[mudinuri]

Hi,
Having had to negotiate deep flood water last winter, I was worried my 3 door PETROL 1998 Rav 4 would stop because of water ingress. My question is: Apart from spraying all electrical components with WD40 is there any other way to make sure flood water doesn"t cause the car to breakdown. I"m not talking about very deep water but I did go through floods approx 12 to 18 inches deep. I believe the air intake is quite high on the Rav so it should be far enough away from any water getting in.
Any suggestions?
Cheers

 

[Blogson]

Be careful! - in the U.S. we have just seen more vehicles being swept along by running flood waters in the U.S. Southeast and people needing to be rescued or even dying as results. With water 18 inches deep it is more likely that wheel bearings and brakes would suffer rather than the engine, but that assumes that one drives very slowly through that sort of water.

 

[cooltsi]

Agreed with Blogson, we have flash floods every year and after working with friends on flooded cars it's typically wheel bearing and Engine control modules that kill the car. Most of the interior electronics are not sealed and get killed pretty quick once water gets in the interior, which happens much faster than most realize. A lot of convenience electronics are mounted under seats etc....


Typically vents and dipsticks for differentials etc....are an issue as well.

 

[FixIt]

I also agree. You have 4 pontoons on your RAV4, and it will float away easily in high fast moving water. I do not recommend driving through deep water. Electrical connectors are designed to handle atmospheric air pressure, not raging rivers water pressure.

 

[pico]

Others of our forum have given the best advice - avoid the opportunity for flood damage. The Rav4 is not an aquatic vehicle. Nor is it a real off-road vehicle.

WD-40 is only good after flooding of the electrical system. It is not a repellent. It is very good for purging parts of your electrical system after it has been compromised. After! And there is no part of the later RAV4s that can benefit. WD-40 is not a preventative. In fact, except for its ability to purge moisture after contamination it is a worthless product.
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