Driving in flooded areas: Haste can cause serious damage

When driving through flooded areas, the more impatient the driver is, the higher the risk of serious damage to the car, not to mention the safety of himself and those around him.

The prolonged heavy rains that have led to flooding in Ho Chi Minh City over the past few days show no signs of stopping. Many roads are flooded up to more than 1 meter deep, not only causing traffic problems but also causing damage to thousands of vehicles. Particularly for cars, water is an extremely dangerous factor because it can directly affect the performance and lifespan of a series of parts on the car.

Whether it is a regular car or a luxury car, when driving through flooded areas, there is a risk of problems. Fortunately, SUVs and pickup trucks with high chassis are capable of wading through deep water. Once water enters the engine and interior compartment, the consequences are predictable. In the mild case, it reduces the effectiveness of the clutch, brakes or causes an electrical short circuit. In the severe case, the entire electrical system and engine assembly must be replaced, which costs

In case of severe flooding, water will flood into the vehicle's interior.

Not to mention the complex technical principles, a simple note that anyone can follow when participating in traffic through flooded areas is to always be careful, slow and steady. Normally, when it rains or driving through flooded roads, people will try to drive as fast as possible, but this habit is completely wrong. Fast-moving vehicles will create water waves, causing the flood level to rise. In many cases, vehicles that could have passed without any problems are splashed with water from other vehicles passing by, or from the front of their own vehicle, causing damage. Moreover, water can also splash onto other people (especially motorbikes), causing the other person to lose control, leading to collisions/accidents.

When it rains heavily, it is best to choose a less flooded route, even though it is more winding and longer, but it is safer for both people and vehicles, and sometimes faster because it avoids traffic jams and engine stalls. If you encounter an unavoidable situation where you have to wade through water, you should drive in low gear (for manual transmission vehicles), keep a steady throttle and go slowly, and at the same time signal the oncoming vehicle to slow down to avoid creating high waves.

Water entering the car engine compartment poses a great risk of causing hydrostatic shock.

If the water level reaches the middle of the bumper (Padeshock), it is best to turn off the engine and push the car, call for rescue to take the car to higher ground. Stopping the car in the middle of flooded areas is an unpleasant and unavoidable thing that car users do not want to encounter. However, this is a necessary and important thing to do to avoid further damage and damage caused by flooding. In addition, if the car is unfortunately stalled, absolutely do not try to restart the car; at this time, you should close the car door to prevent water from entering or further entering the car, causing damage to the interior and equipment, especially electronic equipment. At the same time, immediately contact rescue units to get the car out of the flooded area as soon as possible, take the car to the genuine service workshop for inspection.

According to Thanh Nien