Drove through deep water and now car is making weird noise
#1
Drove through deep water and now car is making weird noise
On Thursday night I went to dinner and when I left it was raining really bad. As I was sitting in traffic the water started to rise. It got to the point that cars were getting stuck all around me. Fortunately there was a hotel close by with a relatively dry parking lot. Not wanting to do any damage to my car I got a room for the night and waited out the storm which lasted until about 4 am. Oh yeah, I was on a first date too. The next morning there was about an inch of water on my rear floor boards. The car is driving fine but is making a couple strange noises. The first is a whining noise which seems to be coming from the front passenger side brake which stops after a couple minutes of driving. The second is a squeaking noise which seems to be coming from one of the pulleys but I can't figure out which one. Is it safe to just spray some wd-40 in them to hopefully stop the squeaking? Is there anything in particular I should do to make sure there hasn't been too much damage done? BTW, I let the car air dry all weekend and the interior is fine.
#2
On Thursday night I went to dinner and when I left it was raining really bad. As I was sitting in traffic the water started to rise. It got to the point that cars were getting stuck all around me. Fortunately there was a hotel close by with a relatively dry parking lot. Not wanting to do any damage to my car I got a room for the night and waited out the storm which lasted until about 4 am. Oh yeah, I was on a first date too. The next morning there was about an inch of water on my rear floor boards. The car is driving fine but is making a couple strange noises. The first is a whining noise which seems to be coming from the front passenger side brake which stops after a couple minutes of driving. The second is a squeaking noise which seems to be coming from one of the pulleys but I can't figure out which one. Is it safe to just spray some wd-40 in them to hopefully stop the squeaking? Is there anything in particular I should do to make sure there hasn't been too much damage done? BTW, I let the car air dry all weekend and the interior is fine.
first things first. You need to pull off that Roush rear spoiler and send it to me. Yes, that's right, go ahead and get it pulled off and shipped. Then your car will be like new. Haha.
Anytime your car is in enough water to get into the interior you need to call your insurance and at least talk to them about it. Just because it's kinda OK now doesn't mean the water hasn't hurt something. Get it checked. Most of the noises you're describing sound like wet brakes and maybe a wet pulley. But water up high enough to get your engine pulley wet may have gotten water somewhere that could be damaging to your engine.
#3
6th Gear Member
Your car is jealous because you might have gotten laid.
I agree on what ken04 said. Brakes and perhaps a belt that needs to thouroghly dry out. Do NOT spray WD40 on the pulley as it'll get on the belt and will really mess it up. Try a belt dressing if the sound persists. And by all means, get the interior dried out pronto!
I agree on what ken04 said. Brakes and perhaps a belt that needs to thouroghly dry out. Do NOT spray WD40 on the pulley as it'll get on the belt and will really mess it up. Try a belt dressing if the sound persists. And by all means, get the interior dried out pronto!
#5
flooded cars
we've all seen them, and most of them end up with a salvaged title because of the damage water causes after a flood. Mildew, rust, ruined engines, etc, etc, etc.
Get your car checked out now, if you don't and 6 months down the road you have a problem it will be very tough to prove it was caused by high water.
Get your car checked out now, if you don't and 6 months down the road you have a problem it will be very tough to prove it was caused by high water.
#6
Negative on the WD-40.
Throw that crapola in da trash ASAP.
Its good for nothing.
Get some belt dressing.
Disassemble the brakes (4) and
relubricate the guide pins.
Drain the tranny if its a manual
and drain and replace the rear end lube.
Read the owners manual about driving thru high water
(deeper than the lower edge of the rims).
The water in the floorboard is going to be trouble
unless you get all (100%) of the water out of
the interior.
Mold is your enemy here.
Disconnect the negative battery cable to stop any
galvanic corrosion.
Throw that crapola in da trash ASAP.
Its good for nothing.
Get some belt dressing.
Disassemble the brakes (4) and
relubricate the guide pins.
Drain the tranny if its a manual
and drain and replace the rear end lube.
Read the owners manual about driving thru high water
(deeper than the lower edge of the rims).
The water in the floorboard is going to be trouble
unless you get all (100%) of the water out of
the interior.
Mold is your enemy here.
Disconnect the negative battery cable to stop any
galvanic corrosion.
#7
The thing I'd be most concerned about is mold under the carpeting. The carpet used on these cars has a molded plastic type backing with felt padding under that. This means that if water gets under it, and soaks the padding, the carpet base seals it in for a looooong time.
You're going to need to disassemble the interior, removing the seats, and get the carpet out of there until you can get it bone dry, otherwise you're going to be looking at a moldy/smelly disaster.
btw: I applaud your taste in rear spoilers
#8
Come on guys, WD40 isnt all that bad. I use it to lubricate my garage door rollers. It's also good for getting squeaks out of door hinges.
On cleaning out the interior if you use a steam cleaner with a handle attachment you can suck most if not all the water out from the carpet and pad. Steam cleaner is much stronger than a vacuum. Afterwards use a deodorizer to get rid of any musty smell. Leave the windows open on a sunny day or turn up the heater and warm the interior up to evaporate out any remaining moisture. If you are really paranoid you can do as was suggested and tear everything apart. Only you know which way to go on that.
On cleaning out the interior if you use a steam cleaner with a handle attachment you can suck most if not all the water out from the carpet and pad. Steam cleaner is much stronger than a vacuum. Afterwards use a deodorizer to get rid of any musty smell. Leave the windows open on a sunny day or turn up the heater and warm the interior up to evaporate out any remaining moisture. If you are really paranoid you can do as was suggested and tear everything apart. Only you know which way to go on that.
#9
Get it checked out by a good mechanic or the dealer as soon as you can. Definitely check the brakes and the rear end. The noise could also just be the belt. Do not use belt dressing or WD-40 anywhere near the accessory drive belt! Replace the belt if necessary. Water might have gotten into the alternator, the belt adjuster bearing, the AC unit, the power steering unit or God knows what. The interior might be the least of your problems. CALL YOUR INSURANCE! That's what you have it for. Let them know. Because if something happens down the road, you will pay it. High water and cars just don't mix. Hopefully its not to bad. Good looking car too. Good luck!
#10
Come on guys, WD40 isnt all that bad. I use it to lubricate my garage door rollers. It's also good for getting squeaks out of door hinges.
On cleaning out the interior if you use a steam cleaner with a handle attachment you can suck most if not all the water out from the carpet and pad. Steam cleaner is much stronger than a vacuum. Afterwards use a deodorizer to get rid of any musty smell. Leave the windows open on a sunny day or turn up the heater and warm the interior up to evaporate out any remaining moisture. If you are really paranoid you can do as was suggested and tear everything apart. Only you know which way to go on that.
On cleaning out the interior if you use a steam cleaner with a handle attachment you can suck most if not all the water out from the carpet and pad. Steam cleaner is much stronger than a vacuum. Afterwards use a deodorizer to get rid of any musty smell. Leave the windows open on a sunny day or turn up the heater and warm the interior up to evaporate out any remaining moisture. If you are really paranoid you can do as was suggested and tear everything apart. Only you know which way to go on that.