allwheelwagons

Hi everyone! I'm brand new to the forum and to the world of BMWs. I've been an Audi forum member and driver for 20 years but decided to try out a 530xi. I loved it for the first few months. It had a couple issues related to the rear hatch and it's running 19" staggered rims with stretched tires(not my favorite).

About a month ago I started it after a big rain storm and my center screen said I had an electrical malfunction. My gauges were also bouncing around. I drove it around the parking lot but then parked it. It sat for a few days and when I started it again the enter my infotainment screen was blank. The gauges were steady and occasionally I'd get a strange symbol on my info area in the gauge cluster. I drove it for about a day and then the rear air suspension failed. I parked it and had it towed to an independent BMW repair shop.

They found water in the rear hatch and several modules burned up including the rear hatch, air suspension and ccc(?). I googled and found that this can be a sunroof issue. I originally believed I had left my sunroof tilted up during that storm, but at the shop we found it took on water even with it closed. Insurance won't touch it, so I'm stuck with the possibility of several thousand dollars in repairs.

I'm just looking for some advice from you seasoned pros that have seen this or know more than I do(which isn't much). I'm not too picky about driving cars with warning lights on(after all I did drive Audi's for 20 years!).

As long as it runs and I can get some use out of it I'm good. I just can't see selling it off as a parts car. I took a loan to buy it and obviously 3 months into it I still owe most of the original loan.

Thanks!
Steve

BostonJon

this is an extremely common issue on the E61. i dont mean to be rude and please dont interpret this in a negative light, but you should try searching this forum and others. even minimal searching would have turned up plenty of results on this issue. you likely have clogged sunroof drains, which are located under the plastic lining of the rear wheel wells. these have caps on them, which dont allow proper draining especially when there is particulate matter in the drain lines. before I bought the E61 I have now, it was returned to the dealer twice under a CPO warranty for water in the trunk.

on a positive note, you may be able to replace the modules and relays that are in the spare tire area that have been fried. used modules are easy to find on ebay and usually relatively inexpensive. i had to replace an LCPA module for another issue and it was $15. there may be some programming required but there are people that can help you with that remotely if needed.

i would start by drying out the wheel well, assessing which modules are likely fried (this may require opening the plastic casing), and sourcing replacements. in the mean time and before putting in any of the replacement modules, i would address the drainage issue by removing the wheel linings and checking out your drain tubes. no sense replacing components until you're sure it won't happen again.

from what I can tell, the big wiring loom going into the spare tire well is long enough so that the whole group of modules can be relocated up and out of the spare tire well.

RCB

Yes, Jon is 100% acurate on all of that and I just want to help stress that last suggestion...... Move those modules to the left side compartment when you fix it!!!!

allwheelwagons

Thanks for the help! You're right BostonJon...I should have dug around the forum for a bit before I posted. I looked threw a few different searches, but didn't spend much more than a half hour.

I will start by searching how to fix the clogged sunroof drains. Then I will start piecing it all together. I am not much of a mechanic and I have very little free time these days, but once I haul it back to my driveway my wife will complain enough that I'm sure she will "help" me find time. lol

I'm getting a quote from the shop to have the suspension converted to a non air ride. I am fairly confident that it will not be in my budget.

Thanks for your help!

BostonJon

Don't sell yourself short. The sunroof drain and module replacement really aren't very complicated projects. Can you take off a wheel? Can you use sockets and a screw driver? If so, you can fix your sunroof drains to prevent this from happening again.

BostonJon

just curious - what's the reason for the conversion? is your system broken/inoperable or do you just want to simplify your rear suspension?

allwheelwagons

Sounds like I should be able to handle the basics of this procedure.Thanks for the encouragement!

As far as the conversion...it's mostly so I don't have to deal with this issue again. The programming of the module concerns me, so I thought if I eliminated that aspect it would be one less issue. I want it up and running so I can quit driving my old truck or minivan. There are multiple modules that are burned up. Mainly the suspension and the MMI/infotainment. Although...I am concerned that if I can't access my MMI, will my climate control work at all? That could be an issue as we get closer to winter. I am assuming that I will not be doing the conversion though. I'm sure the shop will want a lot more than my budget allows and I'd rather keep the stock set up. It drove nice and I do haul stuff in the back for work.

Lotus99

These might help also. Water related stuff. Look up some of my posts also, I described how I tested all 4 drains to make sure they were completely unblocked.

DaHose

With a 530xi, the rear lights are also a water entry point. Replace the gaskets as they are certainly dried out by now. Once you do that and pop off the ends of the sunroof drain tubes, you should not have water issues anymore.

Jose