Puddles

While other cars have been taking evasive action to avoid the large puddles on the roads around here, I've been taking great joy in driving my Discovery 1 V8 through them at a fair rate of knots (I'm like a kid with new wellies).

Two questions, could I cause any damage and am I the only one who does this

you could if you loose control

ecotack said:

While other cars have been taking evasive action to avoid the large puddles on the roads around here, I've been taking great joy in driving my Discovery 1 V8 through them at a fair rate of knots (I'm like a kid with new wellies).

Two questions, could I cause any damage and am I the only one who does this

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You have to be wary of hidden massive potholes etc that could cause damage

jamesmartin said:

you could if you loose control

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My other cars a TVR, in the wet the Discovery is childs play

wobble said:

You have to be wary of hidden massive potholes etc that could cause damage

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There was a man hole cover floating on the water that was escaping it, I did wonder what would happen if I parked on it. Most were field run offs and regularly flooded areas, so was fairly confident no hidden danger.

I did it today on a road I know, disco is now suitably brown

Water at speed is dangerous. Just because 'there's always a good'un there when it rains' doesn't mean a large section of tarmac hasn't been washed out. Drop a front wheel in an 8'' hole at 30mph and see if you can remember which way is up when the world stops tumbling

Aside from that water is impossible to guage the depth of, how much sideways drag you will have to counter? Yes it's fun but not without risk....the higher the speed the greater the risk.

As the others have already said, then there's the question of drying out your brakes before you continue at any speed and if your Landy hasn't been modified for wading, the depth of the water could go over the recommended level (500mm for a Disco) resulting in the possible ingress of H2O into the mechanical workin's.

Not to mention any other hazards unseen under the water other than open manhole covers.

definately not the only one, at my old house we had a ford on the way home and always loved going through its as fast as possible.

Dr_evil said:

I did it today on a road I know, disco is now suitably brown

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Inside or out?

out

Glad I didn't try parking on the manhole now, its barricaded off with most of the road around it washed away.

brian47 said:

...water could go over the recommended level (500mm for a Disco)

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Good to know. Is it worth fitting a snorkel to a V8? I would imagine the electrics would give out by the time water reached the air filter.

Wet dizzy equals no brum brum. This is bad.

ecotack said:

While other cars have been taking evasive action to avoid the large puddles on the roads around here, I've been taking great joy in driving my Discovery 1 V8 through them at a fair rate of knots (I'm like a kid with new wellies).

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I did that once in my V8 Disco years ago. a few yards later she died as the electrics were swamped and I had to sit at the side of the road trying to dry her out

That taught me.

My first car was a Fiat 126. There was no cover on the vents in the boot, so rain always got in. There was a tin of WD40 in the door for just such days. One day the heavy rain flooded a dip on the way home, so to avoid it cutting out in the middle I gunned it. A jet of water came out of the passenger air vent and soaked my mate. I had some fun with the little "Puddle Jumper", as my Dad called it.

I like to play splash in the landy, as do my brother and dad. It has to be done really. I know the roads pretty well round here and know which bits are flooded most often so not too bad. There is an area not far from me with a mill pond that drains to the river, except on a high tide where it drains all over the road I tend to hang back and wait for the traffic to clear ahead of me before going for it. I did the same in my mini too, wasn't a sensible car to try it in though :L

I do avoid ones I know are too deep as I don't like being dragged off the road by the extra resistance, so a little bit of though goes into this childish game

I once went through a puddle with both near side tyres only to find to my chagrin that there was a roadworks sign upside down on the bottom of the puddle. Angle iron is excellent for ripping holes in tyres.

I was showing off to a bird at the time in my GTi. Needless to say I didn't get lucky that day…

puddles...
if you know that the road has no BIG holes I say "go for it!!!"