[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by Customize81

tuesday morning is my turn to get this done.

how long time did the dealership take for the job? I will stay there and wait while they do the job..

15 minutes...

[rawramp]

Hi just putting my experience forward.

BMW F30 320D Reg July 2013 3,700 mls .uk

Today I have been to my local BMW Garage as both the driver's and driver's side passenger's foot well's were full of water.
They have replaced both front water Drainage Grommet's as this is where they Identified the problem to be.

They showed me the old grommets and for such a new car with low miles the grommet on the driver's side was full of thick sludge
Preventing the flaps in the grommet from opening and allowing the water to drain away.
Even this surprised me as my car has never been used in dirty conditions and is always cleaned regular and garaged

Strangely they did not at any stage say this was a known problem but continued to tell me it should be fine now as they had fitted a newly redesigned replacement part that should prevent this happening again.

So this problem is obviously known to BMW and is a manufacture design fault . These Grommet's are hidden from view somewhere deep in the engine bay around the wheel arch /Bulkhead area on both the Driver's and passenger's sides so keeping them clean and unblocked yourself is impossible.

I would suggest that any F30 owners should check their carpets regular for any signs of dampness .

[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by rawramp

Hi just putting my experience forward.

BMW F30 320D Reg July 2013 3,700 mls .uk

Today I have been to my local BMW Garage .....
... but continued to tell me it should be fine now as they had fitted a newly redesigned replacement part that should prevent this happening again. .

"Newly redesigned" ??... .. All they do in Canada is remove them in the 4xx .... the new design is simply the grommet hole... I'd wager the same is the case for you..

[rawramp]

The job took about an hour in total . That Included finding the problem. replacement of both sides .wet vac the carpets to remove as much water as possible from carpets and Doing a water check for any leaks.

[rawramp]

Yes I believe the new Grommets just have a straight through drain

[BavarianFanatic]

Originally Posted by rawramp

Hi just putting my experience forward.

BMW F30 320D Reg July 2013 3,700 mls .uk

Today I have been to my local BMW Garage as both the driver's and driver's side passenger's foot well's were full of water.
They have replaced both front water Drainage Grommet's as this is where they Identified the problem to be.

They showed me the old grommets and for such a new car with low miles the grommet on the driver's side was full of thick sludge
Preventing the flaps in the grommet from opening and allowing the water to drain away.
Even this surprised me as my car has never been used in dirty conditions and is always cleaned regular and garaged

Strangely they did not at any stage say this was a known problem but continued to tell me it should be fine now as they had fitted a newly redesigned replacement part that should prevent this happening again.

So this problem is obviously known to BMW and is a manufacture design fault . These Grommet's are hidden from view somewhere deep in the engine bay around the wheel arch /Bulkhead area on both the Driver's and passenger's sides so keeping them clean and unblocked yourself is impossible.

I would suggest that any F30 owners should check their carpets regular for any signs of dampness .

The sludge is algae or biofilm. It's not really "dirt". As you noted, there's no easy way to keep them clean.

[rawramp]

They are rectangular about the size of a pack of cigi's with 2 flaps to release the water .
they told me the new ones just allow straight through drainage.

I don't believe they would just remove them..... but who can you trust nowadays
I would have thought that at least a rubber seal would have to be re fitted

[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by rawramp

They are rectangular about the size of a pack of cigi's with 2 flaps to release the water .
they told me the new ones just allow straight through drainage.

I don't believe they would just remove them..... but who can you trust nowadays
I would have thought that at least a rubber seal would have to be re fitted

See the picture up the thread that I took of them. They don't add anything back. The primer, paint and whatever is there from the initial dunking. All the rubber would do is hold water in the groove...

[rawramp]

Thanks seen your pic's .......... To be honest as long as the foot wells no longer resemble a paddling pool I will be happy.

[rawramp]

The last car I had that water got in the foot wells was a 15 year old wreck with holes in the floor pan.

You just cant beat German Build quality.........................

[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by rawramp

The last car I had that water got in the foot wells was a 15 year old wreck with holes in the floor pan.

You just cant beat German Build quality.........................

At least the old one auto drained the floor pan..

I had one of those also, but it was an MGA .. A good thing that the floor was a sieve as the convertible roof gasket over the windshield and the side curtains let lots of water in on any wet commute in 4 lane traffic..

Also loved those Lucas windscreen wipers which only seemed to work in the sunshine and autoparked halfway up in the rain...

[rawramp]

To be honest when you look back all of those old cars were more fun, not over engineered or computerised and probably much more engaging than modern cars.
And you could easily strip and repair them yourself.

[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by rawramp

To be honest when you look back all of those old cars were more fun, not over engineered or computerised and probably much more engaging than modern cars.
And you could easily strip and repair them yourself.

Especially engaging was hand cranking them to start because of the other Lucas favorites, the Generator and Voltage regulator.. in the pouring rain... keep your thumb folded off the crank handle, or you might get it broken on the kick back.

The more I think of it, my new one looks pretty good, and about as engaged as I need for the time being.

[rawramp]

how do you find the 4 series for handling and ride.
It's lower and wider than the 3 series.

I have 20" wheels with run flats on my 320D and I am surprised how well the new F30 rides on them.

[Lost Horizon]

Originally Posted by rawramp

how do you find the 4 series for handling and ride.
It's lower and wider than the 3 series.

I have 20" wheels with run flats on my 320D and I am surprised how well the new F30 rides on them.

I just love the car, and the overall integration of the whole package. I have the staggered 19's for summer, but 18's for winter (as you see in the pics). I traded an E92 (which is still around), and it now seems a bit dated compared to the F32. The E92 was no slouch, either.

[gonein10]

so recall item # 64 80 14 is for the grommet, what is 64 80 13?
I'm getting both recall #'s are they related?

[canbmw]

Any pics of the actual location of the grommet out of interest?
I had mine removed or whatever last week. Are they in the front wheel well area?

[sn3rd]

Got a call this afternoon from my dealer to notify me that this needs to be done on my car, 2013 335i, South African build. Planning to try and book the car in this week.

[BlauWeiss]

Got a call today from dealer regarding same "water drainage grommet" service.
My BMW portal has service code 64 80 14, same as mentioned on here, but also service code 51 80 14. Is this related?

What is Service Code 51 80 14?

[CHCCubs]

Originally Posted by BlauWeiss

Got a call today from dealer regarding same "water drainage grommet" service.
My BMW portal has service code 64 80 14, same as mentioned on here, but also service code 51 80 14. Is this related?

What is Service Code 51 80 14?

I think they might be related. I had the same 2 codes on my car when I took it in for service a few weeks ago. The second code mentioned "repair engine compartment corrosion protection" which from the description on my invoice mentions a cover base, contact spray, and protection. Either way, both must have been rather simple tasks as they were done along with a scheduled oil change and I got the car back the same day.

[BlauWeiss]

Originally Posted by CHCCubs

I think they might be related. I had the same 2 codes on my car when I took it in for service a few weeks ago. The second code mentioned "repair engine compartment corrosion protection" which from the description on my invoice mentions a cover base, contact spray, and protection. Either way, both must have been rather simple tasks as they were done along with a scheduled oil change and I got the car back the same day.

Thanks for the detail, much appreciated. I will wait 2 months until my scheduled maintenance to have them done.

[philbake]

Had my 2013 in today for oil service and the vacuum pump recall, and they performed this one (I think) too. SIB 51 05 14 it says "Remove Water Drain Grommet of Units Compartment". Performed Recall/Removed Grommets. In Colorado, and this did not show up on the BMW website as a recall for my car.