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drains not yet OK'd, but another possible water leak diverted?

Quote:

Originally Posted by workingonit (Post 1211161)

...It might be awhile before I can do the work: jacking up the X5 enough so I can feed trimmer string thru the drain port underneath, removing airbag fuses & A-pillar panel, un-kinking/un-plugging the suspect drain hose, and the re-assembling dead pedal and A-pillar (after testing). I'll be working in the dirt/sand/gravel/leaf debris that the X5 is parked on, and it's supposed to start raining for three days, starting in about 2 hours, so I'll probably get little done. I'll cover the sunroof with a tarp, in the meantime....

After leaving the tarp on for 3.5 days, I removed it and started again looking for the leak. The floormat was now completely dry, and left no trace where the leak had originated, so I hosed-down the front of the sunroof, and also the driver's window, but not the windshield (where I'm thinking the leak may actually emanate from). No further leaks.

I probably didn't direct the water straight enough downward to bypass the seal on the sunroof, but I did take off the A-pillar cover to inspect the hose. The hose was pretty straight, didn't feel like it was clogged, and the bottom end was still fully intact and inserted into the metal receptacle (part of the A-pillar), showing no stains or past leak evidence there. I couldn't tell if the water came out of the bottom of the drain, as the ground was still wet, and water was dripping pretty much everywhere, after the garden-hose-testing.

I decided not to try crawling underneath (due to a blood-clotted left arm...Dr. says not to bump/lay-on/impact it until he gives me the OK, after a few months), and using the trimmer string trick (my .155" string would probably poke a hole in the hose anyway). Even using the air gun (at reduced pressure) would've been inconclusive, from the underside, since I couldn't observe what came out the top...which raises a question.

How can I get the sunshade to move to the open position (just far enough to access the drain inlet), without making the glass open, and/or the sunroof cartridge itself cycle? I'm afraid of damage (that may already be present) from previous owners, or from just this one-time-only operation (never intend to use it again). I've removed the fuse, and would like to go full manual just to inspect the drain.

Also, the driver's door passed the leak test: Absolutely no water even entered the door, much less leaked inside. I'm 30% sure the leak was from the sunroof, or more likely (in my opinion) from the cracks/hole in the front of the windshield/body-seal interface, adjacent to the hood hinge area (actually on both sides, right & left). I used liquid electrical tape to fill the holes, thus re-directing any water to flow off the windshield and into the hood/body channel, then down towards the front.
Attachment 81121

So, unless I can safely hand-crank the sunroof sunshade, and or the glass itself open enough to clear the drains from above, then I'll just wait and see if the windshield/body seal repair will stop the leak, or not, instead of risking damage and worse leaks, from the untried, untested sunroof.

The Roadside repair kit came with the hand crank and I do believe it works both directions. You will know right away if the gears are meshing and it will work. Mine are completely hosed and with encouragement I've gotten them closed a few times when opened accidentally.

Thanks. I'll try it tomorrow. I've never had a sunroof before, but have seen many with multiple problems, that make me quite leery of operating them. Especially one 20 years old, with no knowledge of its' past history, and with the poor reliability record of BMW's sunroofs.

I was sorta hoping that the sun shield was manually operated, but I guess on a BMW that's too plebeian.

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The inner shade is manual. It won't get you to the drain though.

manual shade? it won't budge!

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrewwynn (Post 1211354)

The inner shade is manual. It won't get you to the drain though.

Is it really manual? I've pulled with perhaps 50 lbs force (using my good arm), with no apparent movement. It is the small sunroof (not pano).

My intent for opening the shade is to see if there's debris under the glass, and if there's any gap in the seal (none was evident viewing from the topside).

excessive application of headliner glue by a previous owner

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrewwynn (Post 1211366)

...
If you have a handle like mine it's manual.

Yep, you're right, the shade is manually-operated (I couldn't find any statement to that effect, until your reply). It was stuck to the front seal with headliner glue. I pulled, pried, and stretched it loose, then scraped-off the residue from the seal, and managed not to tear or tear loose the headliner material (though it does need some attention).

Also, there are rubber strips just above the cover (on both sides that feel somewhat loose), but I'm not going to pull on them, since I'm not going to use the sunroof, ever. Are they supposed to be loose?

Now, I need to find the tool to crank the sunroof open for the next step.

I think you were talking about the rubber Bellows and those are stretchy and folded to allow the sunroof to lift up

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found the tool, but not the hole

I found the hex tool for manual operation, but didn't locate the spot to insert the tool, yet. It was after dark, and my interior lighting just wasn't enough. The hex-hole is inside the sunglass holder, correct?

Attachment 81122

Quote:

Originally Posted by workingonit (Post 1211389)

Use a flashlight to locate the hole. I think you correctly marked up the location

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