Car stalled on flooded road, battery is good, engine won’t turn.

[Deto]

As you can tell here is my beautiful civic which i never got to showcase here on the civic x forums. I was coming home from work and didn’t expect the water to be so high, when i drove through i heard a bunch of water going through my car. I heard a bunch of dings and i looked at the dash and tons of lights were on. The next thing i knew i looked up and my car wasn’t moving anymore. I turned it off and then back on again to turn on hazards as the road was very busy. I ended up trying to start my engine not realizing my foot was on the break...So i think i flooded my engine with water but i’m not really sure. Has anybody else gone through something like this? My car has a few mods so it’s not stock at all. But i wanna know what the likely hood is if my car will survive or not. Any info anyone may have helps. Thanks in advance.

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[jred721]

It's obviously impossible to say for sure without actually looking at the engine, but there's a decent chance your engine is hydrolocked. Put simply, if enough water managed to splash inside and flood the engine, the cylinders and such could be filled with water which is prevents the pistons from reaching the top of their stroke.

Most of the time cars get hydrolocked, the engine is toast and needs to be replaced. In that case since your car is not that old, its a toss up on whether insurance covers an engine replacement or just puts you in a new car. However, if you were at low RPM when it happened it could stil lbe potentially saved. I'd basically get it towed to the dealer ASAP (really do it soon) and have them look at it to confirm. You could potentially avoid any corrosion if the engine is indeed hydrolocked and it is looked at soon enough. Best case, it's an electrical short somewhere because of the water that is preventing it from starting as well. Hopefully it all works out, let us know what you find, hope im wrong and it is something simple.

 

[Deto]

It's obviously impossible to say for sure without actually looking at the engine, but there's a decent chance your engine is hydrolocked. Put simply, if enough water managed to splash inside and flood the engine, the cylinders and such could be filled with water which is prevents the pistons from reaching the top of their stroke.

Most of the time cars get hydrolocked, the engine is toast and needs to be replaced. In that case since your car is not that old, its a toss up on whether insurance covers an engine replacement or just puts you in a new car. However, if you were at low RPM when it happened it could stil lbe potentially saved. I'd basically get it towed to the dealer ASAP (really do it soon) and have them look at it to confirm. You could potentially avoid any corrosion if the engine is indeed hydrolocked and it is looked at soon enough. Best case, it's an electrical short somewhere because of the water that is preventing it from starting as well. Hopefully it all works out, let us know what you find, hope im wrong and it is something simple.

Thank you for your quick reply, this happened around 3pm and i had the car at the dealership by 5. I know its not the absolute quickest time, but after spending an hour pushing it with 3 complete strangers across the long stretch of the road in shin deep water to get it in a spot for a tow. Those guys were a huge help and offered them a meal for their time and everything but they declined. I will post updates here as i get them and hope that it would just be a electrical issue. Thanks again.

 

[calonzo]

Thank you for your quick reply, this happened around 3pm and i had the car at the dealership by 5. I know its not the absolute quickest time, but after spending an hour pushing it with 3 complete strangers across the long stretch of the road in shin deep water to get it in a spot for a tow. Those guys were a huge help and offered them a meal for their time and everything but they declined. I will post updates here as i get them and hope that it would just be a electrical issue. Thanks again.

Wow, there is some good left in the world. Good luck with your car.

 

[rwsmith123]

Doesn’t seem that likely to me that water would have gotten into the engine. I would bet on some electrical issue.

I got caught up in a torrential downpoor around the same time, you live in the Raleigh area ?

 

[calonzo]

Did you check the air filter before getting it towed? If the air filter is dry, the engine should be dry also.

 

[jred721]

Did you check the air filter before getting it towed? If the air filter is dry, the engine should be dry also.

Good point, if the air filter is not wet then the likelihood of water in the engine is less. Only reason I brought up hydrolock is because OP said he heard water going through the car. Electrical issue is definitely a strong possibility also.

 

[shoegazer]

Following to find out the diagnosis. My gut says electrical as well. Our electrical systems get jacked up even whey they're dry. Fingers crossed that it's minor. And glad to hear that some folks stepped up to help. Good luck.

 

[Deto]

As you can tell here is my beautiful civic which i never got to showcase here on the civic x forums. I was coming home from work and didn’t expect the water to be so high, when i drove through i heard a bunch of water going through my car. I heard a bunch of dings and i looked at the dash and tons of lights were on. The next thing i knew i looked up and my car wasn’t moving anymore. I turned it off and then back on again to turn on hazards as the road was very busy. I ended up trying to start my engine not realizing my foot was on the break...So i think i flooded my engine with water but i’m not really sure. Has anybody else gone through something like this? My car has a few mods so it’s not stock at all. But i wanna know what the likely hood is if my car will survive or not. Any info anyone may have helps. Thanks in advance.

UPDATE: So it turns out my engine was completely filled with water. My guy at the dealership said he pulled out a spark plug and water began pouring out like a bathtub faucet when you turn it on. He said that he has to rebuild a new engine and that it would cost $8500 before taxes and labor. I just filed an insurance claim and sad to say the car did not make it. I will be getting a new engine but she didn't survive this time. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that responded and gave me some thoughts and ideas of what could have happened.

 

[Mikeybc]

I just filed an insurance claim and sad to say the car did not make it. I will be getting a new engine but she didn't survive this time.

?? So did they write the car off ??

 

[davidgostbo]

UPDATE: So it turns out my engine was completely filled with water. My guy at the dealership said he pulled out a spark plug and water began pouring out like a bathtub faucet when you turn it on. He said that he has to rebuild a new engine and that it would cost $8500 before taxes and labor. I just filed an insurance claim and sad to say the car did not make it. I will be getting a new engine but she didn't survive this time. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that responded and gave me some thoughts and ideas of what could have happened.

Did you have those cold air intakes installed? Water didn’t look that high from the photo

 

[jred721]

UPDATE: So it turns out my engine was completely filled with water. My guy at the dealership said he pulled out a spark plug and water began pouring out like a bathtub faucet when you turn it on. He said that he has to rebuild a new engine and that it would cost $8500 before taxes and labor. I just filed an insurance claim and sad to say the car did not make it. I will be getting a new engine but she didn't survive this time. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that responded and gave me some thoughts and ideas of what could have happened.

So is the car getting a new engine and you're keeping it? Or is it totaled and you'll be getting a new car?

 

[Zodd]

damn :O water is not that high?

 

[latole]

Sorry for you, I can't read what will happen with the car

 

[Eleon]

Did you open up your honeycomb vents on your bumper? Looks like it from the photo. This may have made it easier for water to enter the engine bay and possibly into the air filer if you had a CAI.

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