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Old 08-13-2004, 09:12 AM   #1
acsWRX
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Unhappy Heavy Rain = Flooded Car: HELP!

Oh my god!
It rained really hard last night and my car flooded with about 3/4" standing in the floor on the passenger's side (front & back). I drove it out of the water, and the engine internals seem to be fine, so that's good news, but I'm sure the subwoofer (under passenger's seat) is shot, and there's still a bit of water in the car!
Please, what should I do? How do I know for sure the engine internals are ok? Have I lost power? Have I royally screwed my car forever?
What's the best way to get the interior dry again? Does anyone have a subwoofer for less than $235 (Subaru's price)?

Any help/info is greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Andy
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Old 08-13-2004, 09:41 AM   #2
Hank3
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Yikes...I don't know how you could test the engine internals, but get a wet vac and suck out the remaining water. Keep your windows open and hope for some sun to dry off the interior (this depending on Hurricane Charley), if not, hook up some fans and have them blowing on the inside. You may also want to strip the carpet out and drying it off that way? Get a couple boxes of Damp Rid and stick them in your car - key thing is that you don't want any mold to form from the dampness in there. Hope everything will be ok with your Subie
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Old 08-13-2004, 09:50 AM   #3
T-WREXX
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Andy that is really unfortunate, and I would even suggest pulling up the carpeting to get the underside dry. I know that will be a major PITA, but otherwise mold might form like Hank said. As far as your engine is concerned, well, if nothing has seemed wrong so far, it should be ok, hopefully you were not accelerating while going through the deep water. Otherwise any water that got into the intake tract, etc., should be dried up by now.

I also ran through a very unexpected large pool of water a couple weeks ago (it was one of those flash floods here in TX), and I seriously hit this water fast. I instantly took my foot of the gas pedal and just steered through it. I hit the water hard enough that the two front fender liners popped out of place, and my fog light cover got knocked out of place. I also notice where water entered into the intake, but never made it to the engine.

Anyway, best of luck to you!
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Old 08-13-2004, 09:59 AM   #4
DreddRS25
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Soak all you can with towels and such. Then sprinkle some baking powder on the damp area to help prevent smells and molds. It'll be white for a short while, but once it is all dried out you'll be able to vacuum it all out.

Park in direct sunlight with doors/windows open and even run the floor heater setting to aid in evaporation.

I will be changing out my stock sub for a amp+sub. If you want me to keep you in mind I'll pass on my stock sub super cheap.

I wouldn't worry so much for the engine as opposed to all the internal electronics/wiring. Check all of your fuses, especially the constant power fuse.

If you don't mind me asking. Did the water just work its way in or were the windows possibly cracked or did it rise to the base of the door and seep in? Best of luck.
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Old 08-13-2004, 10:43 AM   #5
Subie Gal
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was your ecu under water?

if your car was not running at the time, engine should be fine.

definately pull up and dry out your carpet

check door panels for hidden water (not sure how deep it got)

subwoofer is likely shot

damn that sucks. good luck to ya.
Jamie
www.subiegal.com
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Old 08-13-2004, 12:04 PM   #6
MrHorspwer
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Insurance typically covers these things
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Old 08-13-2004, 12:14 PM   #7
Aaron'z 2.5RS
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If i was you, i would unbolt the front seats and the door sill and pull up the carpet and put a fan under for a day or so..... carpet padding soaks up water like crazy and it takes forever to dry.... make sure to dry out completely or it'll smell....

I would take the shopvac to the carpet padding and keep the damp-rid in the car for a while.... along with the initial fan drying
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Old 08-13-2004, 12:19 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrHorspwer
Insurance typically covers these things
Insurance typically totals these things.

Flood damage bad mmmkay
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Old 08-13-2004, 12:38 PM   #9
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If he was able to start it then they probably would not total it....it doesn't sound like that much water.

But do yourself a favor and get the carpet out of the car to dry. Other wise it never will and it will mold and you will have to buy new carpet.
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Old 08-13-2004, 02:19 PM   #10
acsWRX
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Thanks for all the help guys & gals!
I took car to dealer today and had the guy dry/clean/detail the interior. Engine and computer should be fine - the car's been running fine since I realized it was flooded. It wasn't too much water, just about 3/4" on the passenger's side.
Sub seems to be either shot or very angry with me. We'll see what happens in a few days, but I'll keep you in mind, Dredd. Thanks!

I haven't pulled up the carpet, but will put car in garage and put fans on it overnight and see where I'm at.
I don't expect to see the sun here for several days, so that's not an option.

Thanks for all the help - for everyone in Charley/Bonnie's path - stay high and dry!
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Old 08-13-2004, 02:24 PM   #11
acsWRX
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Can somebody walk me through pulling up the carpet if I decide to do that?
It might not be until after the weekend - We've all decided to hunker down and drink the Hurricane away this weekend!
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Old 08-13-2004, 02:31 PM   #12
Rebellion
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start w/ the sidesills... once you get that up you'll see how the clips and how to get the rest of the carpet out. (of course you'll need to take the seats out too)

be very wary of your car's performance... my BIL's car got ruined after Hugo came through. Took him months to get it settled. (weird electrical problems, mildew etc)
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Old 08-13-2004, 02:40 PM   #13
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If you are gonna pull up the carpet you might not wanna wait that long...it could start to mold pretty quickly.

Seats out

console out
pull up the sills on the side

pull up the carpet.

FUN for all.
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Old 08-13-2004, 02:57 PM   #14
MrHorspwer
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Quote:
Insurance typically totals these things.
And you'd actually want a flood victem that was determined by an insurance company to be totaled?

Considering it still runs and operates fine, I doubt it'll be totaled for having wet carpet and a toasted subwoofer and/or ECU.

Was the motor hydrolocked? Is there any water in the oil? Does the car make any death rattles when running? If not, it's probibly fine. If you want to be on the safe side, change all the fluids.

It sounds like all that's wrong is some interior damage. If you can't get the funk smell out, contact your insurnace and get a new carpet set and subwoofer out of the deal. That's certainly a lot more cash to put out on my own compared to what my deducatble costs. The claim also may cover your ass if you get some crazy electrical problems down the line from corossion due to water intrusion.
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Old 08-13-2004, 03:07 PM   #15
roffle
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I know it's too late, but I would have suggested to never start the car in the first place.
IMO you should've pushed it out of the water, that way you'd never have had to run power through the cars electricals, and just let it dry and everything would be fine.

Subwoofer breaks by shorting out, can't short out if there's no power.

Anyways, best of luck with the situation, I'm sure it'll be fine, the same thing happened to my Mom's old Tempo, we just pulled the carpet back and let it bake in the sun.
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Old 08-13-2004, 04:11 PM   #16
2003Baja
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to be on the safe side with the engine use a product called Sea Foam. It is used to motorboats to get rid of any oil in the engine. Works wonders when I have to swim to shore with my atv instead of driving it back.
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Old 08-14-2004, 03:24 AM   #17
thetikler1
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actuially i flooded my car doing wannabe rally.... All i did (and i had about four inches of water, all i did was use a wet/dry vac and vacuum the interior for hours. then i put a humidifier in there, and let it air dry. I don't have any mold or signs of rust at all, so my simple technic seemed to have worked.

good luck if you want you can PM me.
-christian
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