# How to Unclog a Sunroof Drain (VIDEO)



## ProStreetDriver (Jun 2, 2011)

Video tutorial on how to unplug a sunroof drain. Sunroof drains may become plugged sooner than later, depending on where you live. If you live in a treed area, it can happen more often as there are larger particles floating around in the air which would eventually plug the drains. These drains usually feed through the roof pillars and exit underneath the vehicle. When a sunroof drain does become crowded, the common signs are either a wet headliner, water dripping from the headliner, a wet roof pillar, a damp carpet or water pooling in the foot wells.

Tools/Supplies Needed:
-soft wire or trimmer cord
-air compressor or can of air
-bottle or cup of water
-vacuum clean
-rubber hose

Procedure:
-first, you will need to open the sunroof as this is the easiest way to access the drains
-I’ve already determined which drain is leaking, and usually, that can be done by having an idea where the water is leaking or gathering
-we are looking for a hole which is at the base of the sunroof trim or frame
-when cleaning the drain, it’s also a great idea to ensure there is no debris around the sunroof area which could worsen the clog or cause another cl
-first, we can use an air compressor to blow out any debris
-here is have a small compressor with a regulator which can control the air pressure, so using the regulator, I like to keep the stress at around 30psi
-next, using a hose attached to the blow gun, push the hose into the drain and then allow the air to push out the clog
-if the air compressor does not work or you do not have access to one, use a wire
-for this, I have a roll of wire, this is stranded copper wire with an insulation
-slowly insert the wire
-trimmer cord is also great for this if you have a roll lying around
-the length of the wire or cord depends on the run of the drain; ensure it’s at least the height of the vehicle
-feed the wire or cord in until it comes out the other side if you have a viewable drain exit
-after that, remove the wire or cord
-now test using a bottle of water; gradually drain the water around the sunroof drain, do not excessively dump, as the drain is only able to remove a certain amount of water
-as you can see, the water is draining properly
-if the problem persists, there may have been a drain you missed, a faulty seal, or a faulty drain


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## far raf (Mar 23, 2017)

When I had this issue I used a coat hanger's twisted end to pull out spider cocoons.


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## Lynn Shallenberger (Jun 19, 2019)

This is ridiculous that Nissan,knows of this design flaw for years and does nothing to make it right for the Nissan Rogue owners/consumers...It took my husband 2 hours to clear the undersized drain tubes...that flooded into my passenger compartment carpets yesterday after a heavy rain...He Used a shop vac to pick up as much water as possible & now I have my dehumidifier running in my Rogue...The dealer wanted 155.00 for a diagnostic evaluation of a known problem/ design defect...luckily this is the 2st time it has happened in the 2 yrs of owning my 2015 Rogue...It was an early lease trade in...No More Nissan's for me...Thank goodness for A Google search for interior leaks for Nissan Rogue...


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## Lynn Shallenberger (Jun 19, 2019)

This is the 1st time my Rogue has leaked hopefully no more before I get rid of it..


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## MickySt (Jul 11, 2019)

Lynn Shallenberger said:


> This is ridiculous that Nissan,knows of this design flaw for years and does nothing to make it right for the Nissan Rogue owners/consumers...It took my husband 2 hours to clear the undersized drain tubes...that flooded into my passenger compartment carpets yesterday after a heavy rain...He Used a shop vac to pick up as much water as possible & now I have my dehumidifier running in my Rogue...The dealer wanted 155.00 for a diagnostic evaluation of a known problem/ design defect...luckily this is the 2st time it has happened in the 2 yrs of owning my 2015 Rogue...It was an early lease trade in...No More Nissan's for me...Thank goodness for A Google search for interior leaks for Nissan Rogue...


I have the same issue and can't afford it to have it fixed. I now, after I done all the research will involve a consumer Lawyer because according to friends (mechanics) it is a well known problem with Nissan Rogue and they are aware of it. Nissan Rogue sunroofs are every mechanics nightmare. Then they sell you a $2000 Maintenance package but the obvious is not covered. NEVER EVER AGAIN will I buy a Nissan


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## Dan Merriam (Jul 25, 2019)

Going through the same thing with our 2015 Rogue. Certified used and have had it for a year and a half. First the dealer Grubbs Nissan in Bedford Tx, misdiagnosed the problem and said the rear door molding/seal was leaking letting water in the car. And charged us $145 for the diagnosis (they sent a guy in the car through the car wash multiple times to come up with this jewel). I verified that the door molding was fine. I actually took it back and told them what the problem was; that water was entering the car through the sunroof! They agreed and took two days to determine the drain tubes were clogged! And now they want to charge me $375 for unclogging them! This would be a Grand Total Dealership ripoff of $520 on a well known issue!

This was our First and Last Nissan!


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## Quidproquo (Apr 22, 2020)

Lynn Shallenberger said:


> This is ridiculous that Nissan,knows of this design flaw for years and does nothing to make it right for the Nissan Rogue owners/consumers...It took my husband 2 hours to clear the undersized drain tubes...that flooded into my passenger compartment carpets yesterday after a heavy rain...He Used a shop vac to pick up as much water as possible & now I have my dehumidifier running in my Rogue...The dealer wanted 155.00 for a diagnostic evaluation of a known problem/ design defect...luckily this is the 2st time it has happened in the 2 yrs of owning my 2015 Rogue...It was an early lease trade in...No More Nissan's for me...Thank goodness for A Google search for interior leaks for Nissan Rogue...


Completely agree. After about 3 years of Murano ownership I started having this problem. Stealership wanted over$100 just to diagnose the cause. Never owned a car before where I was advised I shouldn't park near a tree. Never Nissan again.


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## SkyDad (May 13, 2020)

Wish I would have seen this thread before purchasing a 2015 Certified Rogue with just 30,000 miles. 6 months after purchase I go thru a car wash only to have water pouring thru the headliner just above center console. I cleared the sunroof drains myself since I am relatively handy with most car repairs. Feb this year.... about two inches of standing water suddenly appears on the passenger floor. I decide to take it to Nissan yesterday as they told me over the phone this should be covered. Nope.......they wanted $1,000 to, “remove all sunroof drains” for cleaning? FIVE HOURS of LABOR they quoted???? I couldn’t believe it and argued the outrageous price and approach. I ended up with $145 charge and the same mildew soaked piece of shit Nissan back. I will get out my air compressor and fix it myself in an hour or two at most. Crap vehicle....crappier service. Never again, Nissan.


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## matteng217 (Aug 17, 2020)

MickySt said:


> I have the same issue and can't afford it to have it fixed. I now, after I done all the research will involve a consumer Lawyer because according to friends (mechanics) it is a well known problem with Nissan Rogue and they are aware of it. Nissan Rogue sunroofs are every mechanics nightmare. Then they sell you a $2000 Maintenance package but the obvious is not covered. NEVER EVER AGAIN will I buy a Nissan


Can I ask you where you found a lawyer for this? I am having the same issue


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## matteng217 (Aug 17, 2020)

Lynn Shallenberger said:


> This is ridiculous that Nissan,knows of this design flaw for years and does nothing to make it right for the Nissan Rogue owners/consumers...It took my husband 2 hours to clear the undersized drain tubes...that flooded into my passenger compartment carpets yesterday after a heavy rain...He Used a shop vac to pick up as much water as possible & now I have my dehumidifier running in my Rogue...The dealer wanted 155.00 for a diagnostic evaluation of a known problem/ design defect...luckily this is the 2st time it has happened in the 2 yrs of owning my 2015 Rogue...It was an early lease trade in...No More Nissan's for me...Thank goodness for A Google search for interior leaks for Nissan Rogue...


I could not agree more. My wife noticed the odd smell of mold, and we couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Finally, I found a pool of water behind the passenger side seat. After doing a google search I found out what the problem was. Then I called the service dept at my Nissan dealership, and the guy told me I could easily fix it myself with a compressor and a hard ling wire. Well this did not work, and now that I am at the service dept they are telling me they have to remove the headliner to clear the rear drains as well as the front, and that this will cost $1000 before tax. I live in the city, and I have never opened the sunroof except for when I was on the highway, so how do these drains get clogged??? This is a design flaw, THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW! Did I mention this is a design flaw. I am beside myself with anger and frustration. I have called in to Nissan Corporate, and I will be called back tomorrow they say. I don't have much faith that this will be taken care of as it should be. Which is at NO cost to me. And moving forward, what about the physical damage to my car? The stains? The stink?


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## Moshack (Nov 20, 2020)

ProStreetDriver said:


> Video tutorial on how to unplug a sunroof drain. Depending on where you live, sunroof drains may become plugged sooner than later. If you live in a treed area, it can happen more often as there is larger particles floating around in the air which would eventually plug the drains. These drains are normally feed through the roof pillars and exit somewhere underneath the vehicle. When a sunroof drain does become plugged, the common signs are either a wet headliner, water dripping from the headliner, wet roof pillar, a damp carpet or water pooling in the foot wells.
> 
> Tools/Supplies Needed:
> -soft wire or trimmer cord
> ...


I have a 2011 Nissan Rogue, I just Experiencing Wet carpet driver’s side. And I feel this should be a recall or some form of refund by the company for my inconvenience.


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## AlanParker1989 (Dec 7, 2020)

ProStreetDriver said:


> Video tutorial on how to unplug a sunroof drain. Depending on where you live, sunroof drains may become plugged sooner than later. If you live in a treed area, it can happen more often as there is larger particles floating around in the air which would eventually plug the drains. These drains are normally feed through the roof pillars and exit somewhere underneath the vehicle. When a sunroof drain does become plugged, the common signs are either a wet headliner, water dripping from the headliner, wet roof pillar, a damp carpet or water pooling in the foot wells.
> 
> Tools/Supplies Needed:
> -soft wire or trimmer cord
> ...


Seriously, thank you for this video. I was having a hard time understanding where the front drain holes are. I took one look after this and pulled out a stick that was stuck in the hole. Problem is now solved


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## Asnetk (Feb 28, 2021)

I just wanted to share that I've just fixed this issue in my 2017 Murano. First, I tried running a wire down the A-pillar drain tube from the corner for the sunroof, but it hit the "wall" about 4-5 feet down. Long story short, if you take out the entire plastic panel under the windshield (not difficult, but you will need to take the wiper hands off - also easy), you will see light green "plugs" where the drain hoses end under the far corners of the windshield These plugs get clogged up with debris. Idiotic design, from what I can tell. I force-lifted the plastic "button" in the center of the plug and all the dirt got washed out (or you can pour water from a water bottle into the sunroof cornes to wash it out. Again - idiotic design.


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## Milo066 (Aug 6, 2021)

2018 Rogue SV
My mechanic didn't know this, didn't know where the drain tubes exited. I didn't investigate the rear drains.
So... my drain tubes were plugged. This YouTube video showed me exactly what to do!! I could see in my investigation of the situation how the water overflowing in the sunroof area goes under the headliner.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_60eHcPjUw


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## Milo066 (Aug 6, 2021)

Asnetk said:


> I just wanted to share that I've just fixed this issue in my 2017 Murano. First, I tried running a wire down the A-pillar drain tube from the corner for the sunroof, but it hit the "wall" about 4-5 feet down. Long story short, if you take out the entire plastic panel under the windshield (not difficult, but you will need to take the wiper hands off - also easy), you will see light green "plugs" where the drain hoses end under the far corners of the windshield These plugs get clogged up with debris. Idiotic design, from what I can tell. I force-lifted the plastic "button" in the center of the plug and all the dirt got washed out (or you can pour water from a water bottle into the sunroof cornes to wash it out. Again - idiotic design.


Yup. See my post #14 for link to a video of the process.


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

Milo066 said:


> 2018 Rogue SV
> My mechanic didn't know this, didn't know where the drain tubes exited. I didn't investigate the rear drains.
> So... my drain tubes were plugged. This YouTube video showed me exactly what to do!! I could see in my investigation of the situation how the water overflowing in the sunroof area goes under the headliner.
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_60eHcPjUw


That's an excellent vid to show where the problem is, but there's really no need to remove the cowl on a gen2 Rogue. Both drains can be reached easily (albeit awkwardly) from the inside by reaching up behind the glovebox and the left lower dash. There are no clamps on the hoses and they can simply be pulled off, then the drain fitting cleared (and the little plastic nub broken off) by using a cheap #1 phillips bent 90 degrees like the pic below. Just as effective and a lot less work.










FYI, the real reason the drains clog so badly on Rogues is the orientation of the fitting. They're dead horizontal, which allows the last few drops of rain after every storm to deposit whatever crud they carry inside the fitting by evaporation. That gradually builds a hardened dam of material. Since most clogs are a combination of dirt and tree sap, they can often get rock-hard. That's why blowing with compressed air is often ineffective, and will sometimes blow the hoses right off the nipples. If that happens at the top under the headliner, now you have a bigger issue. So digging at the bottom is better, but sometimes quite a bit of digging with the tool will be needed before you break through the clot.


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## Milo066 (Aug 6, 2021)

VStar650CL said:


> That's an excellent vid to show where the problem is, but there's really no need to remove the cowl on a gen2 Rogue. Both drains can be reached easily (albeit awkwardly) from the inside by reaching up behind the glovebox and the left lower dash. There are no clamps on the hoses and they can simply be pulled off, then the drain fitting cleared (and the little plastic nub broken off) by using a cheap #1 phillips bent 90 degrees like the pic below. Just as effective and a lot less work.
> 
> View attachment 7703
> 
> ...


Good to know! When I was much younger I suspect I'd be able to do it as you suggest, but I don't think I could now!


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## CopperMan88 (Aug 18, 2021)

Milo066 said:


> Yup. See my post #14 for link to a video of the process.


The same video others have posted worked perfectly on my 2016 Nissan Murano. The driver's side sunroof drain was clogged. Wet A Beam, water in driver's side foot well. It is dry now!!! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_60eHcPjUw


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

CopperMan88 said:


> he same video others have posted worked perfectly on my 2016 Nissan Murano. The driver's side sunroof drain was clogged. Wet A Beam, water in driver's side foot well. It is dry now!!!


Yep, the passenger side on a Murano can be reached from inside like a Rogue, but the driver's drain is a complete PITA that requires loosening the fusebox. Easier to pull the cowl for a driver's side clog.


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## SannyMr (Aug 30, 2021)

These cars look very cool, I really like their gloss and excellent paint and color condition. My father also has a vintage car, not as old as shown in the video, but also from among the rarities. And in order to maintain the ideal appearance of the car, the father uses only steam clean a couch for cleaning the car interior and its external parts.


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## oldsnowboarder1 (Sep 3, 2021)

my leak was on the passenger side drain, so I didn't know about it for weeks, perhaps months. as far as I'm concerned, the carpet on that side must be very moldy, and needs to be replaced. has anyone tried to get Nissan corporate to pay for this repair? or has anyone gone thru their insurance and filed a comprehensive claim for water damage? thanks


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## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

If it's still under the basic 3/36 warranty, Nissan will definitely cover it. If it's beyond but not by a lot, your dealer may be willing to submit a "goodwill" request for you. Otherwise, full-coverage insurance will usually pick up all but your deductible without any real issues. As one adjuster put it to me, "We'll even cover stupid, as long as it wasn't deliberate stupid." They'll definitely cover damage from a clogged drain that wasn't anybody's fault.


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## A Cami (10 mo ago)

matteng217 said:


> Can I ask you where you found a lawyer for this? I am having the same issue


Has anyone been able to find a lawyer for this? We have a 2019 Rogue with the same issues. It is my daughter's car but she is temporarily living out of town so the car is in our driveway. Went to get in the car last week to run it (it usually just sits in the driveway) and the smell was awful. Brought it to the dealer where we bought it and they said the sunroof drains were clogged - they wanted $795 to fix. I pointed out that it doesn't say anything in the maintenance schedule about cleaning the drains, nor does it have anything in manual saying that it is something for you to clean. They blamed it on trees and parking outside. Ha! We had a Nissan Pathfinder with a sunroof that parked in the same place and never had problems. They ended up doing it for free but all it says in that they did was to blow air in and clean the drains. I asked about the smell and they suggested Stanley Steamer. So they are out in the driveway now for $336. My concern is that the water is below the carpet soaked in the padding and that this won't be able to pull the smell out. I washed the rear smaller mats in the washer and they still stink. Oh...did I mention there were several spots with white fuzzy mold? I am afraid that the car we bought brand new as a graduation present for our daughter is now completely ruined and unsellable. We are at 24,672 miles so just above the lemon law for GA.


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