Nightmare Driving Home Through Floods

[LOcKY]

Hi guys,

just got back from one of the worsts drives so far. If you live in the Northeast of England then you know we have been hit we massive rain. A drive back home took me 2 hours when it normally takes 30min!

had a few scary moments like when i drove through a puddle and it nearly reached the top of my bonnet and my engine sounded like it wanted to pass out. Lucky i pushed it in 1st gear and slowly drove out. Is there a technique to drive through puddles?

well im going to give my baby a wash tomorrow even if its raining as i dont want any dirty water on the car. Might give the engine bay a clean as im worried theres a lot of muddy water underneath. Im sure my engine will be fine right?

anyone had trouble driving due to flood water conditions?

Col

[Rory]

I know after u go thru deeper than usual water u shud drive for a little with brakes applied, first thing i'd do when gettin home is open the bonnet and check theres no water close to any wires, obviously if u've made it thru without any evidence of issues, like warning lights comin on etc i'd assume not much water went anywhere it shouldn't, I dunno if its safe to do so but i'd leave the engine running so the heat can evaporate any water that did get in, thats my logical thinking tho so please anyone correct me if its wrong lol

[colbecoz]

When driving through fairly deep water, get your speed right down. Stay in first and keep you rev's up all the time. You may need to slip the clutch intermittemtly to keep your speed steady. Don't be tempted to bosh through at speed as this will push water up in to the engine bay and saturate the electrics which will cause the engine to cut out. When you're out of the flood, drive with your foot on the brake (gently) to take the ater off the discs and heat up the calipers to evapourate surface water on them.

Hope this helps...

Col... :winky: :)

[Norv]

I used to do some off roading. My tips would be, if anywhere near bonnet height, keep a steady speed enough to get a nice bow wave going, it massively reduces the depth of water to your engine bay. I wouldn't worry about the electrics getting wet too much unless it cuts out. You dont want the engine to take in any water, thats when the damage happens!

If it was me in my Lex I'd go around!

Mark.

[LOcKY]

the problem was the sat nav took me through country roads so going round isnt an option :( well hopefully its a 1 in 100 year storm event meaning its a rare occurence :) I model hydraulic sewer networks which entails flooding investigations and its the first time for me to see flooding to such levels in real life :o

Is there anything i should check when i start the car up tomorrow?

[colbecoz]

the problem was the sat nav took me through country roads so going round isnt an option :( well hopefully its a 1 in 100 year storm event meaning its a rare occurence :) I model hydraulic sewer networks which entails flooding investigations and its the first time for me to see flooding to such levels in real life :o

Is there anything i should check when i start the car up tomorrow?

If it starts OK mate, it should be fine. The engine bay might need a clean though.. The reason I said to keep the rev's up is to ensure you maintain a steady outlet pressure through the exhaust to prevent water backfowin causing the engine to stall. That's why most real off roaders have periscope exhaust pipes. Hope the tips are helpful. It pays after all to be an advanced motorist>>>

Col.. :winky: :winky: :D :D

[kenfoxy]

Some months ago I drove thru a flood under a railway bridge. There were other abandooned cars around so, being perhaps foolish, I decided to go for it. I mounted the pavement and did everything as per the above and got thru without missing a beat. Perhaps the IS200 is good in a flood. Wouldn't do it again though.

Interesting that there was no coverage at all on the national news. Had it been in the Thames Valley, well that would be different.

[LOcKY]

i was driving back from work from Durham to Hartlepool. I knew about some flash flooding around certains that we are working on but didnt think too much about the route home i usually take :( i guess its true that the IS200 are built to last :)

[ATEEK]

well im from the north east (stockton) and the reain IS realy bad. i also went thru apuddle yesterday at around 40-50 mph i didnt see it but no damage done

just leave the engine started for a while and all will be good

[peco84]

Yeh im from stockton never seen anything like it! I think the IS200 are the worst in flood water due to the air intake comming direct from the front seen a few is200 drown and hydralic the internals. If you drive through too deep water just take a peek into the ecu box make sure the water has drained away as they have a cooling pipe direct from the radiator.