If it touches anything other than the wheels, I wouldn't go through except to escape a tsunami.
There so many things that can go wrong, get damaged and cost a lot these days, and most insurance companies have written wriggle-out clauses.
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Oh, and PG: you certainly do have to treat the brakes with extreme suspicion after getting them wet. Drive along in low gear with them lightly applied. Then test them with due caution. Uneven functioning at first with a pull to right or left is highly likely. Also of course with petrol cars anything that fills the engine compartment with thick spray, like going too fast when the water is really deep, will probably drown the ignition and stop the car. Another risk is of water cracking hot castings (exhaust manifold or turbo housing).
Water is inimcal to the automobile.
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Further to all the above advice let me add, from bitter experience, that diesels for some reason, have an intake much lower than the equivalent petrol engine in the same car - as a general rule.
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Steady speed of 10mph to 8mp less, 1st gear, middle of the road.
the bow wave is small enough not to cause any damage and fold back on to you
It all goes to pot of course when soneone else comes the other way at 10 mph in the middle of the road.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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I do anything these days to avoid driving through flood water.
Years ago I had both front wheel bearings go shortly after going through a flood.
Ok, it was a Maestro... So perhaps thats not representative of other cars :)
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Much in the same way that Lud has described the Land Rover air intake site,we driving artics are in the same boat,if you pardon the pun,whereby the air intake is usually above the cab,at one corner,meaning it's about 8 feet off the ground.
Ken.
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Having wrecked an old Tipo by driving it through surface water at speed, I'd suggest stopping and taking another route.
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My colleague almost killed his Mondeo TDCI by driving through a kerb height puddle - the bow wave caused by the previous car entered his intake and stopped the car dead.
A new turbo and injection system needing fixing ! -
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To add to all that the catalyst can be damaged if it is suddenly cooled. Even a quite shallow puddle can do that..
In short, modern cars are not designed for going through even a few inches of water, and in many ways seem actually deliberately designed so as to be vulnerable.
Memorable experiences:
Driving through a ford in a Morris 1100, and beginning to be carried downstream. Spinning the wheels at high speed and just managing to claw sideways up the far side in a shower of spray. The engine died just the other side, with the distributor full of water.
Hitting several feet of floodwater at 50 mph in the dip under a dimly lit flyover.
The bow wave came right over the bonnet and the car virtually stopped, like a liner being launched. Fortunately old LandRovers were built for deep fording. A few miles further on there was another slosh of water - the spare wheel on the bonnet had filled with water.
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More memories;
Driving through Knox Ford near Harrogate in a Citroen Dyane 4. The ford is now closed but, in its day, the intrepid motorist drove along the river bed for 50 yards rather than across it. The bow wave entered the grille, got blown over the cylinders and through the heating system into the cabin. Result; instant Turkish Bath and complete white-out. Wiping the winscreen was useless so I banged open the sliding window and stuck my head out, the window glass neatly stripping off my specs and dropping then in the water. At this point I could see enough to realise that I had missed the ramp and was heading downstream towards Knaresborough. Keen, not to say desperate, to keep the motor turning I dipped the clutch, tugged the handbrake, crunched it into reverse and lurched backwards far enough to be able to aim for the opposite bank. It all ended happily, with the mighty 435cc engine never missing a beat throughout.
My friend and garagiste had acquired one of the newly launched Citroen BX 17 Turbo diesels and I was invited to try it out. That Sunday morning there had been some torrential rain but the sun had got out and it felt almost tropical. I came flying round a corner in the environs of north Leeds to find the road flooded for over 100 yards and a newish Honda parked at the side of the road but well into the flood. One of the occupants was reading a newspaper. The water wasn't that deep, barely up to the Honda's wheel rim. I paused long enough to raise the suspension and set off. Encouraged by my passenger, I increased speed until I had a fine sideways spray. It was only when we got past the Honda and heard shrieks of dismay and anger that I realised that the driver's window was open. Not having a towel or a spare newspaper, I dropped the suspension and left the scene swiftly.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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PG - you didn't dream the turbo diesel thing - they often have very low air intakes.
I've blasted through pretty deep water in company Peugeot 406's (petrol) with no ill effects, but I'd be very hesitant in a car I owned. One of the probs with driving quickly is that you might swamp people coming the other way if the road's wide enough to allow that.
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I know someone who wrecked their Espace diesel going through a flood. Air intake is quite low, late 90's model IIRC.
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Took my TDI Toledo storm chasing a few months back and the only problem was the water leak coming from somewhere.
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Those who enjoy splashing through the odd puddle (I count myself among them) may want to have a butchers at this:
www.wetroads.co.uk
as featured in the Jan 2007 edition of Topgear magazine.
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I remember once asking my Dad to drive his Morris Minor van through the railway underpass in Selby, which regularly filled with water when the river was at high tide. Next thing I remember was my Dad and a passing policeman both wading knee deep in dirty water trying to push the van out while I sat in the front seat and watched - as you do when you're only four years old :-)
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**A good while ago I was chatting to a chap who needed to have "flood capability" and we were wondering what was the best option. I posted this (now edited slightly).**
Went round the yard with a tape and confirmed what is obvious I suppose, conventional vehicles and floods shouldn't mix. People do confuse the issues with driving through floods. There is a huge difference between what any vehicle might do in a dire emergency and what will be good for it long term. I had two land Rovers at the time, one ex-farm/40yrs old, the other 20yrs old/ex-off road enthusiast owned.
The off-road trialling was absolutely wrecked in every respect when you look at the drivetrain and brakes, far too much time spent in deep muddy water. The farm track one though was excellent because they were relying on it so they never went looking for trouble.
With a normal hatchback car in 11" of water the wheel bearings, lower suspension balljoints and brakes (ABS bits as well!) are going under. Just a few inches more and you are risking water ingress to the engine, gearbox and many more expensive bits. Even my Xantia on high will start to drag the bottom of the running gear under 18" of water.
The Land Rover will go in 14" of water before the hubs/brakes are wet, 20" sees the crank pulley dipping in water and spraying it around the engine compartment, 22" sees the first danger of water getting in the engine via the main seals and the starter is going under from 24". A diesel LR may continue running into very deep water with correct driving methods. The air intake on the old Series models is very sensibly placed at 44" so close to that might be a lucky maximum in an emergency. The water would then be to your shirt inside and after leaving the floods you should stop the thing and drain/re-fill the engine/gearbox/transfer box/axles x2/steering swivels to remove the danger of water in those various oils. The latter part is something people rarely do but it is in the Land Rover books.
With my tractor (ignoring the front hubs because they are cheap, run at low speed and there are no front brakes to seize) you can go into 26" of water before it comes to the bottom of the engine, 33" sees it with the fan pulley throwing water about and the starter also getting wet. Again in a dire emergency this will go in 50" before the engine air intake is near water...very impressive. Put a simple three ton trailer on the back and you have a emergency rescue vehicle.
There is a location near here on a rural commuter route where a long run in flood water is needed several times a year to avoid an annoying detour. It is amazing the risks you see taken with normal cars just to "get through". With a medium TD hatchback there is a real chance of sucking up enough water to trash the engine, never mind the long term effects on all the running gear.
M.M
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On off-roading courses, rule No1 of driving through water is stop and ascertain its depth by various means including sight/using a stick/spade etc if you can reach across it so that you can determine if there any hidden deep points/asking someone who knows for sure.
If you cannot be sure of its depth then find an alternative route.
The other advice above covers what do if you're going to continue through it.
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"stop and ascertain its depth"
That is pretty important, as it's not easy to gauge the road variations under a flat sheet of water! Ideally let someone in front of you demonstrate, but don't be tempted to follow until they've come out the other side.
I used to live down a windy lane with a bridge over a stream that flooded, and the hard part was remembering where the road finished and the stream began. I had water over the top of my motorbike boots on one occasion, with little option but to keep going...
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With a normal hatchback car in 11" of water the wheel bearings, lower suspension balljoints and brakes (ABS bits as well!) are going under. Just a few inches more and you are risking water ingress to the engine, gearbox ...
Excellent informative piece by MM.
I blame water in the gearbox of my Citroen Synergie on my keeness to go through floodwater on my way to Dent, Cumbria. The road was flooded and a group of chaps in thigh-length wellies was standing around next to a Mercedes Unimog. Various other cars were parked on the verge out of the water. When I arrived they had just towed a Mondeo out so I had a chance to guage the depth. I already knew the air intake was top-of-headlight level and drove through without incident. The following week the car was due for service and I was told of water in the gearbox. I took the car back for gearbox oil change three times in the next six weeks and I had no trouble for the rest of the life of the car.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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I drove through a ford near calverton, a few miles from Gunthorpe out Nottigham way in my Mk1 1.8 8V Renault Laguna. It was around 2 feet deep, probably less in light of M.M.s post. Out the other side I had trouble accelerating for a mile or so afterwards-the clutch was slipping like a goodun-so defintely gave the clutch mechanism a good dousing. It was ok after that though, surprisingly.
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My friend's son recently drove his new Mazda RX8 into deep flood water and it has been written off by his insurance company. Fortunately, that company have a 'new for old' policy in operation and so the outcome should be good?
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just hit any fourty eight hard long stretch of water at 60mph.
I made it that far through a sixty yard long stretch of water a foot deep a few years ago in a citreon ZX td.
The repair list
Most valves bent so all replaced
Turbo wrecked.
New calipers
new alternator
New crankshaft
and a few other bits too
--
I read often, only post occasionally
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A particular danger, which has been alluded to above, is when it is a ford that has flooded.
The force and speed of the water is easily underestimated, and a number of people have been swept away downstream in their cars, and in some instances drowned.
Many fords do have a depth indicator as a warning, but even then idiots try and drive through water 3 feet deep!
Another and different problem arises when the flood is of salt water.
The car may appear to get through OK, but modern electrics and salt water do not get on well together and there may be serious problems later.
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'Many fords do have a depth indicator as a warning, '
Even Rolls Royce don't fit them : )
Slightly different,but in Filey they get the fishing boats in and out of the water with tractors.These things,not suprisingly, are heavily corroded yet seem to keep going for years,the vehicle of choice for regular water driving.
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A particular danger, which has been alluded to above, is when it is a ford that has flooded. The force and speed of the water is easily underestimated, and a number of people have been swept away downstream in their cars, and in some instances drowned.
several years ago, whilst staying with friends at Xmas on the edge of Dartmoor, whilst out delivering pressies I came across the AA blocking a major A road........... as it was where i wanted to go, i got out to enquire and he not unreasonably told me that it was easier for him to block the road for the flood up ahead, than get called out to the inevitable people who would get stuck in it.
Having got back to my mate's barn and advised on how bad the roads were....we decided, not very sensibly, to take his wife's Suzuki Vitara out for some 'green laning'.......(without telling her i might add).
That Suzuki was incredible, it went absolutely everywhere in tropical storm type conditions....
anyway to get to the point, we went down one country road, with tarmac and found a small stream had now become a small river and had burst its' banks and was now using the road as well.....
it didn't look too deep, so..............
big mistake......... it wasn't very deep and the surface was fine i.e tarmac..........but....... we were travelling several mph forward and the river was going the other way, doing the same........ which meant an enormous bow wave, which came up over the headlamps, bonnet and started going either side of the windscreen........ of course the rear lights and reversing lights were well under water, as was the exhaust 'cos i could hear it bubbling......... as we were in the middle of nowhere during a stormy night, there was no light whatsoever.......i had that little engine revving at 6,000 rpm, in sheer panic that it would stall....... my mate had to climb in the back, unzip the canvas roof and give me directions to steer backwards...
we won't be doing that again.....
mind you that Suzuki Vitara never missed a beat, what an amazing little vehicle...
Mrs Mate sussed us out eventually as well......... the bad smell in the car a week later turned out to be fetid water in a cubby hole in front of the gear lever, that we'd missed.
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