DonnieDarko8221

So it was raining pretty hard today while I was at work (I'm a mailman so I got to enjoy getting drenched all day). Around 1:30pm my father found me on my route (police officer and on-duty) and told me that the parking lot at the post office was getting flooded. I went over to the post office and the water level was right around the bottom of my doors. I had to wade through water that was nearly knee deep to get to my car. I opened the driver's door and I saw approximately 1 inch of water in the front and about 2 inches of water in the back on the floor. My father told me to take it to the garage where the police vehicles are parked so I could use the Shop Vac and vacuum up the water.

When I was making the right hand turn to the garage, all the water in the vehicle sloshed forward and then my engine cut off. It would not restart. It doesn't even try to crank. I just got off the phone with my insurance company (Progressive) and an adjuster will contact me on Monday. Any advice/tips/suggestions? Thank you.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Wait for the adjuster. No sense in scewing something up in the meantime and then they will hold you accountable.

DanL

iTrader: (2)

Sorry to hear that. Sounds like water got into your ECU and there must have been a lot of water inside for that to have happened.

DonnieDarko8221

I didn't plan on doing anything. I just want to have some knowledge and advice for when the adjuster comes. The stereo and AC and that stuff worked, it was just the engine that quit running and then it wouldn't crank. I was thinking that the ecu got wet and fried, but if that were the case would the stereo, AC, etc work?

And btw, I DO NOT have a cold air intake.

Just from the fact that two inches of water was inside my car what would need to be replaced? The carpeting for sure. The car was also towed so the water that was inside would have rushed to the rear when the front of the car was raised. I'm not sure if this would lead to having the front and/or rear seats replaced. Also, any resale or trade-in value has definitely taken a hit so can I expect compensation for that?

I really doubt the insurance will consider it a total loss so I could possibly upgrade to a Type S although one can

I also have to put in a claim to the US Postal Service so who knows when this situation will be resolved. There were known drainage issues that were obviously never taken care of so I think I have a good leg to stand on there when filing a claim against the US Postal Service. Thanks for your help.

edit: DanL, I was in the middle of typing my post when you replied. There was a least two inches of water inside my vehicle. When I was moving it to a safer area so I could vacuum out the water, it all sloshed forward and that is when my engine quit running.

SouthernBoy

If it got into your car as you described, it could also have damaged your transaxle, CV joints, and some other components. This could become a nightmare, so don't just assume that vacuuming it out is going to take care of everything. As for your engine just stopping, can you hear the starter clicking when you attempt to start the engine? What you're describing could be hydro-locked engine. In other words, leave nothing behind you... suspect any and everything.

Good luck to you and keep us updated.

DonnieDarko8221

Ok, so what is a list of possible components I should have checked so I can be sure the insurance adjuster takes everything into account?

DonnieDarko8221

I forgot to add how long the car was in the water. My best guess at this time is no longer than 1 hour and it is likely to actually be much shorter than that.

SouthernBoy

Well you have a minimum of two factors to consider: rust and corrosion. If you had two inches of water on level ground in your footwells, then figure how much of the undercarriage would have received potential water damage. That means things like the exhaust system, suspension components, power and drive train, brakes, not to mention the car's interior where you have seat rails and seat motors, sensors and switches... man, I hardly could name everything.

The point of my earlier post about this is, just be cautious if your insurance company comes back and tells you XXX company has fixed everything. Water damage is serious stuff, so just be aware.

Do you have a manual or an automatic? My first concern would be with the engine and transmission since those components are expensive and you do not want damage there. Find out what caused your engine to cut off and fail to restart.. this could help.

DonnieDarko8221

Thanks for the info. I have the 5AT.

LiquidLunch

Most insurance companies use the rule- if the water crosses the sill plate and enters the car, it will be declared a flood total loss.

DonnieDarko8221

I hope that is the case here because I don't want the headaches that I'm sure I will have if the car is "repaired." From how my adjuster was talking on the phone, it sounds as if an attempt to repair it will be made. The car is going to be towed to one of their authorized repair centers (the repairs will allegedly be guaranteed for life). I will know more tomorrow because I have to stop there and sign paperwork authorizing them to work on the car and for Progressive to pay them directly.

What are some issues and concerns I should discuss tomorrow when I'm at the repair center? According to myriad people I have been talking to about this a car that gets water inside is never the same.

Also, when I went to retrieve my belongings from the car today most, if not all, of the water had drained/evaporated out of the interior. There was condensation on the inside of the windshield and a little bit on the seats.

marcoguy

The good news that you are dealing with freshwater and not saltwater. With the condensation building up in the car interior you may find rust forming on unplated steel. (Really not a big issue just will look bad.) The PCM located in the center console area behind the radio, most likely stopped the engine or the battery discharged due the the seat module. The drivers seat module is mounted under the seat and is always powered up. If water got inside, it will fail shorting out the battery, than the seat motors will have the risk of being wet as well. You have a side air bag in the seat and heaters. If the seat is replaced with OEM parts for repair it would be in the $4000+ range. State Farm used on a friends car, that was flooded, that if the flood damage got to 30% of the cars actual cash value, it is considered totaled.

Other items to think about...The seats would have to come out and the carpet lifted/removed to remove all the water that is in the white plastic type pad that Acura uses. This area will not dry out on its own sealed up. Also, the tunnel area uses a felt type pad and it soaks up water and will not try out unless removed or dryed with a fan for hours. All NEW carpet and pading material should be used to replace what got wet.

Since the car was not being driven at the time of the flood, the engine should be fine. The plugs should all be removed and to make sure no water is present at the time the cranking problem is fixed. (This would be done by Acura before engine cranking is working, to prevent hydrolock rod damage if water is in the engine...unlikely.) Also, the engine oil should drained just in case the engine got water into it thru the air intake. This again is unlikely in your case. The engine, transmission and other drivetrain components are water resistent by design and are able to take driving at 70mph in a heavy rain without a problem. The issue is the interior electrical components like the fuse panel on the drivers side and the other items covered.

Good Luck...You may have a totaled car???

Majofo

Check the PCM. It sits almost floor level and it's not protected by anything other than the carpet.

DonnieDarko8221

Progressive is not totaling the car. They are only "restoring it to how it was prior to the flood." And they aren't even replacing the carpet. They are only going to clean and shampoo everything. I have a lot of concerns about the water that evaporated and then condensed on the inside of the vehicle.

The car still does not run all the time. The guy on the phone said sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. The engine wasn't hydrolocked, either, so it is an electrical issue.
Another thing that pisses me off is that the claims representative said New York State does not recognize the *potential* loss of value because "there is no loss. The car is being restored to its previous state." I don't know how they can figure that. Since this was an insurance job so does that mean it will show up on Carfax? Any flood damage that shows up on Carfax will significantly affect my resale or trade-in value.

Any help or advice anyone can offer is greatly appreciated. I'm so frustrated right now. Hopefully the car will be restored to how it was, but I'm afraid that is only wishful thinking....

Majofo

^ pcm

DonnieDarko8221

That's what I told them on the phone. They didn't want to make any "assumptions." They still have to "run more diagnostics" and whatever else. The only good thing I guess is that the repairs are supposed to be lifetime guaranteed. If I smell even the slightest hint of mold or mildew or encounter any electrical problems whatsoever with anything then I will just have it fixed under the lifetime guarantee.

But I do promise that Progressive will never get another cent from me. I am definitely switching insurance companies after this.