offroadfury6

iTrader: (8)

ok so on my way back from my physcial theropist, we had sudden flash flooding everywhere, I turned around on a few roads cause they were so badly flooded, last road I got on had least amount of water and I HAD to get home to my daughter so my wife could go to school, anyways...heres what its doing...

I drove slow and biggest flood on the road was maybe 10 inches and about 1 light pole length. The TA was sluggish and felt a huge power decrease, before I parked it, I cut it off a few times, it will start right back up, had some smoke coming out. Smoke was as if It was mid-winter and cold start type. I popped the hood when I got home, engine looked dry ( doesn't mean it didn't get wet ). Anyways I'm alil concerned that I may have gotten water in the motor? I'm scared it will hydrolock...what can I do? change oil immediately? I'm really concerned...before I parked it, it was running alil better than before, so that was a small relief...all advice is appriciated!
thanks in advance

Element

iTrader: (5)

Probably soaked a bunch of sensors. If it didn't hydrolock when you drove through the water, it's not going to do it after the car's been sitting. Let it dry out for a couple days, and see how it's running.

offroadfury6

iTrader: (8)

phew that makes me feel better knowing hydrolocking occurs during the inncodent...thnx man, that was my main concern..

FireTA98

iTrader: (3)

Yeah if I was you I would let it dry out for a day or so let all those sensors dry up n hope u be in good shape.

offroadfury6

iTrader: (8)

yeah i hated to drive it thru there but I had no choice...other roads were worse

02*C5

iTrader: (1)

Let is dry out in the garage take the covers off all your engine electrical **** and take a hair drier to it if need be. Some of your allweather plugs I would take apart and check because if any water got in there it won't get out happened to my Vette during last years monsoons started getting codes, reduced power flashing everywhere, and **** took me 2 days to figure it out.. For peace of mind i would also just take your plugs out crank the engine a few times and put them back in. That little bit of inconvenience will seal the deal and its a good CYA u know.

Good luck

FireTA98

iTrader: (3)

Even tho the weather is not as bad in Dallas then other citys I still won't drive my car till it drys up. Wether is crazy now of days u'll never know when ur going 2 be In a situation like you.

tdevil55

iTrader: (23)

Mine was flooded in my driveway back in Nov last year, nothing got into the block, but the sensors got soaked. Prob went slugo when your O2 sensors got hit. Also, watch the lower pullies such as the AC ones, and your alt. I had to replace the lower one after mine got flooded, started whining after the flood, and it went away after I replaced it.

RS777

iTrader: (1)

not being a smartass or anything like that, but other than said above (driving through flooded water to where the entire intake is submerged or similar), how do you hydro lock an engine from driving through water/rain? People run water/methanol injection all the time without issue, but I see people talking worrying about driving through rain and similar with a CAI? Is this really that serious of an issue? I ask, because every car I've ever owned (NA/Turbo/etc) has ran a cold air intake, and I've never had an issue or seen this happen bad weather/rain/whatever. It just blows my mind, people pay hundreds to thousands for simple-complicated 3d mapped water/methanol/etc injection systems and then there are people afraid of just heavy rain and such. I am running my first LS1 and wanting to put a cold air intake on it of course (as I am pretty sure like most cars), it runs an IAT based ign/fuel adjustment so having 80-100 (ambient) temp intake vs 150-200 degree (engine bay mixed air) could really affect performance from a tuning standpoint. i am just curious is all.

PS - I have seen where the #7 injector grommet or something will hold water and let it leaked into the cylinders and puddles up while the car is off. Making a huge puddle in the cylinder, then break crap when you try to start it, i understand that too, so im not saying "hydrolock is impossible", just trying to understand how its as serious as I read through threads (when driving in the rain and similar).

Element

iTrader: (5)

Big difference in an injected mist, vs sucking up standing water. I don't personally worry about driving through rain by itself; it's the possibility of either hitting a big puddle, or having someone else hit a big puddle and send a veritable wave of water up the car's nose, that would have me worried.

1SLwLS1

iTrader: (6)

Depends on the depth of water, speed, highest intake point, etc. The water flew over my hood and right through the ram air into the intake instantly locking it up.

RS777

iTrader: (1)

Definitely understood. My question is just that the water is sucked up (through a filter), which will absorb what it will absorb, and separate the huge mass some. Then suck through a MAF screen (which again will separate the huge mass) then go through a TB that may or may not be fully open, then individually be ran through up to 8 cylinders in the intake manifold (which at this point its probably 100-200+ degrees easy as its all connected to the block), through the heads/valves and somehow make it to the cylinder dense and thick enough to cause hydrolock? It gets even more mind boggling when you think about this on a turbo car (as they say it happens there too) where somehow the water makes it through all said above, 200+ degree turbine blades spinning at 20-100k rpms, intercooler, etc and still manages to hydrolock an engine?!

If it happened to you, I am definitely sorry and am in no way trying to say its not possible, just blows my mind is all i guess =\.

VerdeZ28

my understanding is that if your car sucks up enough water to over fill the combustion chamber, then the piston will not be able to compress the liquid since liquids are incompressible, and it will either lock up, if your at low enough RPMs or if your RPMs are high enough then you might snap a rod, at which point your FU*KED.

If this happens to you, you should immediately remove the spark plugs and start the car. if theres any water inside, it will come out the spark plug holes as your motor turns the crank to try to start. IF YOU MUST DRIVE THOUGH A FLOOD, DO SO AT LOW RPMs, that way, should your car suck up water, it should only stall up and not destroy any internals, then do the process i stated before to clear it up.

offroadfury6

iTrader: (8)

i'll try that, plugs need to be changed anyways...what is the allweather plugs?

lol yes sounded like the belt was sqeeking abit when I was trying to get it home...poor TA ... which pully? and why did you have to replace it? rust or something?

RS777

iTrader: (1)

Right, just blows my mind how that happens (unless you physically are running through water low enough to submerge the filter). Good info on clean-up! I just always wondered if the MAF sensor (since some are based on cooling ** more air = cooling the hot-wire/etc which signals the car that theres more air meaning it needs more fuel ** that the water hitting it would cool it so fast that it makes it think that the air meter is pegged, dumping in fuel and that moreso or with the water going into the car is causing the flooding/hydrolock or something). I wish we could watch it through a clear intake/cylinder head/block lol. Kinda like those EFI videos on detonation with the clear blocks.

02*C5

iTrader: (1)

They look like the ones circled. Just take a couple apart and make3 sure nothing is in them. Specially closer to the bottom of the car.


The orange and green seals make it difficult for anything to get in but if it does they also make it difficult for anything to get out.

tdevil55

iTrader: (23)

Lower pulley, the one lowest to the ground. At first, I thought it was the belts, so I replaced then, but it continued, and then I took the main belt off and cranked the car, it continued, so I knew it was a pulley, just replaced that one first, and it was fixed. The pulley was submurged, so rust or bearings were bad after. It may have been goign bad, and that was just the final straw. Belts will squill some after getting wet, but it should go away, but some dressing may help or even time to replace them.

offroadfury6

iTrader: (8)

02*C5 and tdevil55, thanks to both you guys, gonna give it 24hrs before I even touch it...thanks again guys, this is what LS1 tech is suppost to be about...

02*C5

iTrader: (1)

good luck spend many of years in fayetnam