Water can cause major damage to your vehicle, harming its engine and look, whether you’ve driven through a deep puddle, left a window open by accident, or have an issue with one of the door seals. Even if your car’s interior gets wet during rainfall, it might leave stains and odors that depreciate its value.
Faulty windows or door seals can admit rainfall into the cabin and trunk of any car, regardless of how old or well-maintained it is.
Even if it only leaks a few droplets of water now and then, a leaking door gasket can cause major issues, especially if water gets on the upholstery or electrical components.
Did you know Cold Air Intake can effectively help you overcome this situation? So you don’t have to be concerned about this since, in this post, we’ll go over four strategies for the way how to prevent hydrolock with cold air intake.
So, if you wish to protect your car from hydroblockage damage, read this text completely. You will undoubtedly locate everything you require here.
What Happens When A Car Is Hydrolocked?
The immobilization of an engine’s pistons by a liquid such as storm/rainwater is known as hydrolock.
The purpose of an automobile engine is to compress a gas/air mixture. Compression becomes difficult if a substantial volume of water is pulled into the engine’s combustion chamber through the air intake. Hydrolock Car Engine, in the worst-case scenario, will cause serious engine damage.
We see this situation a lot during the rainy season in South Florida. It can happen in an instant if you’re driving over standing water created by a rainstorm and water enters your engine through the air intake system.
Your engine grinds to a halt and refuses to restart. Hydrolock can cause damage that isn’t always visible. A slightly bent rod, for example, will not have a significant impact on the engine’s operation, but it will eventually destroy the bearing.
Other engine components, such as the camshaft, timing chain, timing belt, and piston skirts, may not have apartment damage but may eventually contribute to the engine’s major failure.
What Are The Benefits Of Cold Air Intake?
For many first-time gearheads, a cold air intake kit (CAI) is the entry point. They’re reasonably priced, simple to install and provide excellent value for money.
Let’s take a brief look at how CAIs work: A cold air inlet pulls cooler air into the combustion chamber from outside the engine bay. Combustion is aided by the chilly, thick air. Greater combustion equates to better results.
Many cold air intakes run tubing outside of the engine bay to get that colder air. This may lower the air filter element closer to the ground, increasing the chances of it sucking in water from a deep puddle, ditch, or pothole.
Why Is It Crucial To Understand How To Avoid Hydrolock When Using Cold Air Intake?
Performance intake systems are typically purchased to increase the efficiency of a vehicle. Mismanagement, on the other hand, can quickly result in irreversible damage.
A car’s air inlets are normally located behind the bumper cover at the bottom. As a result, it’s normally located away from the hot engine bay.
Air filters are typically located low and near the ground. This reduces the likelihood of water getting into the air inlets. This water can eventually cause the engine to hydrolock. As a result, driving in the rain with a cold air intake creates hazardous situations.
How To Prevent Hydrolock With Cold Air Intake?
If you plan to drive on a rainy day or are aware that you may encounter a puddle along the road, your automobile is in danger of hydrolocking. But don’t worry; we’ve come up with the most effective answer for you.
Using Hydroshield
This is a great way to protect yourself from the elements.
This is probably the most effective way to solve the problem of cold air intake hydrolock. Hydroshields are air filter protectors. They will protect your car’s air filter not only from water, but also from dust and grime if correctly mounted.
To do so, just remove the air filter and replace it with the hydroshield. After you’ve finished, replace the air filter. You are free to travel on any road you like.
Water Bodies to Avoid
Our first line of defense is to stay away from the offender. If necessary, take a longer route to avoid any water bodies. You never know what can cause the engine to malfunction. Even a small spray of water might get into your car’s air filter.
Examining
You can proceed if the bottom of your automobile is at a safe distance from the puddle you’re about to encounter. Calculate the distance between the bottom of your automobile and the road’s surface by measuring the depth of the puddle.
Pushing Your Car
This method is a little difficult, but it should be doable if you have some support. But keep in mind that this should only be used as a last option. If the puddles are deep and you don’t have any other options, choose this approach.
To begin, turn off your vehicle’s engine. When the car engine is turned on, the air filter is turned on as well. As a result, the water will be drawn in completely. Push the automobile forward carefully until it reaches the other side of the puddle.
Once you’re at a safe spot where there’s no water beneath the vehicle, give it a small shake.
The extra liquid will be removed from the air filter as a result of this. Now begin your journey by starting the engine.
Using Cold Air Intake Bypass Valve
The Air Intake Bypass Valve is a smaller filter that sits above the main filter. Air is drawn through the bypass valve instead of the primary filter if it becomes submerged in water. Consider sucking air with a straw. This is something you can comprehend.
Make a small hole in the center of the straw to begin. When you suck air through the straw’s top, it will be pulled from the bottom as usual. When you submerge the bottom of the straw in a drink, though, you’ll immediately start sucking the air out of the small hole you made in the middle.
How To Avoid Hydrolock An Engine
The inner workings of an engine are governed by time and precision, as well as physical rules. When things go wrong, it could be a minor issue that gets worse over time, or it could happen quickly and cause catastrophic damage. In most cases, hydrolocking an engine is the latter — if not disastrous, then at least quick.
Compression is used to get gas and diesel combustion engines up and running. As the piston rises, air and fuel enter the chamber and become compressed, creating the ideal atmosphere for combustion.
Because air is compressible, and when compressed, it becomes denser and hotter, the piston can move.
You’ve got troubles if water gets into a place where air is supposed to be compressed. You can pressurize water, but your engine will have to deal with the consequences.
When an engine hydrolocks, the pistons are unable to fully compress, causing the engine to either freeze if the car is idling or continue to move and quickly damage important components if enough power is applied, such as at higher speeds or with larger engines.
Bent or broken connecting rods, crankshafts, damaged cylinder walls, and blown seals and gaskets, to name a few, are common victims of hydrolock.
Water can enter the vehicle through the air intake valve, which occurs frequently during floods or when driving through deep puddles. Internally, coolant can leak or too much fuel can be discharged into a chamber.
During storms, stay out of deep water, and be wary of air intake modifications that drop your intake below what the original design intended. Keep water away from the air filter when washing your engine, or remove it entirely and cover the intake opening.
The two most important factors in avoiding hydrolock are vigilance and maintenance. Take your engine to a repair right away if you feel it has taken on water and is no longer turning over to avoid corrosion or further damage.
Frequent Asked Questions
Q: Is a cold air intake worth it?
More oxygen implies more power from your engine, so better airflow is a great method to boost your vehicle’s performance. Improved airflow is one of the main benefits of a cold air intake system. When combined with other vehicle modifications, this low-cost mod can be extremely useful.
Q: How does water not get in the hood scoop?
Manufacturers normally get around the moist problem by establishing a dead zone where the water will fall out of suspension, then collecting the water and draining it through a tube out onto the ground. There’s no big deal if the filter gets a bit moist.
Final Thoughts
Despite the severity of the problem, there are easy and effective solutions. Any body of water should no longer be an impediment for you. If you consider one of the options in this post, you can always keep your vehicle safe. However, if you encounter any further difficulties or have any questions, please let us know in the comments section below.