Great write up. Thanks:thumbup:

bmw-facing-class-action-over-water-damage-safet
 

This has apparently become a bigger issue than just one or two people ... very worth googling the history of this problem and all the issues it is causing. for me ... dead battery, bad auto head lights, speakers / sos issues, break lights, and several others...not to mention the water that causes a stink in the car. read more here BMW Facing Class Action Over Water Damage Safety Risk - Law360

Thanks for the heads up!

No subscription needed to access court documents here:
Sharma et al v. BMW of North America LLC :: Justia Dockets & Filings

After the dealer tried to sell me a new complete sun roof for $4000, I figured out the water was coming from clogged tail gate drains. The tail gate fills with water and it follows the wiring harness into the battery box. I now keep the 2 drains clean and filled the wire tube with silicone.

So what's happened to this case? I've got a few thousand dollars replacing electrical parts that were flooded in the battery box.

Anybody have a part # on these plugs handy? Mine are holding, but the rubber is frail. Also, any way to check blockages in the roof channels, or is carefully pouring water into the sunroof drain holes the easiest way?

RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 4.6is TRUNK LID TRIM PANEL

#17

I Took my X5 to the stealer because my radio stopped working. Ended up with a battery box full of water. Cost me maybe $1500 in electronics and they said it was the sunroof leaking. Wanted $4000 to replace it. I took the headliner down and used 4-5 tubes of roofing cement and sealed the whole thing. 2 months later same problem. So i took the headliner down and drove it like that for a few weeks. No leak. But again $1500 in electronics were ruined! I was changing the electronics and slammed the tailgate and noticed a swishing sound. The lower tail gate was full of water. The little black drain plugs on the bottom were clogged with gunk. The water was interring thru the wire loom into the battery box. I took them out and cleaned them. I'm up in the air on just leaving them out. No problems in over a year. No more water.

Thanks J.Belknap! ^.joeboch- did you ever devise something to seal the red reflectors on the lower gate portion?