottle (as far as I'm aware, as I'm not losing fluid); therefore I believe it maybe due to the washer reservoir level sensor.

Would anyone know how to remove the washer bottle from the vehicle, as I believe the sensor is towards the bottom of the bottle? Does it require taking off the vehicle's wing/fender?

Thank you all and kind regards.

[eye30]

For memory I think there is a post about this.

If you use the search function you should find it.

You need to remove the wheel and this allows access as the lining has to be removed.

[eye30]

Try this link

Windscreen washer tank replacement for i30

[aullah]

Hi eye30,

Thank you for your swift response and for sharing a link to the thread. I believe that answers what I'm looking for, I should be able to get to the tank by taking off or peeling back the wheel liner.

I'll give it ago sometime once I have the replacement part, and if possible gather some photos to share.

Thank you a bunch again!

[sundiz]

You might want to try just cleaning the sensor before replacing it. Just a hard brush may clean the surface of the sensor. Sometimes using plain water or poor quality can create slimy film in the reservoir. Does not cost a thing to try. Replace after that if necessary.

[aullah]

Awesome, thanks sundiz! I'll give that a go too and report back to this thread.

[aullah]

I didn't remove the windscreen washer tank, and I wasn't 100% certain where the level sensor was located; I'm guessing after inspecting it's located directly on the bottom (I could be mistaken here).

In hopes to clean the sensor, I depleted all of the windscreen fluid by using it all, then I poured some biological washing power and some hot water into the windscreen tank. I then depleted it all again and then topped up with some screen wash, and now the windscreen warning light is no longer illuminated on my dash.

Thank you all for your help and responses.

Here are some photos I captured, if it helps anyone in the future. This is a Right-Hand Drive (RHD) i30 FD 1.4L Petrol Manual.

I've removed the driver's (RHD) side headlamp, undone the coolant tank (this was unnecessary but most likely will be required if removing the windscreen wash tank), undone the side of the bumper and wheel arch.


Looking down at the windscreen washer tank from where the driver's side headlamp would be (with the coolant tank out of the way).


Looking in through the side of the wheel arch (I did remove the cable for testing, but I have reattached it). It is quite tight to access it from here.


No more warning lights!

[AlanHo]

Great job - thank you for the piccies.

[aullah]

Thank you AlanHo.

But unfortunately I think I celebrated too soon. I drove it around today and the warning light came back on, haha.

I didn’t use the windscreen washer on my journies, and as usual when I use them, they work perfectly fine. Haha, I might just leave it for the while unless I can find a solution.

[Dazzler]

Thank you AlanHo.

But unfortunately I think I celebrated too soon. I drove it around today and the warning light came back on, haha.

I didn’t use the windscreen washer on my journies, and as usual when I use them, they work perfectly fine. Haha, I might just leave it for the while unless I can find a solution.

 

[Lorian]

Thats the pump in the photo - assuming its the same part as the FD diesel I think this is the level sensor, and it fits in the bottom of the tank.

[Lorian]

You can import one from Korea (week or two to get it typically)

ELANTRA i30 07- ELANTRA TOURING i30CW 08- GENUINE WASHER SWITCH 985202L000 | eBay

check its the right part first of course!

[aullah]

Thank you Lorian, that's brilliant!

I'll try to spend some time on the car again and see if I can raise the vehicle up somehow, perhaps by parking it on a big curb. I don't have ramps at home, and unfortunately no space to store them otherwise I would have purchased some, haha.

I'm guessing to access the bottom of the windscreen washer tank from previously taking a look, it'll probably be better to do it from the bottom of the vehicle after removing the plastic tray/cover. I could be wrong too of course.

I'll post some photos once I've taken a look again.

[aullah]

Hi all,

As an update, I still haven’t been able to resolve this issue and the warning light still persists. To be honest however, I haven’t tackled the issue any further since my last post as it doesn’t hinder functionality. (It’s just more of a nuisance.)

However I will be taking my vehicle to Hyundai for it’s annual service next week, therefore I did want to resolve the issue so I made an attempt today. Unfortunately still no avail, but I do have more answers/knowledge to share.

• I can confirm that the windscreen level sensor is indeed located at the bottom of the tank.
• The washer bottle/reservoir is mounted with two bolts, which are quite difficult to access. They’re to the right (i.e. closer towards the engine). Unsure of the bolt size, but can confirm not 10mm.
• You can access the level sensor from the side of the vehicle, by removing one screw from the wheel arch, then unclipping the bumper. Removing the headlamp is beneficial.
• Because you can access the level sensor from the side of the vehicle doesn’t mean you should! You should actually access it from the bottom of the vehicle, removing the plastic guard. Otherwise you won’t be able to remove the sensor.

With the last point, the sensor cannot be removed when accessing it from the side via pulling the wheel arch. This is the case as there is not enough clearance whilst the plastic guard at the bottom of the vehicle is in place. You could remove the guard and then remove it from the side, but it’s more straight-forward when accessing it from the bottom of the vehicle.

You can see here that there is not enough clearance to pull out the sensor. I tried all angles I could, but there is more to take out yet.



Due to it getting dark out, I wasn’t able to spend more time to remove the bottom plastic guard. It may be best to lift your vehicle up if you can, but I’ll try to give it another attempt when I can.

[The Gonz]

Thanks for all the great detail. Reading through it all, it's still too soon to blame the sensor. You may have a poor connection anywhere between the sensor and the logic circuit. I'm guessing the sensor provides a binary value (either open or short circuit). If so, you could watch the indicator while you bridge the connector pins for a response. You could also bridge them and then move the cable around to check for poor cable continuity.

[aullah]

I was back at it again yesterday but this time I worked from the bottom of the vehicle, by parking it on a large curb.

(I would recommend from experience anyone trying to access the windscreen level sensor to do so from the bottom of the vehicle, don’t bother with trying to access it from the arch, unlike other threads suggest as you won’t be able to remove it, nor can you see or access the plug socket.)

From the bottom of the vehicle, unscrew and remove 3 plastic screws and their expanding grommets. (I've already done this in the following picture; therefore you can see 3 holes where the screws would be located.)


Pull back the plastic guard and you now have complete access to the windscreen level sensor.


Here I’ve pulled out the sensor and disconnected it from it’s plug socket (you can see the orange socket in the back). To unmount the plug from the tank, push it to the left (towards the side of the bumper). It slides out but can be difficult to remove, so I used a flat head screw driver and gave it a knock.


I then cleaned out the sensor under a sink with hot water. A lot of debris came out to my surprise (no idea how it all got in there in the first place).


Finally attach it all back together and then place the plastic guard back on.




The washer level sensor returns a binary value (i.e. reservoir screen wash available or low), so it can only return two values to the car's computer. The way it works is that there is floating mechanism inside the level sensor; when the fluid in the tank is high enough, the mechanism will float (to the top) and return a value to the computer that the reservoir is adequately filled. If the mechanism does not float (then it's at the bottom), then it will inform the computer that the screen wash is low resulting in the warning light.

Whilst I had the level sensor out of the tank, I left it plugged in to the socket and placed it upside down (forcing the floating mechanism to be moved to the top of the sensor). As expected the warning light from the dash was gone. I tested this again by placing it in the correct position (and the floating mechanism being placed at the bottom) and the warning light re-illuminated, also as expected. I also found unplugging the sensor prevented the warning light from appearing, however this isn't the ideal fix.

With all that being said, after giving the sensor a clean I was expecting it to work as it does correctly return a value when I inverted/placed the switch upside down (thus not showing the warning light). But after doing only a couple of miles, it reappeared. I think the better solution would be to buy a new sensor rather than trying to clean the existing one; may be the current switch's mechanism isn't floating (perhaps it may have more debris inside weighing it down).

As I will be taking the vehicle to Hyundai for it's annual service, I asked over the phone for the part (the washer level sensor). They quoted £60 to diagnose the problem, or if I just want the part then it would be around ~£112 (including tax). I asked as I wasn't able to locate one on eBay/Amazon that delivers to the UK (I believe due to the pandemic). So I may have to do a little searching online. 

[aullah]

Thanks for all the great detail. Reading through it all, it's still too soon to blame the sensor. You may have a poor connection anywhere between the sensor and the logic circuit. I'm guessing the sensor provides a binary value (either open or short circuit). If so, you could watch the indicator while you bridge the connector pins for a response. You could also bridge them and then move the cable around to check for poor cable continuity.

Thank you for your reply The Gonz. Yes, you're right it does provide a binary value/response.

After trying to remove the sensor again yesterday, I was able to test the sensor by forcing the floating mechanism to the top (by placing the sensor upside down and still plugged in). The warning light disappeared. This does indicate that the level switch still works at returning a response, and perhaps also that there isn't a fault elsewhere as all was working when the sensor was floating at the top.

But oddly after giving the sensor a clean, reinserting it and topping up with ready-mixed washer fluid, the warning light re-illuminated after a couple of miles of driving. So I'm thinking perhaps the sensor mechanism isn't floating (or is unable to remain floating) inside the tank.

I could be mistaken here, but I would like to try a new sensor and hopefully happy days thereafter. It was glorious to be driving without the warning light (albeit for a short period), I haven't had it like this in over a year haha.

[asathorny]

Your perseverance will pay off in the end I am sure, interesting thread which I have followed 

Good luck with new sensor 

[Lorian]

If you dont mind waiting a few weeks for it to turn up, but paying very little for it (will be genuine part)

Auto Part Item View : 985202L000 (98520-2L000) LEVEL SW-W/S WASHER for HYUNDAI / KIA I30/ELANTRA TOURING

[aullah]

Your perseverance will pay off in the end I am sure, interesting thread which I have followed 

Good luck with new sensor 

Thank you asathorny, much appreciated and I will keep this thread updated with photos.

If you dont mind waiting a few weeks for it to turn up, but paying very little for it (will be genuine part)

Auto Part Item View : 985202L000 (98520-2L000) LEVEL SW-W/S WASHER for HYUNDAI / KIA I30/ELANTRA TOURING

Thank you Lorian for finding the part, I've made the purchase. I've paid extra to have it delivered via UPS, so hopefully will come sooner. Still works out significantly cheaper than the main dealer. Much appreciated.

My car's service has been delayed to later this month as they didn't have a courtesy car available, so hopefully if the part arrives before then I can fit it first. 🤞

[aullah]

Hi all,

The level sensor from Koraps has arrived today after I chose to have it delivered via UPS, the fastest method they had. I ordered it on the 9th of March and it has arrived today on the 22nd; so can be used as a guide/reference if anyone plans on ordering from Koraps to the UK via UPS. It took 9 working days which isn't bad, however the tracking information wasn't updated on their website since ordering.

Unfortunately however my vehicle's service was last week so I wasn't able to fit it before then, however I decided to fit it today as I couldn't wait until the weekend.





I also purchased a funnel and a PVC tube from eBay so I could flush the windscreen wash out, rather than depleting it all or having it just pour out onto the ground.



After replacing the sensor and topping up the windscreen wash, the warning light is no longer present. I have also driven it around a few miles and it has not re-illuminated. I believe the problem is now resolved. Woohoo!



It feels unreal to be driving the car without a warning light as I have been seeing the warning for over a year.

I compared the new sensor to the old and when doing so, I noticed the old sensor had less travel (floating ability), whereas the new sensor easily floats. I thought I'd make a video to quickly demonstrate this. Please see the following video I've uploaded to DropBox:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/fjzc6eoily8skjy/IMG_2757.MOV?dl=0

• The sensor on the left (the one I pickup first) is the new sensor.
• The one on the right (the one I pickup second) is the old sensor.

They're both identical but I've tried to demonstrate that the new sensor easily floats (moves up) by turning it upside down. Whereas the old sensor didn't so easily, although you may not be able to make it out in the video.

All in all, I think that's the job done. Thank you all! 

[asathorny]

EEeeee, thats grand lad.  Thanks for updating us 

[Dazzler]

EEeeee, thats grand lad.  Thanks for updating us 

What his head. 👍🤗