If you live on Penang island and your car has been caught in the flood yesterday, we offer some tips for you to consider if your flood damaged car is not covered by insurance. Try the following:
1. If the flood water has reached the lower levels of the doors the best advice is to not attempt to drive it until it has been checked by a mechanic.
2. Flood water in the mechanical components such as your gearbox or even suspensions can affect the oils and quickly lead to expensive faults.
3. Flood water that has entered you cabin can affect electrical systems commonly found in ore modern vehicles (vehicles after 2010 especially), which are both complex and expensive to fix. These electrical systems include engine management, transmission operation and other primary control systems. Over time water damage can lead to erratic operation or complete failure.
4. In a fast moving flood like this one, build-up of debris under the vehicle can damage mechanical components or lead to clogging of cooling systems and overheating.
5. Please note that it is important to ensure key safety components, such as steering and brakes, are functioning correctly after any water exposure. Contaminated fluids will cause damage to components.
6. If flood waters have entered the engine bay, do not attempt to start the engine until it has been checked completely by a mechanic you trust.
7. If you car has been in a flood leave the car idle for at least 4 days in the sun on a slope upwards to allow water in the exhaust to completely drain out.
8. Water entry into the engine can lead to severe and expensive damage.
9. Before using the vehicle, drain and replace all contaminated oils and fluids to minimise internal damage.
10. In floods, fuel tanks can be contaminated by water. This can cause the vehicle to stop running. Diesel fuel systems are particularly sensitive to water contamination.
