Clean out soft-top drain
- Thread starter Wondermike
- Start date
Managed to find a simple way of cleaning both sump drains. It is much easier if you do this with the wheel off but not necessary.
1. Drop the hood and shine your torch down the hood frame assembly, you should be able to see water if there is a blockage.
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2. Thread about 500mm of rubber hose down between the hood mechanism into the sump area and blow down hose. You should hear the water bubbling, this will also dislodge some of the dirt from the top drain point of the sump.
3. Remove tyre and small arch panel.
4. Now attach your electric tyre pump to one end of your rubber hose and thread the other end up through lower drain point as high as you can into sump area.
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Activate your pump and you will hear the trapped water bubbling away in the drain sump. Do this two or three times and retract rubber hose, you should now see water running freely out of your drain. Job done
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Hope this helps you guys.
1. Drop the hood and shine your torch down the hood frame assembly, you should be able to see water if there is a blockage.
2. Thread about 500mm of rubber hose down between the hood mechanism into the sump area and blow down hose. You should hear the water bubbling, this will also dislodge some of the dirt from the top drain point of the sump.
3. Remove tyre and small arch panel.
4. Now attach your electric tyre pump to one end of your rubber hose and thread the other end up through lower drain point as high as you can into sump area.
Activate your pump and you will hear the trapped water bubbling away in the drain sump. Do this two or three times and retract rubber hose, you should now see water running freely out of your drain. Job done
Hope this helps you guys.
tomoz4white
Member
I spoke to my local bmw specialist and they claimed that the roof needs to come off (5hrs labour) to carry out a full drainage check? Apart from the lower plugs are there top drainage areas to potentially clean out....or is this garage misleading me?
tomoz4white
Member
I spoke to my local bmw specialist and they claimed that the roof needs to come off (5hrs labour) to carry out a full drainage check? Apart from the lower plugs are there top drainage areas to potentially clean out....or is this garage misleading me?
tomoz4white said:
After long reading about this subject, along with the roof motor relocation inside the trunk, I can tell you that your BMW specialist is right.
Top drainage area (one in each side of the car) has a very tiny hole and dirt blocks it very easily.
The biggest issue is that one of the drainage areas (passenger side in UK) holds the roof motor and when that area is clogged, it gets flooded and destroys the roof engine.
You have a lot of info about these issues not only here in the forum, but in the web.
colb
Senior member
Removed the drain plugs of my MR today (and keeping them off).
I cleaned the pipes from the bottom (was getting stuck half way), and the top with a coat hanger wire, and a stiff bamboo type stick.
Would definitely recommend to clean from top and bottom. The gunk in mine was nearer the top. Just removing the plugs didn't cause the gush of water coming out - that only happened after threading the top wire down.
Was a lot harder to see where I was threading the wire on the passenger side than drivers side, because the roof motor impeded the view. Was recommended to raise the roof by 45° which allowed a clearer view in.
Is investing in an airline a good idea? Keen to keep the car original if possible and not relocate the roof
I cleaned the pipes from the bottom (was getting stuck half way), and the top with a coat hanger wire, and a stiff bamboo type stick.
Would definitely recommend to clean from top and bottom. The gunk in mine was nearer the top. Just removing the plugs didn't cause the gush of water coming out - that only happened after threading the top wire down.
Was a lot harder to see where I was threading the wire on the passenger side than drivers side, because the roof motor impeded the view. Was recommended to raise the roof by 45° which allowed a clearer view in.
Is investing in an airline a good idea? Keen to keep the car original if possible and not relocate the roof
Attachments
enuff_zed
Lifer
That's an admirable intention. However, if the drains have been blocked already then there is a better than even chance that the plastic tub the motor sits in is already full of water. Even if that has drained away the insulation will be soaked. So your motor will still be sitting in a wet environment and getting more corroded by the day until eventually it'll cry enough.Milz4y said:
You have a few options really:
Leave it where it is and keep your fingers crossed.
Relocate it to the boot before it dies
Take it out, check it and put it back with clean dry insulation, and some drain holes drilled in the bottom of the casing.
There is likely to be water still sneaking into the motor tub even if the drains are clear.
dva99999
Member
This is my first post (except the newbie bit) and one of the problems I had was lack of space in my garage on the passenger side. I found that it is possible to remove the splash guard and plastic bracket without jacking the car up. What this also meant that when I ran water through it, it went straight through the drain hole and not along and out the seams like the drivers side.
I used coat hanger wire and welding rods to really loosen it. Next week is when I’ll tackle the job of relocating the motor but for the time being I’m pleased. It was only clean water that came pouring out initially. The previous owner had washed it before I picked it up.
Thank you
I used coat hanger wire and welding rods to really loosen it. Next week is when I’ll tackle the job of relocating the motor but for the time being I’m pleased. It was only clean water that came pouring out initially. The previous owner had washed it before I picked it up.
Thank you