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Sunroof drain pipe replacement procedure

Started by adamb, 14 September 2011, 01:46 AM

adamb

I am in the process of reassembling the interior of my car. The sunroof frame is down presently in order to replace the seal. I have also bought 2m of rubber hose from MB to replace the front sunroof drains. Has anybody who replaced them have recommendations on how to go about the job? It looks like it could be a royal pain.


Squiggle Dog

#1
Ah, sounds familiar! I had my sunroof tray out when I was converting it to manual. The front hoses broke at the tray connectors and the rubber was so hardened that it wouldn't go back on.

I hope that you have 2 meters of continuous length of hose, though it will only be enough for one side. 1 meter is not enough for each side (it won't reach). Each side requires exactly 107cm of hose, with one end of each cut at a 45 degree angle. So you need 4 meters total, with 2 continuous meters on each side, then cut it down to 107cm (1070mm) and put a 45 degree cut on each end for where it will poke out between the door and fender.

The Classic Center could not supply me with hose any longer than 1 meter, since it comes pre-cut in 1 meter lengths. To my knowledge, this hose cannot be bought anywhere else. So, I went to my local independent Mercedes workshop and they let me remove the sunroof drains from a W123 chassis.

W123 chassis hose is too short (only 100cm)! However, W126 chassis REAR drain hoses are 149cm, so they will fit! They are a bit tricky to remove. You have to make sure the clips on each side by the rear window are undone, otherwise they cannot be pulled through. Then you have to hope that the rubber is still supple.

Cut them down to 1070mm (while leaving the 45 degree angle cut on one end), and snake them down from the openings in the tops of the A pillars. You might have to twist them a little to get them past a certain point, then reach through holes in the A-pillars below the dashboard to help position (remove the side kick panels under the dashboard), followed by a screwdriver through the door dome light sensor openings to put the ends of the hoses near the holes, then work the ends out of the holes between the front doors and fenders. Tying a string to the end and then pulling the string through might facilitate things. Lubricate the ends, then carefully push them onto the tubes with a rag and pliers.

Good luck!
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+

adamb

Hey Squiggle Dog,

Thanks for the advice but I actually managed to fit the replacement without too much effort. First off, as you rightly said, for both fronts 2m is not enough, so I concentrated on the offside only yesterday.

I bought a continuous 2m section from MB direct who sold it to me as one piece. It seems when ordering here they ask how much you want and cut from a roll to size.

From a hardware store I bought some 0.9mm wire.

For fitting the front drain pipe, I cut two long sections of wire and passed them both down the existing pipe. I didn't cut the hose at this point. Instead I used the wires to pierce the rubber hose to enable me to pull it through upwards. Then I pulled the existing hose out. It needed a bit of a nudge at the bottom but otherwise it came out fine. By pulling on the wires from the top and by pushing at the bottom I managed to get the replacement into place. I then cut the hose at the bottom and adjusted it to sit like the old one.

For the rear I just pulled out the old hose and fed the new one in without much hassle.

Now I need to do the near side but I am not paying MB another ~40 quid for 2m of rubber!! This morning I took an offcut to my local hardware store and found some clear soft plastic tubing with the same internal dimensions as the rubber hose. The external diameter is a little smaller because the plastic tubing is thinner. To me that's not an issue. I'll be using the same technique to pull this one through. Total cost of plastic hose - 2.50.

I wish I used plastic for both sides and spent the spare £37.50 on beer!


Squiggle Dog

I'm glad you were able to fit them fine! I'm also glad that I saved money by not paying Mercedes-Benz's price for those and using the free W126 hose that I got for free from my local independent Mercedes repair shop. The Classic Center nearly shipped me 3 meters, already cut in 1 meter sections! That would have been an expensive mistake.
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+