What to Do With a Flooded Car
The day before Superstorm Sandy hit my neck in the woods a decade ago, my wife asked if we should move our car off the street. I said confidently and incorrectly that our street doesn’t usually get flooded, so we don’t have to worry about it. After just 24 hours and four feet of water in my living room, our car was floating serenely in the tub formerly known as my city.
As climate change causes stronger hurricanes, there will be more and more flooded cars – and there are already hundreds of thousands . If your car gets flooded while parked somewhere during a flash flood, or if you make the dubious decision to drive into deep water and flood your car yourself, the water can cause incredible damage to your car. Cars are not designed to treat water from the bottom up, and the need for air to circulate through the engine means that water can get inside the car in a variety of ways.
So what can you do if your car gets into deep water? It all depends on how deep the water was, but there is no gain in this scenario, only the degree of loss. Here’s what to do with a flooded car.
Safety First
First of all, don’t try to start your car after it’s been flooded until you’re pretty sure it’s safe to do so. If water has gotten into your engine, starting your car is a surefire way to make it a lot worse. This is serious: Corroded electrical wiring can lead to a fire or other dangerous situation.
Instead, take a few precautions:
- Pay attention to the water line. The appearance of your car should show an obvious high level. If this line is not too far up, you can start the car.
- Disconnect the battery. If the water supply line indicates potential water intrusion into the engine, disconnect the battery before doing anything else. Electricity, water and the human body have never been a good combination.
- Look inside the car. If the upholstery is soaked with water, you will have at least a difficult cleaning process. If the water line reaches the bottom of the dashboard, most insurance companies will assume that the car is automatically insured.
- Check fluids and filters. Water droplets in oil, milky transmission fluid, and a wet water filter are good signs that your engine has water in it. Under no circumstances should you attempt to start a waterlogged engine unless you are interested in what it would be like to completely destroy a vehicle.
Even if your engine is not damaged, you are not safe. Water, especially salt water, quickly corrodes and destroys most of your vehicle’s components and wiring. This means that you may be able to steal your car, but you need to dry and clean it immediately if you are going to save it, although you should take photos and see if you can call an insurance agent to see it. before doing anything. If you think there is water in the engine, have the vehicle towed and have the mechanic flush the water out of the cylinders, fuel tank, and other parts of the vehicle.
Contact your insurance
Do you have full car insurance? Congratulations, that most likely covers flood damage. As already noted, if the water line touches the dashboard, your insurance company will probably automatically give your car a total amount. In fact, some insurers will count any flooded car because cleaning up that stinking dirt and repairing rusted parts is often more expensive than just buying a new car. If you’re unsure if your insurance coverage includes water damage, file a claim anyway—and do it quickly, because you’re probably not the only car owner in the area dealing with a car that has suddenly turned into a raft.
If you can’t fix your car easily, you have three options:
- Restore it. If you know a lot about cars and have the tools, time and space, you can try taking your car apart, cleaning or replacing every part of it (you’ll be amazed where the water and dirt got inside), and put it back together. Your desire to do so is your business.
- Sell it. Yes, you can sell a flooded car. Junkyards will gladly pay you an insultingly small amount of money for your car, which is now just a bunch of parts bolted together to form a car. People also occasionally hunt for a submerged car that they can repair and restore on their own, but those sales can be difficult – and it can take you a long time to find a buyer.
- Donate it. Yes, you can donate a flooded car . Charities will often come to collect your car and you can claim donations for your taxes and at least get some financial benefit from it.
Losing a car due to flooding is expensive and hassle-free. That’s why it’s stupid to ever drive into deep water during a flood, and why you should always move your car on high ground when there’s a chance of flooding in your area, as my wife will repeatedly tell you with the slightest hint, giving me a side eye.