Bad experience with flood waters

[NigelM]

Just moved my car, it was just below the body of the car, water level wasn't touching the body or the frame. but was partially up to the rim, should I be worried?

Don't worry. Sounds like you moved the car in plenty of time.

 

[doctorwho]

Tesla & flooded roads?

I'm just wondering if there's any different recommendations for managing a Tesla S on flooded roads. Is the battery waterproof enough to drive through a flooded road with water up to the door sills?

 

[Rainbow]

I would recommend not driving in water deeper than rubber of your tires. Driving in water deeper than the rubber of your tires could get the brakes wet and dangerously reduce brake effectiveness and might cause premature corrosion of brake components. Also it's best not to mix the traction battery and high-voltage with water, it could possibly result in an electrocution, fire and/or explosion hazards.

 

[stevezzzz]

Not recommended: I remember an owner in Florida reporting on an incident involving driving his S through flooded streets near his home. As I recall he managed to get home but had trouble with the pack afterwards. Anybody have the link?

 

[flybob08]

Bad experience with flood waters

 

[stevezzzz]

So the S did well in the flood waters, all things considered. Still not recommended. :biggrin:

 

[Rainbow]

In the original Tesla warranty, flood damage would void the warranty. Since Tesla has said that it would honor battery abuse outside of the warranty, but not sure if Tesla would honor the battery warranty if you drove through deep water.

 

[Ole]

I got caught on flooded roads after (and during) torrential rains here in Norway. When I came to an extra deep place, I put the suspension in "extra high" and crawled through. No problems experienced before, during, or after.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

Also it's best not to mix the traction battery and high-voltage with water, it could possibly result in an electrocution, fire and/or explosion hazards.

FUD Alert.

No such things have ever occurred with production EVs on the road.

 

[LetsGoFast]

I had to drive through some deep water the other day and was wondering about the potential for damage. It appeared to be about a foot deep -- shallow enough that I'd have been perfectly happy to drive an ICE through it, but enough to make me wonder about the Tesla. I put the suspension on high and made it through without incident, but wondered if there was any guidance from Tesla and what we believe the first point of failure is.

 

[Skotty]

Was it really 2+ feet of water? That much water means water seeping into the interior via the doors, trunk, etc. Such water should really only be attempted by a truck, SUV or off road vehicle, preferably with a snorkel.

 

[Ingineer]

Tesla, like all other EV/Hybrid manufacturers takes great steps to ensure the high-voltage system is well sealed from water. In addition, all EV/HEV systems I've ever seen have a high-voltage leakage detection system that is similar to a GFCI or RCD on AC outlets. If there is any appreciable leakage of voltage, the system will detect it and shut down at some point. The systems are all double insulated and completely isolated from the chassis ground, so a single short from one HV cable to ground would not pose any danger. (This would definitely trigger the leakage safety system)

In addition, Tesla's battery pack is hermetically sealed so water cannot enter it, but if did, such as in an accident, there is a sensor inside to detect this. Outside of the pack, I have not seen any other specific "immersion" sensors on my Model S or any other EV. Tesla dos have some interesting sensors for other things though, such as air pressure sensors in each side door to detect an impending side impact.

From anecdotal evidence, it appears the Model S will alert with driver with "pull over safely" and "Car might not restart" warnings in the event of a minor high-voltage leak, but will not immediately open the contactors while driving (likely for safety reasons).

 

[Korben]

And, in the interest of always seeing the other side. Check the following video. Apparently, and unsafely, you can treat your Model S like a boat.

Elon Musk says the Tesla Model S 'floats well enough to turn into a boat'

 

[Ingineer]

If the top of the drive unit gets wet, water most definitely will get inside though the breather. This would be very bad! =)

 

[croman]

I just drove through 12-14 inches of standing water. I had no idea it was flooding, I thought it was an accident or a downed tree until I came into view of the water and there was no way to go (concrete divider and 2 lanes of traffic). Northern IL is flooded and I was forced to go through on police orders because it was a MASSIVE traffic jam (cop literally tapped (hard) on my window and directed me to go because I froze for 30 seconds trying to figure out a different way).

Car seems fine. No water in cabin or frunk. No warnings or anything. Car is charging right now without issue. I followed another car's wake so the water was 6" lower than what the other cars experienced though there was spray and some waves. A bunch of other cars stalled and they were just towing them out of the way to allow traffic to clear.

Not a great day to be in Lake County IL but I'm glad Tesla built their cars to deal with inevitable temporary water issues. If I had another choice, any other choice, I would've taken it. Short of driving the wrong way down the entry ramp to get back on the interstate, there was no option but to ford the road/stream (a river overflowed its banks onto the road).