A gas powered engine, obviously floods when drove in a flooded street or water. But is an electric car or even a bike be able to safely drive without malfunctioning or breaking down?
I can’t find any posts related to this, mainly I know that it is unsafe and mostly stupid to drive any thing in a flooded street as you can’t judge what’s in there. “The danger is not your car stopping, its what the water is hiding.” But hypothetically speaking, if it was a live or die situation, can you drive an ev with water high up the car.
I assume so but I might be wrong as I feel there is nothing which can break, and all the wires and connections must be waterproof.
edit: got it, thanks everyone for the replies.
In: Technology
Petrol (gasoline) cars could drive through water, presuming they’re heavy enough, so long as it doesn’t get in their air filter. The electrics in a petrol car will still operate just fine under some water (though not forever and not completely underwater).
A diesel would fare much better because it’s not reliant on making an electric spark – and would stop for the same reason… the air intake. Vehicles that regularly navigate water require a “snorkel” for the air filter. A diesel with a snorkel will drive through water no problem so long as the snorkel is not submerged.
An electric – has bigger problems. It’s entirely reliant on electricity and conductivity from a lithium battery. It doesn’t need oxygen at all. But being in water will mean that the electricity is seeping into the water instead of the cables and it will struggle after any significant distance.
But the big problem – it’s going to fuck the electric car. If that battery gets wet you will never be able to be sure it’s safe without changing the battery, and water in a lithium battery is a firebomb.
If I were to rank them by how willing I’d be to drive them through an unknown (but not unreasonable) depth of water in an absolute emergency that required me to get away (e.g. a tsunami):
* Diesel with snorkel
* Petrol with snorkel
* Electric
* Diesel without snorkel
* Petrol without snorkel
If I had to rank them by how well they’d survive afterwards:
* Diesel with snorkel
* Petrol with snorkel
* Electric / Diesel without snorkel / Petrol without snorkel / Buy a new car.
But the simple rule is:
If you’re driving through water that you don’t know the depth of, or what’s under it, you are categorically an idiot and you’re going to fuck up your car.
For reference, I drive a petrol car… and on the 2-3 occasions I’ve crossed a known depth of water (an area near a town I drive through often that sometimes has floodwater seep onto the road), I’ve stuck the car in a low gear, revved high (less chance of stalling, better blowing out the exhaust / any water out of the rear), kept a consistent slow speed, and then tamped the brakes A LOT once I was clear and on the other side.
In an electric car? I’m not sure I’d risk it. Sure, I’d get to the other side, but fuck dealing with the consequences if you get water ingress. That’s a new battery minimum.
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