How is driver’s side scuttle box meant to drain?

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JCmumscar
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Post Sun Nov 08, 2020 10:15 pm

E30 318i 1990 RHD with manual sunshine roof.

How on earth is the driver’s side scuttle box meant to drain? I can work out how the near side scuttle drains in 2 places, from the side slot behind the fuse box and via the elephants trunk.

But the driver’s side scuttle box drain is a mystery. When enough water collects it does eventually flow out by via the elephant’s trunk - but the water has to go under a tiny slit under a small low bulk head (prone to blockage) and in any case it does not drain down completely leaving one centimetre of water sloshing along the length of the scuttle box. Is there meant to be another drain in the outside (off side) corner near the door pillar? Mine has a hard mastic sealer all along the bottom edge of the box.

This seems an awful engineering design. What am I missing?
I have a bad leak problem and I need to eliminate this.
Thanks
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DanThe
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Post Mon Nov 09, 2020 8:39 am

You are correct that is how it drains, very bad design as it allows water to sit and is one reason why you shouldn't leave an E30 outside for long
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BenHar
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Post Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:06 pm

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Contours
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Post Tue Nov 10, 2020 7:37 pm

IMG_1106.JPG
A picture of the triangular drain with the wing removed and is similar on both sides. The narrow outlet is much more difficult to sort on the passenger side if there is a problem as it runs under the fusebox. You have to remove the carpet to check the condition of the firewall and look at the condition of the battery tray as well. Leaks are a common issue on these cars now particularly those left outside.
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