80 Series died during the river crossing (1 Viewer)

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Australia
Hi,

I have a pretty stock 1997 Landcruiser (petrol) without any lift kit or bigger tyers, snorkel, breathers, etc.
A couple of weeks ago while river crossing the car just lost power and shutdown.

It would crank and won't start. After a few minutes, it started luckily and got me out of the water.
So perhaps the distributor got wet and when it dried due to engine heat, it started.

I checked the airbox after getting out of the water and driving the car under 1KM.

What is confusing me till today, that how come there was NO WATER in the Air Box. It was completely dry. The water was almost bonnet high.

Can someone please explain this? Thanks
 
Snipped this off e-bay.
the intake is right up to the top of the fender, essentially the same Hight as the bonnet.
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Yea sounds like maybe the dizzy or alternator got a little wet. I didn't realize this could cause it shut down immediately though.

It can be good practice to spray some WD-40 on those sensitive areas before a deeper water crossing in a petrol.
 
Yea sounds like maybe the dizzy or alternator got a little wet. I didn't realize this could cause it shut down immediately though.

It can be good practice to spray some WD-40 on those sensitive areas before a deeper water crossing in a petrol.
Anything electrical that gets submerged in a water crossing has this potential.

What so many don't realize it that all these "cool guys" with snorkels doing deep water crossings and posting their videos are:
1) Diesels.
2) Fighting problems later dealing with all the electrical systems on their trucks that they don't post about.

Petrol trucks run on electricity. If anything interrupts that flow, they don't run. O2 sensors, crank sensors, temperature sensors. All of these send signals back to the ECU to tell it what to do. If they are covered by water, there's a high chance they'll short out or get ripped off by the water current under and through the truck.

Petrol vehicles are NOT made to go swimming.

This doesn't even address the axle vents or the transfer case and transmission vents that end up submerged and allowing water into those areas.
 
Would you mind elaborating on this? Do you mean the water could get in through leaking seals?
Leaking seals, sudden change in temperature, head pressure of the water outside overcoming the ability of the seal to hold the water out. So many problems.
 
Leaking seals, sudden change in temperature, head pressure of the water outside overcoming the ability of the seal to hold the water out. So many problems.
Hm I wouldn't have thought leaking seals would allow water in because of the pressure of the engine.

In any case it seems like good practice to limit water crossings to the top of the tire at most in a petrol Cruiser, unless it's a life or death situation.
 
Hm I wouldn't have thought leaking seals would allow water in because of the pressure of the engine.

In any case it seems like good practice to limit water crossings to the top of the tire at most in a petrol Cruiser, unless it's a life or death situation.
A seal is a static seal on a rotating shaft. Thee is a clearance there. Water is thinner than oil.

When any liquid is above something, there is a pressure associated with the column of liquid above called "head pressure". Think about how your ears feel when you dive to the bottom of the pool. This is the same pressure all the seals see.

When you have a hot axle and components from driving all day, then hit a cool stream of water over the axle, the hard parts are suddenly cooled and the air inside there will suddenly decrease in volume due to the temperature change. That temp and volume change can cause a vacuum inside the housing and actually suck in water into the differential or wheel bearings, any place there is a seal.

The engine is less likely to get water in through the rotational seals because of the crankcase pressure developed by the leaking rings from the combustion. The bigger fear on the engine is if you happen to actually ingest water into the intake. That will create a boat anchor in a big hurry, as the liquid is not compressible in the cylinders.
 
Yeah I mean it seems Toyota put the intake really high to at least make catastrophic engine damage less likely if you do end up having to cross deep water, and you can add diff/t-case breathers, but it seems like best practice to avoid those kind of crossings in any case.

This makes a snorkel on a 1fz LC seem almost pointless, as submerging your truck that deep would just be asking for trouble anyway.
 
Yeah I mean it seems Toyota put the intake really high to at least make catastrophic engine damage less likely if you do end up having to cross deep water, and you can add diff/t-case breathers, but it seems like best practice to avoid those kind of crossings in any case.

This makes a snorkel on a 1fz LC seem almost pointless, as submerging your truck that deep would just be asking for trouble anyway.
The snorkel on the petrol engines actually helps to keep the dust out of the intake and reduces the load on the air filter. The folks here that run snorkels and do a lot of desert and dusty conditions can attest to this issue.

So, it's not just to get the ladies' attention.......
 
Yeah I mean it seems Toyota put the intake really high to at least make catastrophic engine damage less likely if you do end up having to cross deep water, and you can add diff/t-case breathers, but it seems like best practice to avoid those kind of crossings in any case.

This makes a snorkel on a 1fz LC seem almost pointless, as submerging your truck that deep would just be asking for trouble anyway.
The snorkel is for dust, not water.
 
Take a look at the MAF connection. That's the one that always got me when I pressure washed in the engine bay.
 
Would you mind elaborating on this? Do you mean the water could get in through leaking seals?
Well all the electrical connectors need to be waterproofed beforehand. Otherwise water will be trapped in connectors and corrode them causing erratic electrical issues. Major pain in the butt if this happens. On my cruiser, when I service it i waterproof the connectors in the particular system. Water will also pool in the body cavities like the quarter panels and may not have a way out causing corrosion and mold. Drivetrain vents need to be raised as mentioned. You'll also get water and mud in the headlamp housings. If the carpet gets wet it can mold if not removed and dried out. You can prepare a cruiser to do deep water. But you have to prep for it, and clean up the mess afterward.
 
  • unless it's a life or death situation.
    • Which in Australia could be both equally in the river and out of the river!
  • So, it's not just to get the ladies' attention.......
    • Hasn't worked for me so I'm in the market for a bigger snorkel
 
Anything electrical that gets submerged in a water crossing has this potential.

What so many don't realize it that all these "cool guys" with snorkels doing deep water crossings and posting their videos are:
1) Diesels.
2) Fighting problems later dealing with all the electrical systems on their trucks that they don't post about.

Petrol trucks run on electricity. If anything interrupts that flow, they don't run. O2 sensors, crank sensors, temperature sensors. All of these send signals back to the ECU to tell it what to do. If they are covered by water, there's a high chance they'll short out or get ripped off by the water current under and through the truck.

Petrol vehicles are NOT made to go swimming.

This doesn't even address the axle vents or the transfer case and transmission vents that end up submerged and allowing water into those areas.

 


Petrols can do some water, just gotta take it smoothly, no big splashes. the one in the video is a 3f

The 105 1fz changed from distributor to coil on plug, these can handle water much better.
 

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