Sorry, that's local vernacular jargon and I should do better to define these terms on introduction of them. ;)
Most people call them windshield washer nozzles, or similar. But I find that they're about as useful for that job as I imagine that a monkey pissing on the window might be, so I find the other description -- while vulgar -- to be a better fit.
Anyway, they're heated on cold-weather E36s. IIRC, it's temperature-activated and independent of the defrost switch.
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It's supposed to go something like this on a ice-crusted day with an E36:
1. Find the door lock completely frozen and inoperable
2. Lift the outside door handle for a few seconds to engage the lock heater (!)
3. Succeed at unlocking car.
4. Get in. Start the car. Turn on the front and rear defrosters and the headlights. Retrieve the scrapey-thing
5. Back outside, start scraping.
6. Get tired of that and climb back inside.
7. Try the wipers to see how clear the windshield isn't.
8. Engage the monkey pissers, which are probably de-iced on their own by now and flowing freely
