Hi All

I've got a 2012 XJ 3.0 diesel which has recently developed an issue which I've been trying to solve for quite some time and it's beyond my imagination.
Basically, something is spraying on my windscreen (aka windshield) when I drive. At first it looks like little slightly oily specks appearing one by one but after 5 minutes there's hundreds of them. They're not wet and turn into white-ish smears when I turn on the wipers. They come off if I use washer but I cannot really do it 10 times on my way to work.
I've tried to trace where it's coming from and it seems to be from the front grill which is also covered in the same specks. I took the car to a garage suspecting coolant leak but they checked the whole system and apparently there was no leak of coolant or any other fluid. But it was stationary the whole time. However, they kept the engine on for 2 hours and when I collected the car, it didn't spray even a tiny bit for two whole days until it started again.

Coolant and oil levels are stable, engine air filter is clean and dry, no warning lights, the engine runs fine.

Anyone got any ideas what it might be?

 

Mystery. Well, if you checked engine coolant and engine oil, you only left with diesel, brake fluid, compressor fluid, power steering fluid, and transmission fluid. I'd start with checking for fuel leaks..

 

Thanks for the idea.
Seems generally reasonable but how would any of those end up being shot out of the grill with such force that it's stronger than the suction of air intake?

 

I do not really see how a fluid from the engine compartment could end on the grill or even the windshield, considering how the air is routed when a XJ is driven...

Could it not be something that was put on the roads in your area, involuntarily or intentionally, like:
https://www.dot.nd.gov/divisions/mai...icingfacts.pdf
and then projected on your car by the cars before you?

 

Sounds like salt to me. At this time of year don't they salt the roads?

 

Not in the UK definitely, there was no snow or ice for the last 12 months I suspect other people would have the same problem anyway but doesn’t seem so,

 

maybe it’s related to Brexit.
😉

 

Haha that wouldn't be so good
I'll try to make a photo of the windscreen if it happens again tomorrow. I've washed the glass and grill with vinegar solution yesterday but I doubt this would help.

 

If you were in Chicago, in the summer, I would say it was tree sap.

 

Weird, but possibly Air con refrigerant?

 

pin hole in a hose but from where ?

 

I wonder if it is pinholes in your AC condenser and the refrigerant oil is spraying out. The ACcsystem can develope pinhole it the system has been opened and not properly evacuated this results in hydrocloric asid developing and eating pinholes in the aluminium condenser.

 

Yeah thats my thoughts, pin hole in codenser unit or hardline piping

 

RIght. It did got a bit better during the last two weeks but now it's all back to as it used to be. I've made a couple of photos of the windscreen but it's quite difficult to catch it from inside or outside. Those white-ish smears you can see have been made by wipers going through the 'residue' without washer. Whatever it is, it seems to be mixing with rain water when it rains and then it's more like a wet spray, whereas on a dry day it's almost like greasy dust.

Anyone?
I've asked the AC guys if they can check the system but their ideas were kind of drastic, I'm not sure if it's worth doing.

 

Got to be coming off the road. Do you drive the same route every day?
And do you get it when the road surface is dry? (The road looks wet and greasy in your photos.)

 

Well. I do drive the same route every day but yesterday it was dry and the same thing happened. The only difference is that the spray is dry and sort of heavier in consistency. Generally it happens both in dry and wet conditions but there are days when it doesn’t happen at all. It’s just all a bit suspicious.

Maybe waxing the car / windscreen would help?

 

Isolate and delineate the cause.

Clean your windscreen back to spotless with no smears.

Ensure you drive with the air con off the following day and note any recurrence of deposits or smearing on windscreen or grille.

Look for areas on the painted or insulation under section of your bonnet where the may be a concentration of the greasy misting which may help delineate the source, also any other areas around the engine bay where there is a concentration of greasy fluid, pay particular attention to AC compressor lines and condenser lines.

I am pretty certain what you are experiencing is compressor oil and or refrigerant. Hopefully by not activating the clutch in the compressor it will assist in delineating and revealing the source of your possible leak. At least hopefully you may cross an item or two from the list of possible sources.

I would like to know what the AC guys said regarding drastic measures??