How not to drive through floodwater.

Compilation of people who shouldn't really be behind the wheel. It is about time that insurers stopped paying out for engine damage caused by driving through water.

The bit of interest to us starts at 17:28.



I have no idea how he managed to get under the bridge against the direction of water flow.
At least the snorkel works!

Actually, many years ago I did similar in the series III, I lost traction when it floated. Luckily it was a LandRover, so it didn't take long for it to sink and regain traction.

I didn't make that mistake again, I had to un-seize the heater fan, the starter motor, the alternator and even the windscreen washer motor.

Nowadays if the water is deep enough to go over the wheel rims I turn round and find another route!

I love the water coming out of the doors of the Jimny when they get it out. Then just to get a bit more out they park it on the sloping grass verge.

The Fiesta which follows is amazing, all of the white smoke, it must have sucked loads of water in to the air intake, but it keeps running, well for now.

Robin

facade wrote:

I have no idea how he managed to get under the bridge against the direction of water flow.
At least the snorkel works!

[...]

Nowadays if the water is deep enough to go over the wheel rims I turn round and find another route!

It appears that the Jimny driver was deliberately steering under the bridge, perhaps with the view to having a romp up the stream?  Very peculiar.

An earlier segment shows a snorkel-equipped Freelander failing to make the swim.  That is the difference between a "snorkel" of the decorative kind, and a true snorkel.

I had a 2018 Discovery with air suspension that could ford to almost a meter depth; it did not look like a proper offroader, but it was surprisingly capable.  My Jimny, on the other hand, has the looks but you wouldn't catch me trying to cross the fords shown in the video-- discretion these days is the better part of valour.

Here In Norway no one dares to drive thru an inch deep puddle.
Amazed how people just go thru these fords with expensive low cars and from what I understand there is often just five minutes to bypass them.

I have had water on up on my bonnet and no problems.
No extra breathers yet and oil in the axles and gearboxes still look fine.
nice to get some of the mud off as well.
My door seals are good and there is a snorkel.

Very common at our danish meet that at least one or two gets alternator problems though but mine still is ok.

Motacilla wrote:

It appears that the Jimny driver was deliberately steering under the bridge, perhaps with the view to having a romp up the stream?  Very peculiar.



 

I thought that he had swerved under the bridge, I wondered if he hit something or just couldn't drive.
I wasn't driving, but I don't see how he got so stuck, apart from continually flooring the accelerator and not slipping the clutch (yes, likely it would stall if the exhaust filled up- my LandRover didn't btw, just kept bubbling), the current was pushing the way he needed to go, and he was sinking to get more grip from the tyres.

Maybe he had driven off a kerb, and sank down an inch or so, then didn't have enough traction to grip the edge of the kerb and lift the back end up enough to climb it.

facade wrote:

Maybe he had driven off a kerb, and sank down an inch or so, then didn't have enough traction to grip the edge of the kerb and lift the back end up enough to climb it.

I think that is it -- something happened suddenly, the Jimny jolts (and girlfriend squeaks) and then he is suddenly quite stuck.  Also no diff locks so he is spinning the nearside wheels I think.

Or maybe he was just going for a splash to wash off as much of that mud as he could, yakuza style.  

l've never understand people hammering their expensive vehicles through flood water.

Are they stupid (is it possible to genuinely be that stupid) or do they just not care.

As in, company car so who gives a stuff, on lease so l'll just throw it back at the dealer if it stops working, l genuinely think the vehicle will make it through a metre deep flood because l have absolutely no idea what's going on under the bonnet?

I think it is a combination of 3 things

1) They are that stupid.

2) It isn't their car so breaking it doesn't matter because

3) Their insurance picks up the bill. (Which means that we get to pay for their stupidity!)


Like I said at the start, it is about time that insurers stopped paying for engine damage caused by driving through flood water.
If you park at the bottom of a hill and wake up to find raw sewage lapping around the door handles they should pay out, but it will be obvious that the engine hasn't been run underwater.