Flooding

[TylerCA]

An interesting discussion I had with my wife as the road to our home in Portola Valley was flooded. It was probably a solid thigh high deep in some parts. With a petrol car, having the car's intake suck in water would be devastating to the engine. However, with the Tesla being an EV, are there any problems that can occur with driving the MS into slightly flooded areas? My wife raised the car to its highest point and made it through just fine, but I was a little curious with this car being so different.

 

[Zextraterrestrial]

I think I have heard don't go deeper than 6" or so.
if H20 gets into the front louvers the car is supposed to have a submersion safety shutoff

but I think some people have gone deeper than or close to 1 ft with no problems too

 

[NigelM]

Water + Voltage = Not Good.

There's no real problem though unless you get too deep and the car will power off to protect itself. I wouldn't drive through anything more than 6-8" max.

 

[Canuck]

It's best to avoid high water since flooding is one of the exclusions to the battery warranty:

Limited Warranty:
• Exposing the vehicle to ambient temperatures above 140°F (60°C) or below -22°F (-30°C) for
more than 24 hours at a time;
• Physically damaging the Battery, or intentionally attempting, either by physical means,
programming, or other methods, to extend (other than as specified in your owner
documentation) or reduce the life of the Battery;
• Exposing the Battery to direct flame; or,
• Flooding of the Battery.

 

[shady]

It was probably a solid thigh high deep in some parts. .

Isn't that 2+ feet? I'd say you were very lucky

 

[TylerCA]

Isn't that 2+ feet? I'd say you were very lucky

Yes, my wife told me about it after the fact. So she was very lucky. I wouldn't dare anything else other than our SUV through

 

[wiztecy]

I would think that the Model-S would be better than the Nissan Leaf going though water. But possibly this is where Nissan up'd one on Tesla:

 

[yobigd20]

when Miami got a flash flood about a year ago, there were about a dozen or so Tesla's that got flooded and shorted out/disabled. Service center got swamped with non-functional MS. So no, it's not ok. Under no circumstance should you be driving your MS through deep water.

 

[lloyds]

LOL - I just forwarded this thread to my wife. We haven't had much rain in the past few yrs so it sounds like this is a potential issue here in California

 

[Todd Burch]

I'd file for divorce immediately.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

I'd file for divorce immediately.

No need to go to extremes here. Just simply tell her this means you need to get rid of that Model S now and get a new one, specifically a P85D.

 

[Todd Burch]

No need to go to extremes here. Just simply tell her this means you need to get rid of that Model S now and get a new one, specifically a P85D.

Early, were you the one keeping the P85 and giving the D to your wife? If so, we know who wears the boots in that marriage .

- - - Updated - - -

Just noticed that my post has several...er...connotations. Before things get out of hand...we've all exhausted the D jokes, right? I assume nobody wants to hear them anymore .

 

[EarlyAdopter]

Early, were you the one keeping the P85 and giving the D to your wife? If so, we know who wears the boots in that marriage .

Oh no, not I. I had considered giving my old P85 to my wife, but it's not really the right car for her. As much as she's ready to give up going to the gas station like yesterday, an SUV is more to her liking.

 

[Burt Court]

Here in SoCal we're happy with .6 to .8 inches of standing water. Ran my windshield wipers for first time this week in 9 months