How to: Clean BMW Sunroof Drains (CLOGGED)

Today, we're cleaning the sunroof drains in my 335i wagon! These were clogged in my E91, causing a water leak inside the cabin that (almost) caused a big problem for us. Make sure you clean yours before this happens to you!

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[ron]

Suggestion - pull the rubber strainer caps off of the lower front drains. All they do is trap dirt and clog things up. I would not worry about the possibility of something crawling up the drain so I leave my caps off.

[mrmike]

Wow! Had my 2007 bmw 750 li for 12 years and had no idea about this til my windows were always fogged for the last 2 years and water on the back floor for the last month. Now have to figure out how to pull carpet up to dry out. THANKS !!!

[SelfCenteredLeo]

This was great! Thank you. I'm having this issue with my BMW SUV today—it's the first time in years after owning five BMW sedans previously. This X has given me more problems than I could have imagined.

[redtawa]

Same problem with a 2012 X1. Most was rubbish from next door jacaranda tree. Love the vid. Saved me a bundle

[dcal]

Exact same issue happened with my e90 m3, you just saved me a trip to the dealer because I assumed it would be something much worse lol

[pamelatv]

❤❤ Thank you for your video. My 2006 325i filled up with water after some serious storms in Southern California. I was so surprised to find a lake inside my car!!! Now I know how to clean the tubes out. ❤❤❤

[bassbeetz]

Super Helpful, thanks. I've been aware of this issue on my E61 and try to remember to clean them every 4-6 months. This time I forgot. Didn't have a fully flooded interior, rather the spare tire well. Sadly, where BMW decided to put all the modules. Luckily, it was just a hint of water, but I was getting some electrical issues, like a reset clock, AWD/DSC lights, etc. Not good. Cleaning the drains. Hot Tip- REMOVE those dreaded clog-inducing tips or modify them. The risk of water going in from underneath is way less than the inevitable clogging. I used compressed air and trimmer cord.

[antonvz]

This was very helpful! Got my leak sorted before it became a real problem. New about the drains but needed to see where they were and how to clean and test! Much appreciated!

[martinyable]

Thank you ! E91 320D Touring here in the UK. Battery became almost submerged and my garage informed me it caused a weak signal to go to the airbag and threw up airbag warning light .
Will set about cleaning out the rear, since I can see the water coming in the cabin through the place where the dog net thing attaches to the roof.

[NeedABigrHammer]

I was driving down the highway and my visor starting raining 😂 this solved the issue so thanks!!

[christophebuisson]

I spotted those magnificent wheels on the M5 wagon! Wow so beautiful!

[JoeyyFingers]

Hey bro! I live in central FL and with all the rain yesterday i found myself in the EXACT same situation. And I did the same as you, parked it on my slanted drive way and assumed it was a rear drain issue. Your video was super helpful. Thanks so much. Just for reference I have a 2009 E90

[Nico_i_DCT]

Great fix Chris. Have a great weekend, Dutch regards, Nico.

[calvins]

Similar thing happening to my E90. Not to the scale yours is fortunately. Looks like my passenger side one is clogged, thanks for the vid, gonna give that wire a try.

[ilyld]

Thanks for showing the details of the process!

[JGV_IX]

Well that’s one way of cleaning your carpets 😬😮‍💨

I love my panoramic roof on my X5, but I’m terrified of this happening 😵

Thanks for the video!

[ron]

Don’t forget there also two drains in the front cowl under the hood. You also need to make sure they are clear in addition to the 4 near the pano roof. Last, the vapor barrier in the doors can come loose and water will also enter the car that way.

[gazpixs]

Thanks for the vid. I have to also add, please be careful sticking wire/plastic down the drain tube, I went with the small plastic tube to suit the drain hole and vacuumed out from the sunroof drains using water and WD40 to softened the debris/blockage. To my surprise I ended up sucking out a Camphor Laurel berry eventually after 6 or so rinse and repeats. If I went for the push through or compressed air method I would have blown off the drain tubes. Cheers Gaz

[KLIENFELD]

Dude. Thank you!!! F85 is clogged and I’m gonna check it out tomorrow.

[ricardodebiasi]

Had some water coming inside my trunk this month. Went all over my rooftop into the battery compartment. Luckily no damage has been done to the electronics.

From now on, once a year I’ll run some weed whacker line trough the holes of my sunroof and then I’ll put my vacuum cleaner on those rubber strainer caps. Just to make sure any kind of trapped dirt is sucked out of the tubing.