Preparing a Disco for Wading

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Dom-300tdi

Active Member
Posts
181
Hi All,

I live in a rural area and at this time of year, especially with all the rain we've been having, a lot of the back roads have a tendancy to flood and i'm not just talking puddles but stuff that goes beyond the realms of a standard unmodified disco. There has been more than one occasion now when I've had to back out and find another route cause the water was approaching air intake level! :eek:

So my question to all you knowledgeable folks out there is what mods I would need to do to my disco to allow me to drive though any level of water without harming the engine?

The ovbious one is the snorkle, got to say I like the look of the southdown one for around £130ish. Then i've been told I need axle breathers though i'm not sure where exactly I need to connect them and why the axles need to breath anyway.

Then theres wading plugs, heard these mentioned so many times but dont avtually know where they go, what they do or how many I need?

And then theres other stuff which I havent heard mentioend before but did cross my mind as potential problem areas whilst poking around in the engine bay. Dip stick for example, looks like a weak area, is that little oring enough to keep the water out if the engine is submerged in water ? Also what about the fuel tank ? I assume that must have some sort of breather to stop it collapsing when fuel is drawn from it. Where is it located and does this need extending too?

Presumably I'd want to think about finding a way to block the heater air intake, as water is going to **** through that gaping hole, or is it a case of once the water is that high it'll be coming in everywhere else so its not worth worrying about? :rolleyes:

Bit more info, engine is a 300tdi and has no engine ecu.
 
There are two engine wading plugs. One at the bottom of the flywheel housing, looking backwards, not directly underneath. The other is at the bottom of the timing cover.

Axle are the small round things sticking up from the top of the casing. Remove the black pipe and run windscreen washer tubing to extend these higher. My rear axle one runs the length of the chassis and comes up the snorkel at the front, you can put it up into the rear door pillar if you like. Front axle similar situation.

There are also two breathers on the gearbox. Get underneath and look for similar black tubing ending up in the engine bay above the bellhousing, with a hooked end. These are usually enough or you can extend to roof height if you wish.

This setup has taken my 200 Tdi Discovery thru water upto the door mirrors with no problems. Just remember when you are this deep that you will be pushing about 2 tonne of water and so good traction is needed.

The actual wading is a subject in itself, but basically treat with respect and avoid anything fast flowing if you are crossing a river.
 
Your axles will have holes in them , one on each at the top-you may or may not have anything in these holes already.You can get extended breather tubes off ebay that run right to the top of the snorkel.
Same goes for gear & transfer box.
They dont really let anything breathe as such, more stop letting anything in that isnt supposed to be there.
When fitting a snorkel, silicone up any possible gaps where water may get in eg air box lid, connections.
Not sure on a 300 but I think you need a wading plug in the bell housing???
Fuel tank-never heard of any breather for-also dip stick should be fine.
You need to remember, unless you stall or break down or get stuck in 4 ft of water, you will be moving & because of that, if you are moving at the right speed you will create a bow wave in front of the grille. The depth of water will actually be lower where your engine is than at the very front of the car or just past the wing mirrors.
You need to try very hard to actually submerge the whole engine.
 
Fuel tank breather is incorporated in the fuel filler cap. So as long as your not in over the fuel cap you'll be ok. As said before, if you keep moving chances of water getting into the fuel through the breather is minimal...... Good Luck, your a braver man than I. Deepest I had my Disco in was to the bottom of the doors, I was bricking it.....:crazy_driver:
 
Fact of the matter is, I wont be doing this sort of thing every day. What matters is the knowing that I can should I need or want to! :cool:
 
Dom-300tdi said:
Fact of the matter is, I wont be doing this sort of thing every day. What matters is the knowing that I can should I need or want to! :cool:
Click to expand...
Water up to the bonnet is about as deep as id wanna take my motor once the wading kit is on.Like bob sed, it'll fill up if you are are in water for long or stop.Hope youve got wellies.:D:doh:
 
I've put new breathers on the axels/gearbox'n'transfer box....
If you can, cheak the breathers are not blocked...if they are & a hot box/axel hits cold water, it can draw in water'n'crud through the next weakest link (Normally seals) as the oil/air in them contracts as it cools quickly. All my breathers run to a dedicated manifold on the bulkhead, then a single pitp runs up the snorkle.

This was my 1st venture into deep water...

Keep the wade plugs out untill you need them... I try to keep them in for amaximum of 4 days (but I know my crank-seal lets a little oil out, so I need it to drain)

As you can see, the water just went over the bonnet at the deepest part....The carpets are STILL wet....
 

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A mate of mine (and avid landrover enthusiast) was telling me the other day he took his 110 down a flooded road and had water up the windscreen, almost to the level of the snorkel :eek:.
 
mburton2 said:
I've put new breathers on the axels/gearbox'n'transmission box....
If you can, cheak the breathers are not blocked...if they are & a hot box/axel hits cold water, it can draw in water'n'crud through the next weakest link (Normally seals) as the oil/air in them contracts as it cools quickly. All my breathers run to a dedicated manifold on the bulkhead, then a single pitp runs up the snorkle.

This was my 1st venture into deep water...

Keep the wade plugs out untill you need them... I try to keep them in for amaximum of 4 days (but I know my crank-seal lets a little oil out, so I need it to drain)

As you can see, the water just went over the bonnet at the deepest part....The carpets are STILL wet....
Click to expand...
HAHAHAHA.Beemer!Cock!
A skorkel can breath higher than the driver can.This is not good if you are the driver.
 
I've been in a mates Snorkled/breathered up Disco about a year ago...I was in the back.....The water was visable a couple of cm's up the side window:eek:

It was touch'n'go....the flow of the water was starting to spin the Disco around in the road....
 
oh, & to mention, I have +2" lift, & run 235/85R16 KuhmoKL71's tyres....so the bonnet is about 3" higher than a standard Disco...:)
 
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