Sunroof drains - Avant

[Christophski]

Hi guys

So if any of you saw my thread "My car hates me" you will know I got wet on the drive home from work a few days ago. Being an avant and the fact I cured this over a year ago, im slightly annoyed. So I have checked the rear tray at the back of the sunroof and it is still securely in position. (this was missing and was causing the issue for me last time)

So went for the next bit which was throwing some wire down the front tubes to check they are clear... They are, the wire goes freely through them and for good measure I pulled it backwards and forwards a few times before pulling the wire out of the bootom of the drain tubes.

Now someone has said there is drain tubes at the back of the sunroof. Where are these and how do I get to them with the sunroof still on the car? Do I open it on the tilt or slide it back? What am i looking for as I cant see anything that looks like the drain channel itself I dont think. Also where does it drain out from at the rear of the car????

I thought it was the front tubes aas I was getting a little trickle into both front footwells, running down the windscreen interior covers and down the side of the dash and down by the bonnet pull. I also got a wet arm (drivers side) as there was a noticeable wet patch on the corner of the headliner where it met the windscreen interior trim.

It cant be the screen as I had a new screen fitted 2 years ago in my attempts to fix this leak and it continued until (as previously said) i found the sunroof drain tray at the rear was missing and then stopped when I fixed it back into place....

Cheers for any help.

Chris

[Christophski]

Actually there is onew difference.... last weekend I fitted a new boot seal. This wouldnt cause it to leak through in the front of the cab would it? (I know it sounds daft) Non of the rest of the headliner is wet.

[mdz]

Tubes comes out behind rear bumper right above the vents on both sides.

[Christophski]

Hmm, ok, so its a bumper off job to get to them to check they are properly flowing? Thats not good.... How do I get to them from the sunroof?

[mdz]

You can try to reach them from inside, take off both side trims in boot.

[Christophski]

Ok so just figured something out.... When I pore water down the front drivers drain tube it dribbles out of the bottom of it as it should so its not blocked. It also gets the headliner wet.... Meaning I have a split in the tube near the top somewhere and some how. Does anyone have any suggestions on my next steps with this? Is it a headliner out job? Is it a case I can pull the old drain tube out and push a new one up or is there another way of doing this? Looking for advice now really as I believe this will sort my leaking issue once and for all.

[UrS4boy]

...Now someone has said there is drain tubes at the back of the sunroof. Where are these and how do I get to them with the sunroof still on the car? Do I open it on the tilt or slide it back? What am i looking for as I cant see anything that looks like the drain channel itself I dont think. Also where does it drain out from at the rear of the car???? ....Cheers for any help. Chris

Umm...I posted the image below in your previous thread, showing that there are both front and rear sunroof cassette drains. So I don't know why you are surprised.

The image below is for a C4, your B4 avant might only have drains on the left side of the car (but still front and back). Figure out a sunroof position (e.g. retracted? tilted?) that will allow you to use the weed wacker plastic string on the rear drain(s).

As for the split tube on the front drain, you can access part of the drain hose by removing the A-pillar cover(s).

The rear tubes drop just behind the rear wheel well covers, behind the bumper. Best seen with the car on a lift (or you lying on the ground).

[Christophski]

I had seen them in my other thread cheers bud but previously I was not aware. Also I still could not see the rear ones with the sunroof in either position... I have drains on both sides at the front so it's probably safe to assume both sides rear too. As previously said the front ones are clef as put wire through them earlier.

Thanks re the info that the trims on the pillars once removed allow access to the drains so I will try removing one over the weekend. I have a spare one to look at first for removal info...

Thanks

[UrS4boy]

... As previously said the front ones are clef as put wire through them earlier.

This is why I suggest recomment using the green (or ?) plastic weed eater/whacker "string". You cut a length (say 4 m) off and then put a match to one cut end to melt it smooth. Then you stick the smooth end down the drain. Wires are too stiff and too sharp and, as you have learned, have the potential to poke through the drain hose you are trying to clear.

Not sure about the B4s but the C4 A-pillar trim is just held into the A-pillar by strong spring clips. With clean hands, grasp the top end of the trim (maybe 4 or 5 inches from the top) and pull straight out. With the C4 trim, just when you think it either is not going to budge or it is going to break, it releases with a bit of a bang. Then pull near the bottom end.

Good luck

[Christophski]

Sorry, I didn't explain myself properly. I used the weed wire, green garden stuff you advised lol. My mum has some in her garage so I used it. I don't see how it would push a blockage out the way but seeing as it went right through so I could pull either end of it whilst it was still in the drain I know it was clear. Don't worry bud, I did think of sharp, to thick wire and snagging the rubber tubes. It's the same as the stuff I used a few years ago in them. It's to soft to push through and pierce anything.

It doesn't mean a previous owner wouldn't have used one to thick and damaged the tube in some way though.

[Christophski]

I think the back of the trim has little plastic clips so you have to slide them up(?) to unclip? Will dig out the spare one I have if I can find it to confirm so I don't break the ones on the car

[benntenn67]

Clear them in reverse - ie poke the nylon cord from the outlet up towards the sunroof

[kulster]

Trust me the headlining on the front section is a 10 minute job to drop and you will see its dripping in from a bit of corrosion from the mechanism tubing

[Christophski]

Kulster bud how do I drop the front of the headliner as I would love a dry car/ arm/ bum again lol!

[kulster]

Remove the seat belt pillars out of the way, theygo upright from the floor to the roof, then remove the the o/s and n/s front grap handles from the roof, then remove the two front sun visors, these can be tricky and I had to order new clips for them, there is a strip which runs along the top of the screen from left to right , that just pulls off carefully. Next step is to gently pull on the lining from the front section and it will start to unclip, working your early around to the sunroof area, this would give you enough access.