Hey guys, here's one for you. Not too long after I got my Magna (towards the end of last year) we had some significant rain downpours in the area and some roads puddled up. Naturually making big splashes is a neccessity. However I'm curious as to how deep the magnas can go in water before issues start arising? What pieces of hardware on the lower part of the vehicle don't like being full of water? Not saying I will go out and tackle the ocean, but the user manual (for almost all cars) says that water higher than the wheel rim should be avoided. However if a roads going to get water across it, it will usually be higher than that.

So how much is too much?

Rule of thumb for 4x4 is that an engine can survive anything so long as you dont get water in the air intake - so in the Magna's case that would be bonnet height. But then most 4x4 have their diff breathers rised to the level of the air intake. On my TJ there is an air intake in the boot just above the level of the rear wheel so it couldn't go that high, and I suspect the diff's simply breath with no tubing to help (I havent actually checked so cant be sure)

Worst case would be no higher than the top of the diff's - I would say 1/2 way up the wheels would be perfectly safe if the car was stationary, if it was moving you would create a bow wave that would go over the diff's.

I went through 0.3m once (very slowly) and I ended having to replace the air con bearing and another pulley as the water damaged these. I was lucky enough that no electrics were damaged. I highly suggest not exceeding 0.2m on the markers, or if there are no markers, don't let the water go up the bumper, I've seen people go through higher in other cars and almost get carried away, when the water was pressed up to the underbody it can potentially lift the car up like a boat then seeya. Also be aware that insurance will never cover flood damage to any components

Not a good idea.

Having said that, I have done quarter rim level before and car smelt funny in that instant and a few days after in my old Saab 10 years ago.

It is not good for brakes, gasket areas such as oil sump and exhaust joinery etc.

If you are confronted with a need to go wading eg you have to get across a river, a simple way to do it is to put a tarp across the grille etc and let it hang down below the bumper. This way, you are shielding the air intake (and the A/C drive belts etc). The idea is to set up a bow wave and drive accordingly, but with the Magna bonnet so low, you would probably not go any deeper than 300 mm. If you rally don't have to go through water, DON'T.

I've been through a bit of water before and so far I've not found any ramifications.

I had to go through about what appeared to be around 15-20cm of water to get home during the Melb feb floods. There's about 5 different routes to get to my place and 4 of them were fully blocked - thankfully I managed to find the one route to get home and then I parked the car on higher ground in the backyard. I did face problems of rising water on the roads I went back on multiple times. I do remember that at road - I was under the impression that the water wasn't that high so I proceeded to go into the water only to start a very slight bow wave and some some steam coming from the engine. Thankfully I still had traction and slammed the car into reverse - got out of there like a bat out of hell. I believe the water may have been over 25cm but thankfully I didn't drive through it. Later inspections revealed no damage, rust or anything out of the norm. Aircon worked 100% fine as well. Bottom of engine bay was a bit more cleaner though! :P

Anyway - don't test your luck. Or else you might end up like this. (http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1634148)

i had the te floating in deep flood water (not flowing). it was deep enough that the front wheels came off the ground for a second, and the momentum of the car was enough to push it a couple of inches to get grip again. nothing bad happened out of that, the engine didnt even stall. (i realise it could have been hydro locked, but luckily it wasnt) that same night i pulled my mates falcon and hilux (2wd petrol) out of a flooded street, and this was in a lowered magna. when i opened the door, water came in. i didnt care about water in the car because at that stage it had a huge leak, and was already full lol . when i got home i left the car running for 30 mins, to help dry it out, then i sprayed a bit of innox on the belt bearings. checked the timing belt case but it was dry. 150,000kms later it still wouldnt die, and it was sold off. removed the seats and the carpet to let the water drain from inside aswell.

not recommended to anyone, but thats what happened to me, and the car was fine.

rule ive learned from many guys who do 4x4 trips is,

if the water reaches the height of the headlights, you air filter will suck in water and the rest is self explanatory.

that being said, even that is quite high, i wouldnt go in anything higher than where my foglights sit.

Problem is that its hard to judge how high the water is. Plus unless you know the road VERY well you would not be aware if it dips anywhere. On the road where I almost caused a bow wave, I travel at least once a day and I never realised that it had a slight dip in the middle of it.

If you can see the road CLEARLY and you MUST travel that way then you should be alright but don't push your luck. The starter motor, ac compressor, condenser & radiator drop quite low - if they get wet and they stuff up it'll cost you a pretty penny to replace - esp the ac compressor which costs in excess of $1.2k brand new.

Cold water warps hot brake rotors too.

Used to see this all the time when I lived in the Kimberley. During wet season, roads would flood and tourists would come hiking around a corner at 110 and find water over the road. They would jump on their brakes really hard and then sometimes come to a complete stop in the water to get a photo of their car, with part of the very hot rotor submerged in cold water. OUCH!

I'd avoid driving any 2wd car in water, period, but then I am quite a grandpa.


On a 4x4, if the water reaches the height of the headlights, you air filter will suck in water and the rest is self explanatory.

Not with a snorkel... speaking of which, who is going to mod up a Magna snorkel intake? :woot:

Have had my wagon in enough water to go just over the tops of the front wheel arches, was a flash flood on a road here near me, I just made sure I went slow and crept through it, no damage other than having to remove my headlights and drain them lol. Air intake was high enough and the length of road was only about 40m but was at the bottom of a hill, water pretty much came up while I was stuck in traffic creeping along, if I had a choice I would have turned around but unfortunately was no choice.

Aircon bearing may suffer as have seen this before but aside from that, keep the intake clear and you should be fine for a short run through water

I remember the manual stating that you can go upto 300mm