Best way to clean out sunroof drains

I had a clogged drain diagnosed soon after I bought mine used (10 years old/100k miles) and tried various methods, like the trimmer line. Finally I took it to a local guy that specialized in sunroofs, it's all he does. He dropped the corner of the headliner on the passenger's side where it was clogged, running slowly. The rubber tubing looked sound, but when he bent the top of the hose water came pouring out of it and onto the passenger's seat. He took an air compressor and puffed some air into the line in short blasts. Pretty quickly, you could hear the clog give way and debris pushed out of the drain hose. Once the line was cleared, he blew it out more vigorously with the air hose. After, we ran some water through it and it came pouring out immediately from behind the front wheel. The difference in the speed and volume of the flow was night and day.

Took it back to the same guy a few months ago to do some preventative maintenance. I was worried that clog might come back. I was ready to have him repeat the process he had used to clear it the first time. Instead, he took a water bottle and poured some into the sunroof gutter connected to the drain hoses. The water came flowing out immediately once again. He shrugged his shoulders and said it was still working fine.

Harold_C said:

I wonder if this is something to do regularly to prevent them clogging completely. I had the drains completely clogged a couple of years ago and had the elbows replaced. Where should I insert the weedwacker line? In the actual drain in the sunroof?

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Yes, and totally agree. I’ll be blowing mine out several times a year, as well as cleaning then lubricating the sunroof seal with silicone rubber spray. I saturated it this time, as well as cleaning the body around the S/R. The fender vents are easily and safely removed by going in the hood hinge area with screwdriver and pressing the tabs. Then pull back the rubber vent and remove the rubber pad to gain access to the lower drain tube outlet. Make sure it goes back in correctly as there is a slot on the back to allow the water to drain.

One thing to consider that many owners don't, is that if you park on an incline, with the nose of your vehicle higher than the rear, the water won't be able to travel uphill and make it to the drain lines mounted on the forward edge of your sunroof. Your drip pan will become flooded and will overflow leaking onto the headliner. If the weatherstripping around your sunroof is in good shape and sealing properly, water shouldn't be getting inside in the first place.

I thought there were rear drains too?

I used trimmer line previously but recently got a sunroof drain cleaning tool off Temu of all places. it's like a pipe cleaner connected to trimmer line. works amazing!