You can see from the photos where the water could enter the resonator and not so much the snorkel up behind the fender.

Without mod, you should be fine up to middle lower part of your bumper.

Obviously be super careful and do this at your own risk... be safe!

 

Having come near to being swept away by flood water less deep than 15 inches in my reckless youth I suggest staying put and on high ground until the water level subsides.

 

Excellent advise:thumbs_up:

 

Whatever you do with the engine be ready to replace all your wheel bearings two weeks afterwards when you can no longer stand the whine & growling.

 

Did anyone besides me see the clip of the idiot on the news driving their white Corolla through the water in Houston? It almost went over the front of the hood. I was amazed they didn't hydro-lock their engine.

 

Don't be a statistic. Check in somewhere and wait it out.

 

This.

These are not off-road vehicles and were not designed to be submerged.
Anything over 6" is pushing it.

Keep in mind that even if you are familiar with the road, if you can't see the bottom, you don't know that the bottom is still there.
A "low spot" that always collects water may seem like no big deal if it's 6" higher than normal, but what you can't see is whether or not the bottom has washed out and it's really 3ft deep.

 

It takes very little running water to wash a vehicle down stream...Turn Around, Don't Drown!

 

pictures on the news show 4 feet plus of water down there. Truely frightening to see. Im with the others who are saying wait it out.

stay safe and good luck if you so venture home.

d

 

Yep good idea, the actual intake from the airbox is usually the highest point, so what you suggest is a good short term fix.

As others have said though, be careful. Have you waded before? You can't be sure where the bottom is. If the water is fast flowing, don't do it. A tip in case you start floating or being swept away, is to open your door, water comes in and you're no longer light enough to float, but lots of electrics in new cars and probably low down.

As said again, it's not a proper off-roader.

 

Do not do high water. The RAV4 is nothing but a Toyota Corolla with a pretend SUV body

 

https://youtu.be/UR75R9RIBCo

The intake is at the rear though and probably high up. The gear oils will probably need changing though, no breathers.

 

My friend and I considered doing this. But if water is that high, you're going to want to create a bow of water so there's a vacuum right behind the bumper. Lower pressure, less water, reduced height of water. Some of that bow water will wash over your hood. So having the airbox open and hood even partially open is a bad idea.

Anyways, if the water level is lower than the height of your tire, you'll be fine.

 

Lower pressure, less water, reduced height of water.

This seems like a bad idea.

 

there is a video somewhere on youtube of someone abandoning their rav4 out the side window after it flooded out. as she was swimming away something must have shorted out and the power hatch opened by itself causing it to lose buoyancy and the rav4 sank in seconds.

don't do it.

 

Does anyone know offhand about doing deep water with a hybrid?

The battery must be pretty well sealed, but what about the electric motors?

I'm not suggesting this, and I'd never do it, I'm more curious if anyone knows about how the handle water w/ those parts.

 

The battery actually is not sealed that well.

 

I have a bad feeling about this...

 

You can pull the resonator and tape off the opening. Based on the pictures this will give you another foot. If you are crossing a short section of water you will be fine. It's mostly fresh water right?

I crossed Bullfrog creek a month or so ago in our RAV fully loaded. Less than a foot deep, sandy bottom. Walked it first though.

You will know the condition better than someone, behind a keyboard, 1000s of miles away. You make the call.

 

Mostly good advice on high water driving

Above all else, be cautious! I would not be driving in ANY water more than 6-8" deep. Flood water is especially hazardous due to water-borne illnesses, debris (both floating and submerged), nasty critters, underwater broken glass, electrical shock hazard, strong current, etc. If I was already in a life or death situation, I would do it in an attempt to get out of that situation. Just ask yourself what you will do or recover that is possibly worth losing your life over. Seen in that light, it is best not to take substantial risks that you don't HAVE to take. IMO, it's just not worth the risk.

Best of luck if you decide to try it.

 

I drove through about 3 feet of water last summer during a flood in Louisiana. We were fleeing rising water and I did not have a choice. The Rav made it through with a little stuttering for a couple miles then the check engine light came on. We have a 2006 RAV4 sport with a V6. The charcoal canister Assembly did go bad. The part is very expensive but I found a used part on eBay from a Scion and I replaced the part and all is well.

 

It aint the depth of water, it's also the flow of the water that gets ya
6" of water moving fast enough can sweep a car away
and flow is hard to see if all the loose floating stuff has already been washed away

good luck, safe travels

 

Went on a hunting trip in my 2012 Rav4 with several other people in the mountains of Eastern Oklahoma and we all met at the base of the mountain where the lease was located. I arrived late pulling my Suzuki 4 wheeler and saw that every other vehicle was a 4x4 pickup or Jeep Wrangler. We started driving up the mountain on a very narly path then we start going through the running creeks and I was getting pretty nervous. At one creek crossing I think my RAV actually started floating! Well, it made it to the top and I was pretty proud of my little SUV but was it wise to do that....HELL NO! If you're taking a vehicle into deep water you might as well buy a cheap $1000 car or truck then you won't be out much if it sinks. I would also cut the roof off, wear a life jacket, and take a flare gun!

 

Don't do it. You are looking at all kinds of issues. You will be looking at fluid changes in everything. Electrical issues like crazy for the rest of your RAV4 life. I have a 98 explorer with 32" tires amd a snorkel and I still don't go in water over 3' deep