[scott12]

Finally got time to test 4wd on the GV (our first outing) and did a couple of water crossings which I doubt were any deeper than the middle of the headlights, and hindsight now begs the question -

Are there any critical electrical items that will have problems ?

How deep is too deep, re - electrical bits ?


Also, (I don't have a snorkel yet) If I went deep enough to get the lower lip, of the top of the mudguard under water (if that makes sense), how long would I have until I drown the engine (e.g. 10 sec, 30 sec) ?

If I did have a snorkel, what sort of depth have people gone to without dramas (without other mods).


Just trying to get an idea of the limitations of the GV before I drown it.

Thanks
Scott

[steak_knife]

What Gv do you have ???

[scott12]

03 auto SQ625

[joel]

watch this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_yTBD4XqEQ

[steak_knife]

scott12 wrote:

03 auto SQ625

Go slow, turn your a/c OFF & get a snorkel, the intake is a lil silly std...

Ecu's at the passenger's feet, so your cabin would want to be sealed to..

[MacDaddy]

Personally, mid headlight is way to deep for me... i wouldnt want to go thru water, any higher than mid bumper, or top of the rim... and with the alternator mounted fairly low, and alot of electronics that can go wrong with water ingress, it cant be good for it...
I did acidentally go thru a large puddle once, that i thought was only 30cm deep at the most, but i suddenly had water over the bonnet and up the windscreen, and water got into the heater and a/c system, i had to leave the heater running for quite a while to get the water dried out...

[Bruce]

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

[MacDaddy]

Bruce wrote:

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

I would be crapping my pants anyway... glad you had the big hairy balls to do that, i couldnt... unless it was an emergency... FYI, snorkels only help reduce water ingress to the engine, they arnt 100% water proof...

[joel]

MacDaddy wrote:

Bruce wrote:

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

I would be crapping my pants anyway... glad you had the big hairy balls to do that, i couldnt... unless it was an emergency... FYI, snorkels only help reduce water ingress to the engine, they arnt 100% water proof...

you need to grow a pair macdaddy!

[sirbob]

joel wrote:

watch this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_yTBD4XqEQ

SUZUKI FOREVER!!!

Lol.

Nothing like valve bouncing on the exit...

In regards to OP,

The intake to the SQ GV's is in the RH guard, and does have a fair "Bubble" in it, ie, you can probably go up to U/S of headlights before you have any issues with air intake. In regards to electronics, the ECU is in the cabin (Much better place for it than under the bonnet per the current GV) and will be mostly protected, alternator and coils are all you need to worry about, but the coils at least are on top of the motor and should stay dry in anything less than bonnet deep.

I've taken our GV through a very deep puddle at Moreton Island by mistake, and had no issues. We had a bow wave water half way up the windscreen and coming back through the AC ducts into the car...No issues with electrics though, and only a small amount of water in the bottom of the airbox.

In summary, unless you are doing regular, deep water crossings, a snorkel is probably not required.

[shakes]

joel wrote:

MacDaddy wrote:

Bruce wrote:

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

I would be crapping my pants anyway... glad you had the big hairy balls to do that, i couldnt... unless it was an emergency... FYI, snorkels only help reduce water ingress to the engine, they arnt 100% water proof...

you need to grow a pair macdaddy!

A tarp across the front does wonders in deeper crossings that your unsure of. Might be called a blind? or similar.

[whincup]

shakes wrote:

A tarp across the front does wonders in deeper crossings that your unsure of. Might be called a blind? or similar.

supercheap sells "water bra's" or something... just a fancy tarp with straps on it... having said that, just get a small tarp, occy strap each corner to cover the front of the car. looks dodgy but its cheap and does the same thing

[shep]

whincup wrote:

shakes wrote:

A tarp across the front does wonders in deeper crossings that your unsure of. Might be called a blind? or similar.

supercheap sells "water bra's" or something... just a fancy tarp with straps on it... having said that, just get a small tarp, occy strap each corner to cover the front of the car. looks dodgy but its cheap and does the same thing

6x4 tarp and tie it to the wing mirrors

[MacDaddy]

joel wrote:

MacDaddy wrote:

Bruce wrote:

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

I would be crapping my pants anyway... glad you had the big hairy balls to do that, i couldnt... unless it was an emergency... FYI, snorkels only help reduce water ingress to the engine, they arnt 100% water proof...

you need to grow a pair macdaddy!

Oh haha, when you have a GV, and the big bucks to repair it, then get back to me about growing a pair... i push my GV pretty hard offroad already, but mud and water aint my thing...

[fordem]

sirbob wrote:

The intake to the SQ GV's is in the RH guard, and does have a fair "Bubble" in it, ie, you can probably go up to U/S of headlights before you have any issues with air intake. In regards to electronics, the ECU is in the cabin (Much better place for it than under the bonnet per the current GV) and will be mostly protected, alternator and coils are all you need to worry about, but the coils at least are on top of the motor and should stay dry in anything less than bonnet deep.

I've taken our GV through a very deep puddle at Moreton Island by mistake, and had no issues. We had a bow wave water half way up the windscreen and coming back through the AC ducts into the car...No issues with electrics though, and only a small amount of water in the bottom of the airbox.

Have you ever looked to see exactly where in the cabin the ECU is? That might be a good idea.

You should find it under the glove box - and whilst you're in that corner - it might also be a good idea to empty the glove box, and flip it out - so that you can see what's behind it, and above the ECU - a couple of things - like a blower motor, cabin filter, the a/c evaporator and so on.

If you get enough water over the bonnet to get it through the a/c vents, there's a pretty good chance the ECU is getting wet - you may not get water inside (mine is in a plastic box), but do you really want to take that chance?

[scott12]

We tested the depth prior to crossing, and was happy that I'd still have air getting into the mudguard (and hence motor) - the mid headlight depth was the bow wave (gives the impression of it being much deeper when you going through - realistically the static depth would've been top of bumper at deepest).

Not planning on doing water crossings regularly, but thanks for your input folks, good to know in particular where the ECU is, and the tarp trick for deeper crossings (providing the engine can get a breath of air - so won't be going deep unless I have snorkel, and even then will be cautious).

Thanks
Scott

[scorpydude]

As the manual states, safe water level is half way up your wheels.

[joel]

MacDaddy wrote:

joel wrote:

MacDaddy wrote:

Bruce wrote:

If I did not have a snorkle I would have been crapping my parts on this crossing going up to the cape.

I would be crapping my pants anyway... glad you had the big hairy balls to do that, i couldnt... unless it was an emergency... FYI, snorkels only help reduce water ingress to the engine, they arnt 100% water proof...

you need to grow a pair macdaddy!

Oh haha, when you have a GV, and the big bucks to repair it, then get back to me about growing a pair... i push my GV pretty hard offroad already, but mud and water aint my thing...

had a $40g gu that i thrashed, big $$ is made to be punished MD

[gregdixon]

I drowned my GV whith water upto the top of the wheel arch. The nose dropped into the water so I guess it got a gutfull of water then. I wouldn't try anything deeper than the center of the wheel until I put a snorkel on.

[scott12]

This is the approximate depth I went through (pic attached), hasn't missed a beat yet (touch wood).....

[Gwagensteve]

Surprisingly deep water can be crossed safely so long as you keep moving and that's the problem. Stop, and the depth outside will quickly become the depth inside, and any "bubbles" caused by the motion will cease.

Even worse when you stop and then reverse.

Personally, I'd say the depth you drove was about as deep as I'd take a car that you cared about. (i.e expected to take me to work) snorkel or not.

Snorkels aren't a force field. Normally, by the time you have water in your intake, you've already stopped/become bogged and water is making its way in everywhere else too. There's heaps of places the water can make its way into important mechanical bits other than the intake.

I guess you really want to consider how you would react to the same water depth inside the car as outside, regardless of whether the engine is still running or not.

Steve.

[sideways]

A little bit OT but it might be interesting to some.

Mums ex had a beater turbo diesel Pajero with no snorkel. There's quite a few river crossings around here and I remember several times having water about 1/3rd the way up the windscreen. It'd always just drive right through it. He told me it stalled mid crossing once so they towed it out and the air box was full of water but none had gotten past the air filter. They drained it out, blew out the air filter and then fired it up.

[Gwagensteve]

I've done something similar with a Diesel Hilux - filled the inlet ping with water but got away with it.

I still think a useful guide for water depth vs waterproofing is how willing you are to fill the car with water. You can do all the engine waterproofing you like but if you don't want to fill the car up with water then stay away from it because it will get in sooner or later.

Steve.

[Built4thrashing]

Ive gone this deep several times without dramas and even slightly deeper. Has a bow wave rush up windscreen and over the roof out the back of neerim south. Ollies will tell you all how deep and cold the water was