[roadheat]

Hello
I am from Bombay & have recently purchased the Kia Sonet iMT Petrol.However, this will be my first monsoon in the iMT.

Familiar with the flooding that happens in Mumbai, we all have waded through the floods in our manual transmission cars ( always keeping the clutch down & accelerating while idle, to prevent water getting into the engine)



How do you do this in a iMT ?? is it possible to drive a iMT through floods ? you do not have a clutch pedal, so do you just accelerate in neutral when you are idle ?

iMT owners please suggest if you have experienced driving an iMT in floods before.

Thanks

[windrider]

This is where a lot of people mistakenly believe that water entering through the exhaust pipe is what causes the engine to stall. 9 times out of 10, it is the water that enters through the vehicle's air intake that makes its way into the engine and leads to engine hydrolock. Most cars have their air intake placed just behind the grill or the space behind one of the headlights. Some have it placed even lower behind the bumper. It doesn't matter if your car is an automatic or a manual, if water gets into your air box, its game over. Anyway, if you are forced to drive through a flooded street, I guess you will have to plan a few metres in advance in what gear you need to be in. Apart from that, the only other way I see is , as u said, put it in neutral and rev the engine. Attaching a video by scotty kilmer. I was shocked by just how a few inches of water that might seem safe can total your car

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Yehz2gUnNe0&t=49s

[chaitanyakrish]

Originally Posted by roadheat

Hello
I am from Bombay & have recently purchased the Kia Sonet iMT Petrol.However, this will be my first monsoon in the iMT.

No difference I think and same as a manual or automatic car. I drive an i20 IMT.
Here's a recent incident where I was surprised by the sudden appearance of puddles on a flyover.

https://youtu.be/T4Zkf5cjIOs

All through, I reduced speed a little but managed to come out of water without hydroplaning and also no damage as well.

[dhanushs]

The reason why they say to accelerate is to keep the exhaust pressure higher than the water pressure so that the exhaust isn't choked and the vehicle shuts off. The bigger concern would be water entering through the intake.

An even bigger concern would be the reliability of your electrical components after water wading.

I would strongly suggest that even though you have a high GC vehicle, AVOID water whenever possible. It's not possible to gauge the depth of the water, or the splash, or the bow wave in traffic, so, if a car finds it difficult, then you should treat the Kia Sonet similarly.

If you really need to pass through, then possibly wait for the traffic to calm down, then drive at a constant rpm/speed in a lower gear keeping the rpms high, and speed low, so that minor bumps or potholes shouldn't make a difference.

[roadheat]

Originally Posted by windrider

This is where a lot of people mistakenly believe that water entering through the exhaust pipe is what causes the engine to stall. 9 times out of 10, it is the water that enters through the vehicle's air intake that makes its way into the engine and leads to engine hydrolock. Most cars have their air intake placed just behind the grill or the space behind one of the headlights. Some have it placed even lower behind the bumper. It doesn't matter if your car is an automatic or a manual, if water gets into your air box, its game over. Anyway, if you are forced to drive through a flooded street, I guess you will have to plan a few metres in advance in what gear you need to be in. Apart from that, the only other way I see is , as u said, put it in neutral and rev the engine. Attaching a video by scotty kilmer. I was shocked by just how a few inches of water that might seem safe can total your car https://m.Youtube.com/watch?v=Yehz2gUnNe0&t=49s

This is insightful, will try to find out where the air intake is located in the Kia Sonet. Will be mindful of this next time in the rains.

[lamborghini]

Best bet is to slow down, maintain a long enough gap from vehicle in front with enough visibility till end of the the water logged road to ensure a smooth drive out without having to stop.

If it's very heavy rains and there is no option except to wade through a waterlogged road (not a patch), best to park the car and wait it out where it is safer.

[Gypsian]

In most cases the ripples created from heavy vehicles like buses passing next to you would force the water into your hood and the water gets sucked in through air intake causing hydro lock. Coming to exhaust , the decades old desi method is to make use of cycle tire tube well in advance which can be elasticized over end can and tied up high. Not sure whether this can be done on modern cars with large end cans. Water is a dangerous game. Prevention is better than cure. BEST AVOIDED

[kiku007]

How do you drive an iMT gearbox car through floods?
Don't drive the car through a flood. It may be the unpopular answer but that's what it is.

I have driven cars like the Ikon and Fiesta through flood waters and both cars ended up needing repairs. In hindsight I should have never done that.

Modern cars have so much more electronics and you are better off not taking the risk of driving through flood waters. You may think you are doing everything right but all it takes is one stupid driver to send a big wave/splash of water your way.

[shankar.balan]

Solid sensible inputs from kiku, gypsian, windrider, lamborghini, dhanushs.
Water is simply one of the worst enemies of your car.
Best avoided.
There are things like breather pipes and all in the differentials and gear system and all of these are prone to allow water ingress if youre wading through water.
Plus it is not possible to gauge the depth of water nor the surface if any, beneath unless one does a walk through with a measuring pole and this kind of defeats the idea of avoiding wet feet.
Personally I am not one for purposely creating wanton situations for my vehicles, whether they are four wheel drive high clearance vehicles or not, which involve excessive mud and water. If it is needed in the line of duty like on an estate in the monsoons thats fine but not otherwise as far as I can control the circumstances.

[krishnakumar]

Originally Posted by roadheat

How do you do this in a iMT ?? is it possible to drive a iMT through floods ? you do not have a clutch pedal, so do you just accelerate in neutral when you are idle ?

Have you checked the user manual for any inputs on this?

Usually, there will be a wading depth provided that is safe for the engine and you can use that as the reference. Also, there could be specific instructions on how to drive through the water. Please have a check. In my XUV300 manual there are some instructions given like that. I’ve had to wade through water a couple of times but every time I ensured that the depth is below the wading depth through external referencing. Simplest way is to benchmark your car’s wading depth with other commonly found vehicles on the road like a Scooty/Activa, autorickshaw etc. Before I go into a flood I wait to see what’s the depth from other vehicles and then follow them (if its safe depth) but with sufficient distance/after a time gap so as to let the waves die down.

Like many others mentioned, driving through flood is VERY risky as the water could get into the air intake. Not so much through exhaust due to the exhaust pressure but you can still choke an engine (as the gases may not be able to escape freely). Do this only if absolutely necessary.