we are getting a forester xt but live in an area thats prone to winter floods,we need to get to horses on a daily basis and would like to know what depth of water is safe to ford [sorry to mention the last dirty word , but i don't mean the car !!]
Hi!
On Tue, 18 Nov 2003 15:56:39 +0000 (UTC), "village idiot" wrote:
I _don't_ know about the Forester specifically, the Ms. shies away from even splashing thru mud puddles with hers ;-) However in general I would limit water crossings to not more than about axle deep with your Soobie, and that in clear water with a firm bottom. I have crossed streams considerably deeper than that with my old GL wagon, and it has scars to prove it too! Stalling, sinking into mud, or finding that hidden rock in the middle of a ford isn't a whole lot of fun. If you really must cross deep water, your Forester will probably not balk at crossings up to knee-deep or maybe even a bit more, however you'll want to get out and walk (wade) thru first. Find a firm line for both wheel tracks and check for hidden rocks, holes, and such. Drive thru as slowly as possible w/o risking a stall; a large bow wake can wet out engine electronics, and even result in your engine aspirating water. Be prepared to pull your carpets afterwards, as some water will almost certainly find it's way in, and you'll probably want to check the fluid in your differential for water contamination as well. Go carefully! I'll mention one more option often overlooked by adventurous offroaders, tho it probably won't apply to your needs. For that real deep/fast/scary crossing, especially if you feel there is any possibility of sucking in water (very bad), use a winch to pull the vehicle across with the engine off. Once you get to the other side, allow a few minutes for water to drain from the airbox and such, perhaps pull the distributor cap and dry it with a paper towel, and it should start right up. If you are concerned about the possibility of water entering the intake (usually a closed throttle butterfly will keep this from being a concern), stuff a wad of rags in the inlet track before starting across, and turn the engine thru several revolutions with a wrench on the crank bolt before trying to turn it with the starter. We've gotten vehicles across rivers where the water was over their hoods using this routine, but it sure is a pain in the a__, and you'll want dry laundry by the time you're done.
ByeBye! S.
Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101
"S" wrote
What's a distributor? ;)
Sounds to me like you need a really serious off-road vehicle, not a soft-road car like the Forester. Get the Forester for normal driving, but also get an old Dodge Power Wagon or similar for the dirty, wet stuff! ;-)
fiord is correct not ford and 10 or 12 inches of wather should be nothing to worry about
fiord not ford :))
water hahaha bad typing not spelling !!
OK, I'm missing something here, apparently. Please explain: the ground clearance on the Forester is 7.5 inches. Subtract that amount from 10 and you get 2.5, and from 12 you get 4.5. That's 2.5 or 4.5 inches higher than the bottom of the car. Water won't get inside (especially given the latter number)?
I'm not where I can apply a ruler to my car at the moment, so I'm only guessing you may say, "Check the height of the bottom of the doors, or door seal."
HW
Only in Norway, and if ya can drive across one of _those_, I bow down to you ;-) And like I said; axle deep water. (~12 inches for the 26 inch diameter Forester wheel.)
And HW asks:
Yep, it will eventually, but assuming all of your floor drain plugs are in place it's not likely to be a problem 'til you get in above the bottom of the door. Not even then on short exposure, or you'd get wet every time you did the carwash thing. But at somewhere around that depth, water can find new and creative entry points; shifter linkages, side lights and reflectors, openings in the frame concealed by interior trim, etc. This isn't really a problem as long as you make the effort to let things dry out when you get home, but wet carpet/padding left unattended gets stinky PDQ, and leads to floorboard rust and other unsavory vehicular diseases.
BTW, if you _do_ try to ford the fiord, or play any other game that results in getting salt ocean water on your car, wash it, wash it, wash it, and wash it some more, or Mr Rust will have his way (he never sleeps, ya know), and your shiny toy will become a rust-bucket faster than you will believe. Trust me on this one :-(
ByeBye! S.
Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101
Thanks, Steve. You sound like the voice of experience.
As I contemplate any of the potential fates you describe (from too much high water) for my beautiful new XT, it makes me cringe. I'm still wondering why anyone with a need to ford that fjord would buy a Forester to do it. A really serious off-road vehicle would be the more serviceable choice, IMHO. But I'm not an accoomplished fjord forder.
HW
I took out my measuring tape. Distance to the floorboard is something like 11" and the distance to the bottom of the door is ~14". The 7.5" quoted for ground clearance might be the distance to the bottom of the rear differential (looks like the lowest part).
-R.
tthe middle man who supplies the product too the vendors
Steve is correct
tr.v. ford·ed, ford·ing, fords To cross (a body of water) at a ford.
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