Aiming the washer jets by eye usually ends up with the water landing too high, too low, or blowing clean over the roof once you are moving. BMW gives eight dimensions for it under procedure 61 71 504 – they locate four spray targets on the glass, two per jet.
The method:
Transfer distances 1 to 8 onto the windshield and mark each spray target with a 30 mm (1.181″) diameter dot. Then insert a needle into the spray jet and aim the sprayed water at the middle of the pertinent dot.
Do it on clean, dry glass, and put the marks on the outside where you can still see them while you are working at the nozzle.
Distances:
1 = 258 mm (10.157″)
2 = 460 mm (18.110″)
3 = 405 mm (15.945″)
4 = 265 mm (10.433″)
5 = 310 mm (12.205″)
6 = 473 mm (18.622″)
7 = 490 mm (19.291″)
8 = 285 mm (11.220″)
How the eight numbers pair up:
Each jet sprays two targets, and each target needs one horizontal and one vertical dimension to place it. Left and right below are as you see them standing in front of the car looking at the windshield – the same view as the diagram and the photo.
Horizontal distances on the left half are measured in from the left edge of the glass; on the right half they are measured in from the right edge. Every vertical distance is measured down from the top edge.
Left jet, lower target – 258 mm in from the left edge (1), 405 mm down from the top (3)
Left jet, upper target – 460 mm in from the left edge (2), 265 mm down from the top (4)
Right jet, upper target – 473 mm in from the right edge (6), 310 mm down from the top (5)
Right jet, lower target – 285 mm in from the right edge (8), 490 mm down from the top (7)
The pattern is not symmetrical:
Worth knowing before you start doubting your tape measure. The whole right hand pattern sits further inboard and lower than the left one — 285 and 490 against 258 and 405 on the lower targets, 473 and 310 against 460 and 265 on the upper ones. It is set up around the area the blades actually sweep rather than the centreline of the glass, so do not mirror the left side figures across to the right.
In practice:
The needle is not just there to find the hole – it is the tool you steer with. It goes into the jet orifice and gives you enough leverage to rotate the nozzle in its seat. Move it in small increments and test after each one; it is a friction fit and it will usually go further than you meant.
If the car spends most of its life at speed, aim at the top of each dot rather than the middle. Airflow over the hood pushes the spray down and back, and these targets are set with the car standing still.
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