Driving your truck in deep water can damage your truck

[Mike Clark]

OK, this is a friendly argument a buddy and I are having. So he has a Tundra as well and just installed a snorkel on it. He seems to believe that he can now drive through all sorts of water, including inlets near the ocean, which of course are salt water. Rivers which are fresh and there will be no problems with his vehicle. We both agree the salt water needs to be hosed off fast. But I was telling him driving in water a lot can have negative effects on drivetrain. He is disagreeing with me. Anyone want to jump on this?


Who's right?

 

[smritte]

The older the vehicle, the worse it is. I made that mistake a long time ago, once, driving along a beach splashing in the water.. My Cruiser spent most of it's life in Arizona. I'm the third owner. it spent six months on the coast. The rust from just the salt air corroded bolts. It took me a while to deal with this and it still bites me once in a while.
The other thing to avoid is high alkali dry lakes when their muddy. That stuff will eat through paint.

 

[Brad Clark]

Can't water be horrible for seals and such in motor and drivetrain?

 

[smritte]

Engine doesn't care. If it did you couldn't drive it in the rain. I power wash my engines regularly. Let the water inside the cab and you have issues. None of the connectors inside are waterproof. At the shop, I would get cars/trucks with water inside high enough to get the computers wet. The insurance companies wouldn't ask for an estimate. They would just total the vehicle.