QPV Sunroof drain holes.

[IanU]

Hi all,
I guess until I've owned the car for all 4 seasons, I won't fully get to know it.
Winter tyres definitely a huge difference, I feel totally justified with the expense, especially 2 weeks later all the snow decided to arrive - result.
Anyway, talking of snow however, 3 inches of melting snow on the roof obviously overwhelmed the sunroof drain holes. I was greeted initially by the alarm going off, no problem I thought. Quick reset with the key.
Just check inside just in case.....water dripping from the headlining trim around the sunroof onto the front passenger seat...noooooo.
I swept the snow away (which always grates me because I know there will be grit in it) and raised the roof to try and find the drain holes - not obvious by any means.
Does anyone have any top tips for a)locating them and b) unblocking them without pushing the pipes off in the depths of the bodywork somewhere? where do they exit?

Thanks in advance
Paranoid of Bicester!

Cheers
Ian.

 

[Keano]

Workshop Manual may be useful - page 670 talks about drainage channel

https://www.dropbox.com/s/mgzmk8emqugkp1j/Quattroporte Workshop manual.pdf?dl=0

Spent this morning finding one in my boot...

Keano

 

[IanU]

Thanks Keano,
This looks like they're talking about part of the frame structure and how to take it out - which looks quite a task if the headlining needs to come off. Useful to know how to lift the glass out too.
I was hoping for a pointer where I could feed a long piece of wire to poke out any rubbish - anyone? Is this something that might run down the inside of the A and C pillars?

 

[safrane]

Pipe cleaners?

 

[IanU]

..and where do I stick them

 

[gjwilson]

..and where do I stick them

Well.............

Have a look at the below.
all 4 corners seem to have a drain hole. 2 front and 2 back

 

[MarkMas]

I have been looking into how to unclog sunroof drains (on a QPV) and I thought I would gather the info in one place. So far I have tried poking wires down the tubes, and @conaero has tried compressed air, but it’s not going well… I will let you know if I have resolution.


If your sunroof drains get blocked, there is a risk of water gathering inside the car, especially in the front footwells. This is bad for many reasons, but not least because the suspension ECU is mounted under the right footwell, doesn’t like being wet, and costs £1,000 to replace.

Water in the car might be for other reasons, like aircon problems, pollen filter blockages, scuttle weirdness or poor windscreen seals. One option is to pour on some water with UV markers, to try to see where it has come from.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/trapped-water.32882/page-2

https://www.ringautomotive.com/en/product/RLD3

Drains

On a QPV there seem to be four drain tubes. One at each corner of the sunroof.

https://www.sportsmaserati.co.uk/index.php?threads/qpv-sunroof-drain-holes.25923/#post-627001





The front drain holes come out behind the front wheels. The rear ones seem to come out somewhere around the rear wheel arches. Most people seem to start trying to clear from the top, and if/when that doesn’t work they start trying to go in from underneath.

The ends of the front ones are potentially accessible by just removing the rear of the three vents on the wing.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/inde...v-front-passenger-footwell.35810/#post-942211

Wires

The general narrative is that you just poke a long bit of wire into the drain holes to clear them. The most-often recommended wire is the sort of long plastic-coated spring used to hang net curtains. You can even stretch out the end of the spring a bit to make a sort of gunge auger. This goes into the drain tubes nicely, but is a bit too flexible, so you can’t really apply any pressure to push against a blockage, or rotate it for the auger effect.. You really need something very slightly less flexible (and maybe fatter so it doesn’t kink in the tube). I tried electrical cable, but it is too flexible outside the tube. Stiff garden wire (the thicker kind) has also been used with some success.

There are also products designed for this sort of thing, which have been used successfully.

https://www.sportsmaserati.co.uk/in...ater-in-passenger-footwell.32948/#post-839081

People also have difficulty getting the wire past some sort of obstruction near the bottom on the A pillar, probably where it seems to take a turn straight down.

Air pressure

Squirting high pressure air seems like a good option. This seems to rely on two things: a good seal at the entrance to the drain tube, and a tube that is not totally blocked, so some air flow gets through to have a clearing effect.

Chemicals

There are various chemicals you could pour down the tubes. Again, you need some sort of a good seal at the entrance to the drain tube (so you don’t get corrosive chemicals in the wrong place), and a tube that is not totally blocked, so some chemical flow gets through to have a clearing effect.

Preparation @Zep looks promising.

Zep 10-Minute Hair Clog Remover Drain Unblocker 1Ltr - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Commercial-strength gel pours through standing water to quickly dissolve hair and grease clogs to unblock drains. Safe for all pipes and septic systems and ideal for bathroom sinks, baths and shower drains, avoiding contact with taps, plugs, trims and countertops...

www.screwfix.com

Dismantling

Or you can take more bits apart to get at the tubes. Apparently, Russell at Autoshield has some experience of this.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/inde...v-front-passenger-footwell.35810/#post-941857



Other conversations on the forum:

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/dampness-in-qp-v-front-passenger-footwell.35810/

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/inside-rain-from-windscreen-pillar.36549/

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/passenger-floor-mat-soaking-wet.36364/

https://www.sportsmaserati.co.uk/index.php?threads/qpv-sunroof-drain-holes.25923/

https://www.sportsmaserati.co.uk/index.php?threads/qpv-water-in-passenger-footwell.32948/

 

[CatmanV2]

Preparation @Zep looks promising.

Could be worse.

C

 

[Ebenezer]

I don't dare to look in my foot well.

Don't quite understand when the sunroof drains are needed. I rarely use the sun roof and it looks like it's sealed when closed.
Eb

 

[Oneball]

Have you tried using plastic bowden cable inner to poke down there?

 

[MarkMas]

Have you tried using plastic bowden cable inner to poke down there?

Actually a whole bowden might work, as the challenge is to have something that is flexible enough IN the drain tube, but also stiff enough to be pushable from outside. So a flexible outer, around a thinner stiffer inner might be ideal. But my understanding is that most bowden cables are designed for 'pull' not 'push', so actually the inner is flexible.

 

[Oneball]

Actually a whole bowden might work, as the challenge is to have something that is flexible enough IN the drain tube, but also stiff enough to be pushable from outside. So a flexible outer, around a thinner stiffer inner might be ideal. But my understanding is that most bowden cables are designed for 'pull' not 'push', so actually the inner is flexible.

The plastic ones are designed for push and pull as used on remote control planes. There are also solid steel wires for push. For example heater cable on Minis.