Rogers 07

Well, the 07 rolled past 125,000 then other day and it occurred to me that I hadn't done any work to the car (except oil and filters etc) for a long time, So I pulled out my maintenance records just see what was needed. I last changed the plugs and wires and coolant around 75,000 miles and noticed the drive belts have never been changed.
So here is where I should have left well enough alone and not opened the hood. As I was going to the parts store to get the plugs, wires, belts coolant , etc. It started to rain, (Not that unusual here in Palm Beach Fl in September) any way, this particular rain cell looked like a mini Hurricane forming right over the car!.. It was raining so hard and so quickly the parking lot that I pulled into was flooded to the point I couldn't see the curbs because they were under water!.. and because the drive way was slopped down, as i entered the parking lot, the nose of the Vette went down into standing water almost 10 inches deep. and guess whats down that low in the front of my car, The veraram air intake.... and sure enough the engine died instantly !! So here I am blocking the parking lot drive way, It's raining like Noah needs to build another Arc and I have no choice but to open the door to push the car out of the way. And because God has a sense of humor, as soon as I opened the door, water over flows the door jam and floods the floor boards. I immediately shut the door, and just for fun try the starter to see if it will start........NO, the engine is locked up and the starter cant spin it, but that doesn't stop the starting system from trying anyway, The starter got so hot it burned the wires going from the solenoid to the starter motor. So I'm in the middle of a small hurricane, stuck in the middle of small lake with acrid smoke pouring out from under the hood......!! So I pull the hood latch, then open the door again, jump out with my 10MM socket and get the ground disconnected from the battery terminal before the wiring melts or catches on fire!! By now Im soaked to bone, but the car isn't catching on fire so thats good, except that now without electrical power....The doors wont open, and the key to open the rear hatch is inside the car (Of course it is !!!) So I reconnect the battery (Luckily the starter system decided not to keep cranking the engine) so I can roll down the window pull the shifter into neutral and push car into a parking stall.

By now Im looking like a drowned rat, Im angry, frustrated tired and fed up, so I walk the 2 miles home (In the rain) because my cell phone is on the work bench in my garage at home!!

When it stopped raining a few hours later, I called a tow truck to haul the Vette home. Luckily that went without incident and the tow truck guy was very professional and helpful.
The next morning I get up and took a look at the car, I open the doors and vacuumed out the standing water from the drivers side. Then I jacked it up and took a look underneath, The starter smelled really bad and I could see the burnt wires going to it. So I pulled the battery, checked the cables and removed the starter motor. Then just for fun (I have a wrench just for hand turning the engine) and of course it wont turn at all......
The next step is to pull the spark plugs and see how much water is actually in the cylinders, Well 5 of 8 cylinders had some water in them # 6 was full and was preventing the engine from turning over (Apparently water really doesn't compress!!) . After running down a new starter and all the parts I originally intended to get, I put in the starter, fixed the burned wires, reconnected the battery and hit the starter to spin the engine, The engine cycled thru a starting sequence and it looked like a rain bird sprinkler with all the water spewing from the cylinders as it cranked! . After a few spin cycles (theres a Pun in that statement I think !!!) , I Installed the new spark plugs and wires, It was now the moment of Truth, had I damaged any internal components from Hydraulic locking a cylinder? The oil level was normal, after draining a little oil from the pan no water or unusual metal parts appeared, so I took that as a good sign . I hit the starter, the engine cranked coughed and sputtered a couple of times then as each cylinder came back to life the engine was purring like normal with no apparent internal damage! After a good test drive, no codes appeared, the engine ran like it always has. life has slowly returned to normal!! I don't think Im going to tune it up again for another 75,000 miles!!

msawdust47

Wow. At least it came out ok in the end. I think I might have been in tears before the end of that day.

CyberBullet

Wow! Was that ever a test of your patience. Glad everything worked out for you.

Bruze

Ha, I was expecting the worst as I came to the end!

Glad it worked out.

wayback

Your unlucky day turned out to be a lucky day after all. Glad it all worked out.
Have a friend with a Vararam who was not so lucky.

Rebel Yell

I think we have the start of a great dramatic/horror movie here. I laughed , I cried , it was an emotional roller coaster .

Seriously, that story sounded like a normal day in my life. So happy to hear there was no permanent damage.

Mike's LS3

Glad everything turned out fine.

Next vararam air intake post that laughs at water ingestion should read this thread. I would be looking for another air intake.

owc6

Glad it didn't lock up permanently.

I'd be concerned about the water/moisture in the cabin now. At the very least, I'd have fans in it with the windows open and the top off. Maybe even pull the carpet up until it's completely dry with some baking soda sprinkled on for odor control.

wayback

You can rent ozone generators that will get rid of musty smells once it is dry. I would pull the carpet and padding myself. Not to hard to do.

4SUMERZ

I have a Vararam, and in such Emergencies, I keep a set of sockets in the back, so I can disconnect the filter housing if that same scenario should happen. I do have a front facing camera mounted above the front air dam, so if I ever see water on the monitor, then I will stop, and unbolt the vararam (I hope).

I'm glad all turned out for the best, after it was all said and done!

C6topless

just be glad you didn't float away in the storm ...

Joe B.

Is there no way to stop the starter from cranking in a situation like that?
Not funny.

CHJ In Virginia

Congrats - you have to be the luckiest SOB on the face of the earth !! If that had been me - the engine would have been toast with bent / destroyed internals. Be sure to get the wiring / solid state stuff dried out ASAP. Corrosion will haunt you with many gremlins in the future if you don't.

Virtual Geezer

Damn -- what a nightmare. You did an excellent job telling the tale, too! I was literally holding my breath at the end, hoping that your engine wasn't wrecked. So happy about your happy ending. As CHJ in Virginia said above, if it would have been me, the motor would have been junk.

Rogers 07

Thank you all for replying, Yes it could have ended worse and knowing my usual luck with these kind of things, I was full expecting an engine overhaul in my near future. So taking my wife's sage advice as I walked in the house soaking wet, "You shouldn't drive the Vette in the rain, its not designed for that" I could only smile......

vettesmith02

A TUNE-UP....

It was a re-build!!!!



Thank God, it went so well.

Anselmo Moreno

Everything that could of possibly gone bad did. Sometimes, the only thing that can keep you from exploding is to take a deep breath and laugh at your misfortune. Glad everything worked out !

HOXXOH

It's probably a good thing you left the cell phone home, since having it fall in the water would have been the next thing to happen in the long line of "Is this sh-t ever going to stop?"

Glad you survived and the sunshine has returned.

RagTop69

Hey, neither you or the Vette drowned. That's a good thing. Glad to hear you both survived. Those DIY trips to the parts store can be a real adventure.

Welker1

Wow ... glad to hear things turned out alright in the end