Water leak in boot/ of my E30

[Mark James]

Hi, Ihave a water leak in the boot of my e30 318is. It is leaking from under the parcel shelf into the boot.
I think the leak may be from the sunroof drain channels being blocked? Any ideas? Help please! :-)

[Slowered318]

My guess is the trunk seal has lost it's elasticity, I replaced mine recently due to water leak problem. Try adjusting the latch pin and the two bumpers on the underside of the trunk lid, it should take a firm hand and make a nice "thud" when you close the lid. You can also crawl in the trunk on a sunny day, close the lid and see if light comes through anywhere around the seal. Make sure you have a trustworthy helper for this. If all else fails try parking on an incline when it's raining, I do this out of habit and paranoia.

If the sunroof drain was clogged you would likely get a leak into the cabin of the car, not the boot. You can service it anyways if you like. The rear drain hose should exit to behind the bumper at the vent beside the battery. A little compressed air should expel an leaves or debris stuck in there. the front drain goes to the passenger kick panel/fender area. Its a good idea to clean out any debris with a shop vac.

Hope this helps!

[DesktopDave]

My favorite trick for clearing the sunroof drains is to use about six feet of the thinner co-ax cable.  Cut off the connectors, open the sunroof, and slowly thread it down the tubes like a drain snake.

Check the trunk seal carefully.  I had a rusted seam under the upper left corner.  BMW welded the panels together there, sometimes the seam sealer lifts a bit and you get a channel for water to enter the trunk.  Take a look at the two trunk supports - if you see water stains, it's sure to be those seals.

The rear windows can also leak in the lower corners.  A new window seal would be required in that case.

Avoid parking the car facing downhill in this case - water is trapped in the corners under the window and will eventually find a way in.