Stupidity almost got the best of me

So as some of you may know, its been raining non stop for what seems like 2 weeks (not really but a lot of rain none the less). there is this road that usually gets flooded with a couple inches at most. so last night i decided to go see how bad it was flooded...

Couple inches turned to two feet really quick. Now here is where stupidity almost got the best of me... i kept going... not really sure how deep the water was, but i was in 1st gear barely able to move, could feel the tires slipping and the wake was pushing above my hood...

i think that might have been the dumbest thing ive done in my tacoma. as of right now the brakes still feel like shit and my air bag light likes to come on now.... hopefully both go away soon

 

How did that not kill your engine? The intake would have been below the waterline for sure...

 

he got lucky...somewhat, maybe some fuses got wet

 

my only guess is that there was an air pocket in the fender

 

haha yea ive done that before but it was in my Xterra. i think the grill pushed the water aside and created a little pocket of air to breath off of for a min. but yea it does get kinda hard to drive after so deep!

 

I'm thinking there's gonna be some electrical issues with water that high.

OP, did you bump your head?

 

water is nothing to mess with. if you cant see the bottom of it do not drive through it

 

Ya, i know, not my brightest moment, ive driven through that area many times, guess this time was the worst.

 

i would take that truck to a repair shop or the dealer and have them go over it right away. you are really lucky you did not hydrolock your engine. you may have water in your diffs, in your tranny and in your transfer case as well.

you are quite right, that was a pretty dumb thing to do. unless you prep your truck for it (extended breather lines, snorkel, dielectric grease on your electrical fittings, etc.) water is not your friend and is best avoided.

 

Here in Phoenix, "when it rains" we tend to get flash flooding in some spots. People always try to drive through these areas and we get to watch them on the news being rescued by a helicopter. We now have this thing called the Stupid Motorist Law.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stupid_Motorist_Law

Always a good laugh though.

 

I know what you mean! (I Live in Chandler).. My ex girlfriend back in the day got stuck trying to drive through an area that said 'do not cross when flooded'.. she tired to anyways.

When we asked her why she tried, she said 'I figured the tires would float and I could just skim across the top of the water'.

This is why I left her shortly after that.

 

Be extremely careful when crossing water-covered roads. Back a couple years ago, two people attempted to cross a flood zone (road was completely covered with water about a feet deep, right next to a river) in their vehicle and ended up having to call rescue squads to save them. Unfortuntately, one of the rescue squad members was my best friend's dad and he ended up drowning to save the lives of the other two. Therefore, I tend to be extremely cautious when driving in wet conditions, especially when there is standing water on the road...

 

I think what happens is that at the proper vehicle speed a wave is generated in front of the vehicle that reduces the overall water height immediately behind said wave (engine bay). If it was as deep as you indicated you do need to look into this further. There are breathers on multiple components such as the differentials, particularly the rear is usually of concern. While the oem breather is supposed to have a check valve water still gets in sometimes. I have read around here that 18" water depth will cause these kinds of issues, though generally you should try to keep it below hub center deep.

Last week I was hunting in an area that was flooded. Drove through two areas that were about hub center deep or a little less. Approached another body of water that was about 40 yards long...wanted to do it but my common sense prevailed lol! It was real close though.

 

i think needless to say i need to do some check ups on my truck here and replace some fluids, im still hoping the braking power comes back soon and ill check up on the fuses

 

Dumb ass attack....check.

Do we all have them....check.

I would have my ride checked out or at the very least attempt to find if there is any info available for routine check outs on a Tacoma used as a boat and check it myself.

Glad you got to drive away...

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how-to/maintenance/1272386

 

WOW!!

i'd get the truck checked out ASAP. you could still fry something. i know a guy that got water in the rear diff..it didnt blow up right away..but i did blow.

 

Wait what? Braking power come back soon...? That doesn't sound good. Any loss of braking force due to the water (brakes getting wet) should go away pretty quickly I would think...

 

Ya brakes are coming back, i think the water hitting the rotors might have glazed them some, and the air bag light did not come back on when i went out for lunch, Ill probably buy all new fluids this weekend. truck could probably use it anyways.

ill keep you guys updated. btw no water go in the cab

 

I'm new to toyota trucks but have handled a lot of deep water crossings in Jeeps. Is there anyway to water proof the drive trains similar to how Jeeps are set-up from the factory?