Freelander Headlight Washer Woes: Help Needed

Hey there! I have some experience with cars and had a similar issue with my 1998 Land Rover Discovery diesel last year. The headlight washer system failed completely, just like yours. Turned out it was a simple cable break that was causing the whole system to malfunction. Took it to my regular workshop and they found the broken cable pretty quickly. The repair wasn't too complicated, but accessing the area was a bit tricky. Total cost was around 155 Euro, including parts and labor. They had it fixed within a day. To help you better, have you checked if the washer fluid pump is making any noise when activated? Does your regular washer system for the windscreen work normally? Have you noticed any fluid leaks under the car? BTW, these systems can be quite similar across the Freelander and Discovery models from that era, so hopefully my experience can help point you in the right direction.

Thanks for sharing your experience! My Freelander just had its service last month at 118,202 KM, and everything else is working fine. The windscreen washer works perfectly, and I can hear the pump running, but nothing comes out for the headlights. I've checked underneath, and there's no sign of any leaks. Just checked again after reading your post, and you might be onto something with the cable suggestion. There's no click sound when I try to activate the headlight washers, which is different from how it used to be. Going to take a closer look this weekend, but I might end up taking it to a mechanic if it's as tricky to access as you mentioned. Thanks for the heads up about the repair costs too, helps to know what I might be looking at!

Hey again! Ah, that definitely sounds familiar, especially the missing click sound! That's exactly how mine started. Since you can hear the main pump but there's no click from the headlight washer mechanism, I'm even more convinced it's the same cable issue I had. In my Discovery, the cable had worn through where it runs behind the front bumper. The lack of the click sound is typically the giveaway, it means the signal isn't reaching the headlight washer motors. Mine was perfectly fine one day and completely dead the next. When I tried to check it myself, I realized getting to that area was way more complex than I expected. Had to remove several parts just to get a good look. That's why I ended up taking it to my mechanic. If you're handy with cars, you might manage it, but honestly, considering the time and hassle involved, the repair cost was worth it for me. One tip though, when you get it fixed, ask them to add some protective sleeve around the new cable. My mechanic did that, and it should help prevent the same issue from happening again. Keep me posted on what you find during your weekend inspection! But yeah, sounds like we had the exact same problem.

Thanks so much for all this detailed information! I really appreciate you taking the time to explain everything. After hearing about your experience, I'm definitely going to skip trying to fix this myself. The protective sleeve tip is brilliant, I'll make sure to mention that when I take it in. I was planning to tinker with it this weekend, but you've convinced me it's better to leave it to the professionals. The similarity between our issues is striking, and knowing it's likely just a worn cable makes me feel much better about the whole thing. I was worried it might be something major! I'll call my mechanic on Monday to book it in. The repair cost you mentioned seems reasonable, especially considering how fiddly the access seems to be. Better to get it sorted properly than risk making things worse by attempting a DIY fix. Thanks again for all your help, you've saved me a lot of potential frustration!