<VV> A horrible mess

Mon Jun 9 06:35:09 EDT 2025

 Short story: I bought a "flood car 63 Corvette roadster" at auto auction back in 67 cheap. Fixed all I saw.including  Instrument cluster had silt in it , several wires in under dash  harness plugs needed attention (car quit at a busy Syracuse light at noon) . But the best one was while I was driving it a few months later a seat spring rusted into a sharp point and stabbed me in the butt. So prepare for surprises....?
    On Sunday, June 8, 2025 at 10:21:47 PM EDT, tony underwood via VirtualVairs <virtualvairs at corvair.org> wrote:   

This has happened to me.  I've rescued three different vehicles that 
"got wet" with good success and had each of them running in less than an 
hour... two of them at the same time although one wasn't that wet, got 
lucky.

If you feel lucky and it's taking a while to get help for the cars, you 
may want to take matters into your own hands.

If nothing has been done yet, don't wait too long... First, get 
underneath and loosen the oilpan drain plug.  You won't have to remove 
it completely, just loose enough for oil to begin dribbling out... or 
water, if a worse case scenario.  If oil comes out instead of water, I'd 
put the drain plug back then I'd pull the spark plugs and crank the 
engine.  Watch what comes out of the plug holes.  If water shoots out, 
you can expect that the carbs also have some water in them.   Continue 
to crank the engine until NO water comes out.   The carbs may be more of 
an issue that the layman may want to tackle in such a situation... but 
you will at least not have water sitting in the cylinders.  In my worst 
case scenario I cranked the engine with the chokes held shut to suck 
water out of the carbs until the engine finally began seeing gas instead 
of water.  No, it didn't hurt anything.  It eventually did start and run 
and blow steam out the exhaust which also had water in it.

If while cranking and no water exits the engine through the plug holes, 
put the plugs back in and start the engine.   If it won't start, you may 
need to remove the distributor cap and dry it out.   If any residual 
water managed to find its way inside the engine it won't be there 
long... Corvair engines run hot and any water will quickly boil away.   
NO it will not harm the engine doing this.  Many times a Corvair engine 
that only runs for short periods in damp weather will accumulate enough 
moisture through the crankcase breather or PCV plumbing to actually make 
"chocolate milk" under the oil filler cap.   With dry ignition and no 
water in the oil or cylinders it should start... let it run until hot.

Now:   If water comes out of the engine crankcase drain plug, let it 
flow until no more water exits the drain hole then screw the plug back 
in.  Then do the same for the transaxle drain to be sure.  A Powerglide 
usually won't take on water unless the seals are flaky or the water 
rises above the transmission filler spout and if that happens water will 
be in everything.  A gearbox transaxle can leak through the differential 
vent on the top cover... usually... unless it's clogged with road grime 
or dirt. Still, do the same water check on the bottom of the 
differential. With any luck there won't be any water in the transaxle.

One Corvair I rescued was completely submerged, all that was above the 
water was the windshield bow and the top outline (convertible) and the 
radio antenna.  The transmission was OK, differential had maybe a 
half-pint of water in it, had to drain the engine completely because it 
was full of water, and the oil had dribbled up through the dipstick tube 
('62 Monza with the non-sealing dipstick) and greased up the engine bay 
and under the decklid.   Carbs somehow managed to get very little water 
in them, amazingly enough.  I had it running, as mentioned before, in an 
hour following fresh oil and filter and ignition dryout.   Water did get 
into the rear wheel bearings... I'd hoped to get away with not having to 
go there but the bearing seals were evidently not up to it.   Both rear 
wheel bearings started making noise a month or so later.   The car had 
various other water issues after the flooding but they got worked out 
along the way.  It is still alive and well today after its very thorough 
soaking.  No, there was no water in the gas tank.

Hope you get yours straightened out quickly.  Just don't let them sit 
too long.

  tony..

  On 6/4/2025 1:34 PM, Chris Ziebell via VirtualVairs wrote:
> I have a 65 Monza convertible and a 61 Rampside pickup.  A week ago today,
> they were neatly and safely tucked away in the garage when, at 6:40 pm,
> there was a weather phenomenon referred to as a "microburst."  There was
> nothing micro about it.  At my house, we had 5 inches of rain in 20 minutes,
> and the wind was unreal.  My house flooded.  My garage flooded.  Both of my
> vehicles took on water.
>  
> When it was done, the seats in the convertible are wet, the pans are holding
> water.  I can tell that water came up over the engine, because there is silt
> on top of the motor of both vehicles, though the adjustor said that there is
> no water in the oil or the transmission fluid.  So he thinks no water made
> it into the engines or transmissions.  I see what he's saying, but the water
> was up to the carbs on both vehicles.  Surely the upper engine is
> contaminated.
>  
> So, he's told me to have them both towed to a shop to start the remediation
> process.  I'm in Austin, Texas.  What shop would you all use in the Central
> Texas area that you would trust with such prized possessions?
>  
>  
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