winter checklist - sunroof drains

[tim eh?]

If you live in a cold climate (like I do), you're probably aware of the kind of damage unwanted water can do to your car as it thaws and refreezes.
So if you love your e34 (with me it's kind of love/hate, but anyway...), you might want to make sure your sunroof drains are clear before the winter season hits.

I first realized I had a problem when I went looking for a wire (that I don't have it turns out) under the carpet. To my horror the bottom 4 inches of foam padding in the driver's footwell was completely soaked - it had been like this for some time and I hadn't noticed, the foam there is very thick.

Luckily for me the damage wasn't too bad - I had only owned the car for a few months and the previous owner parked in a garage, phew!
It takes a long time to dry out, even with the carpet propped up (took 3 days for me outdoors).

http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=5170&stc=1&d=1227998142


To check your drains, you will need some basic equipment...
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6357&stc=1&d=1228000981

The drainholes are in each corner of the sunroof opening.
The rear holes are difficult to see but they are there.
Here is the front hole.
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6361&stc=1&d=1228001217

You might have to park the car twice to do this test for the front holes and the rear holes.
In this case, tilting the camera seemed to help.
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6356&stc=1&d=1228000981

What goes in, must come out - here is where the fronts drain on my car - near where the jacking points would be if I had them.
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6359&stc=1&d=1228001353

And in the back - again near the jacking points.
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6360&stc=1&d=1228001353

If you park on a slope it will affect the symptoms - the trapped water has a tendency to run around the headliner... this can cause rust along your windshield frame and doorframes. Eventually, the water will end up in your front footwells (bad and smelly) or under the rear seat (worse and electrically hazardous!).

If you find that one of the drains is blocked, generally a blast of air from a bicycle pump is enough to clear it out...
i'd be scared to use chemicals - a thin wire might help.

Good luck this year... stay dry, stay happy!

[russiankid]

Well that could explain where I had water coming from underneath.

[attack eagle]

You can reach inside the kick panel and pull out the drain tube to clear it if needed as well. Have no idea where the rear drain tubes are on sedans.

[shogun]

Tim,
is it possible to use the pics for my website? Can you make a write-up and send it to the email address shown on my site below? Mike (Hairywithit) is doing all the stuff with the website and he will integrate it.
You can add also more pics if you want, the more the better.
Thanks for the contribution
http://twrite.org/shogunnew/topmenu.html

if wit lowell agrees we could also add these pics where one can see the hoses
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=frontclip5.jpg
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=frontclip4.jpg
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=frontclip1.jpg
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=frontclip2.jpg
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=rearclip1.jpg
http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i155/shogun_bucket/?action=view&current=rearclip2.jpg

[tim eh?]

wow those photos are great! i'd be more than happy to share mine, can i assume someone would tell us not to hotlink photos on the server?

http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=5170&stc=1&d=1227998142
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6357&stc=1&d=1228000981
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6361&stc=1&d=1228001217
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6356&stc=1&d=1228000981
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6359&stc=1&d=1228001353
http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6360&stc=1&d=1228001353

feel free to copy the photos for now, i was actually going to put this and a couple other writeups on a little site in the "<$10" section.

http://pages.videotron.com/tupm/logo.jpg (http://pages.videotron.com/tupm/forcheap.html)

i'll send a copy to your webman when it's done.

[shogun]

we can copy the pics and put them on our server, so that you do not have any problem with hotlinking. Just need the o.k. to use the pics from you and also from lowell.
Because there are some strange people out there which make website for DIY, but they do not allow copying pics or even text. So best is you send the pics and text to Mike (Hairywithit) and he will do the rest and select what we need and might change slightly the text you send in to fit.
But if you want to make a own site, also fine for me. Can link to there.
If anyone has some more pics of the hoses or which helps beginners to understand how the hoses go, post them here and pls allow to copy them.

[attack eagle]

look on bf.c under my nick.
when i fixed mine and took the headliner down on the touring I don't remember if I snapped pictures or not.

you may use them if you need to.

[shogun]

you have >9000 posts there! Difficult to find. This one?
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1036601&highlight=drain

[attack eagle]

the 4th one shows the rear drain from the sunroof, I'll look for a better establishing shot in my photobucket account.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b106/AttackEagle/bimmer/sunroof/DSC_0025.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b106/AttackEagle/bimmer/sunroof/DSC_0027.jpg


http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b106/AttackEagle/DSC_0001.jpg
I guess i didn't take pictures when I pulled the front drains out of the kicks and cleaned em. probably because it is such a damn pain to reach in there... really the only way to do it properly though

Front drain from sunroof:

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b106/AttackEagle/bimmer/sunroof/DSC_0014.jpg

I wonder how many posts I will have by my 3 year anniversary.

[Elekta]

On the touring which ones are metal and which are rubber. I think the fronts are metal IIRC, and I augered them out with a guitar string or with a broken brake cable.

I have since bought extra rubber roof rail inserts and cut them to fit my Thule Foot packs to prevent future clogs..

[attack eagle]

they're all rubber, including the front

[tim eh?]

ok... i'm writing this up but i can't figure out which drains are which on your photos AE... the first 2 are of the front/passenger side?

wait... tourings have those double roofs don't they? unggh... i feel... lazy....

can i still give my toque a cameo?

[attack eagle]

only the one that says front is front, the other are rear drains,

[tim eh?]

only the one that says front is front, the other are rear drains,

ok i just read your bf post... darth vader... hilarious...

[tim eh?]

ok... how does this look?

http://pages.videotron.com/tupm/sunroof.htm

i'm not sure which pillar the rears drain through... actually... i'm not sure which pillar is which...

so i just wrote 'pillars'... suggestions? ... more photos?

htm code is in a text file here (http://pages.videotron.com/tupm/sunroof.txt) so if you think that will do, mike can copy and paste.

[attack eagle]

IF the fronts get clogged you can remove the kick panel, reach behind the second metal brace and pull the drain hose up and out. an open wire hanger makes an excellent auger.

[tim eh?]

IF the fronts get clogged you can remove the kick panel, reach behind the second metal brace and pull the drain hose up and out. an open wire hanger makes an excellent auger.

...next... ;)

[shogun]

good info, Mike added it on my website, and a lot of other stuff.

[tim eh?]

good info, Mike added it on my website, and a lot of other stuff.

shogun i am very flattered (blush) :)