Dangers of crossing rivers

Some time ago we were discussing crossing rivers and I talked about a Freelander which crossed a flowing river. 1 cubic meter of water weighs 1 ton. So a Freelander (or any vehicle) can easily be pushed sideways when a flowing river pushed against it.

Even with traction control helping to gain grip and 4 wheel drive he was very lucky to get across. The front end of a Freelander is heavier than the rear, but not by much. I've just found the video. The video shows the rear end being pushed sideways due to the force of the water pushing against it. The front end is slightly heavier so isn't effected in the same way, but probably not far off being pushed sideways as it's not much heavier than the rear. This is a good demonstration of how dangerous crossing water can be.

PAC8 Wading & Drifting - YouTube

Yep, always keep concentrated when crossing water. We could easily loose this one, but everything turned out allright.

Doesnt look too bad in comparison to other vehicles doing deep water crossings

He was brave! Road tyres and no snork?
I say brave, more like stoopid

Another one. This time a tratter going across a ford with a solid cement base. River is flooded and the power of the flowing water pushes it to the side.

land rover defender 90 deep water crossing nearly swept away - YouTube

Hippo said:

Some time ago we were discussing crossing rivers and I talked about a Freelander which crossed a flowing river. 1 cubic meter of water weighs 1 ton. So a Freelander (or any vehicle) can easily be pushed sideways when a flowing river pushed against it.

Even with traction control helping to gain grip and 4 wheel drive he was very lucky to get across. The front end of a Freelander is heavier than the rear, but not by much. I've just found the video. The video shows the rear end being pushed sideways due to the force of the water pushing against it. The front end is slightly heavier so isn't effected in the same way, but probably not far off being pushed sideways as it's not much heavier than the rear. This is a good demonstration of how dangerous crossing water can be.

PAC8 Wading & Drifting - YouTube

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Think there's a bit of floating freelander syndrome there! If only his doors had fallen off he would've sank and regained traction

freelander wading depth suggested to be 600mm i believe

freelance said:

freelander wading depth suggested to be 600mm i believe

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400mm according to the manual.

Gaylander 2 wading depth is 500mm

Would this ruin the stater motor or solenoid which is low down on a mk1?

I am doing it the wise way I am on the Irish sea at the moment but on a ferry Freelander is on the car deck

Roodle said:

Would this ruin the stater motor or solenoid which is low down on a mk1?

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Muddy water does, clean doesn't so much. 1.8 alternator if you have no ac is even lower, I've done 3 of them to 1 starter

Water gets into everything. It also carries particle of mud, sand, clay etc with it. It likes to get into bearings and oil seals. Peeps say you should raise the height of ird, rear diff and gearbox breathers but that's only the start of it. My air con compressor clutch bearing was taken out by muddy water. It's low down and the bearing went. I replaced it. IRD drive shaft seal went too. The auxiliary belt picks up water/mud and chucks it round the engine/engine bay. Also the timing belt goes round the crankshaft and it's got a cover but not water tight, so mud/water was chucked round my timing belt. Water/mud in the radiator fans can cause them to bugger up. Then there's the flywheel locking pin hole at the front of the engine. If water/mud gets in that it will be chucked round the flywheel and annoy the oil seal behind it. Even if you power wash the whole lot you'll struggle to get rid of it all. Like on top of the fuel tank. My tank seal was covered in sand. Also brake cylinders can fail/leak if bits get in the seals. Hence why I keep out of deep water and watch others go through instead. Good advice I was given by a tratterer who had similar experiences to me, and chose to keep out too.

And my doors din't fall oft.