Sandy / Water Help

I'm sorry if this is covered elsewhere, I don't really have time to look atm, so thanks for not crucifying me. Just hoping to get some quick guidance.

Sandy got the better of me, while I thought my truck was in a safe spot, the water level had different ideas. The water level never got higher than mid-rear wheels, and slightly lower on the fronts. Was not running or moving in the water at all, just sitting as the tide came up and went back down. Obviously not great for the brakes, but not really sure how bad it would be for the diff and axle components.

What kind of issues should I expect? Aside from hosing the underside down to try to get as much of the salt off, should I expect water to have made it into the rear? So I should not drive it, or is it likely no big deal since the seals and all should have held everything out. fwiw, its a stock 2012 dcsb.

Again thanks for any help

 

I pretty sure you should be fine. Power wash the undercarriage and you should be fine. But there are more knowledgeable peeps on here. Maybe at the most take the rear drums apart and rinse with fresh water.

Glad you made it through relatively unscathed.

 

Rear drums can catch the salt, I'd take off the covers and do a good cleaning. The rear diff breather sits higher than the center of the wheels, but I'd do a diff oil change just to be safe. I think other than that you'll be OK.

 

The diff breather should prevent water from getting in if the diff is cold.

People run into problems when their diff is hot and they drive into deep water the hot diff sucks in cold water.

You should be fine driving but if you want you can just replace the diff oil when the storm clears. A little water won't destroy anything in a day or 2.

 

this! and you should be fine! hope everything els is ok around you OP!

 

This and this.

I'd just take off the drums and hose off everything inside, and then hose off everything else underneath.

 

Like others have said...wash very well and clean rear brakes. You could change the diff fluid, but I don't think it's necessary, unless its coming up for service anyways.

If you're not a brake man, or don't feel safe cleaning your rear drums, most goodyears, firestones, or whatever mechanics will do it fairly cheap...shouldn't take more than 10 minutes either.

 

Have you ever taken one of those 'diff breather' plugs off? It's nothing but a cheap piece of monkey metal on some plastic.

If the rear diff is submerged especially for a long period of time - the water WILL get inside regardless.

 

If it were me..... I'd change the diff fluid in both front & rear diffs. You may even want to check or change transfer case & transmission also. Doesn't hurt to be 'safe than sorry'.....

After doing that - Keep an eye out for leaks over-time and bearing damage. Regular water/muddy water can be bad on seals/bearings. Salt water is worse.... Any seals or bearings on the truck that were exposed to the salt water could start leaking or going bad.

What type of insurance coverage to you have? I would investigate the possibilities of getting your truck into a garage and have them check things out under your insurance coverage (if possible). They might have a better idea of what should be checked. PLUS - if things go bad in the future, you might be able to claim it as flood damage (since you have documentation).

 

hey folks just wanted to check back in and update. Thanks for the quick replies, I was able to get them that night. then lost power. Still without power, but got a couple mins of battery and wifi atm. still going to be a while with out power unfortunately.

Truck drives fine, insurance adjuster wanted to total it out right !! (as a refresher the water came up to mid rear wheel. no higher) I was rather shocked, especially since its been driving fine otherwise. With more discussion he decided, just replacing brakes, fluids, bearings, etc. was more appropriate. So off to get all that done as well as a more detailed review of anything else that could be adversely affected.

Anyway thanks again for the quick responses, definitely made running around in the aftermath a little easier on the mind.

 

Your Insurance adjuster must be retarded. Really!

 

You need to find out exactly where the water got to. If it got into any of the gear boxes, differentials, wheel bearings, consider them gone. Other than that, I don't think there is much to worry about.

A friend drove his F150 into a creek crossing (salt water). He got stuck and wound up with water up to the window sills. It took several months to really see what the extent of the damage was. I think the final list was rear axle rebuild, front wheel bearings, clutch throw out bearing, and a complete disassembly of the interior and cleaning. This is on a truck with no electronic controls, so it could have been worse. That was 15 years ago, I still see the truck driving around, still owned by the same family. I figure if they've kept it this long, there can't bee too much wrong with it.

Up to the center of the wheels, might cost you a front and rear differential and maybe a few suspension parts eventually. The important thing is to get the insurance company involved and have it inspected.