Flood Damage In Vehicles Hard To See At First
SOUTH BEND — If you car was been surrounded by flood water or you’ve driven through it, listen up. Corrosion could just be starting, but hiding from drivers.
It can take months or years for corrosion to show up.
Signs water got into your car include waterlogged or musty carpets and waterborne mud or debris under the hood or panels in your trunk..
If you believe you may have water damage – get a detailed inspection and contact your insurance agent.
How to Spot a Flood-Damaged Car (via Consumer Reports)
– Inspect the carpets to see if they show signs of having been waterlogged, such as smelling musty or having caked-on mud. Likewise, brand-new carpets in an older vehicle may be another red flag.
– Check the seat-mounting screws to see if there is any evidence that they have been removed. To dry the carpets effectively, the seats must be removed and possibly even replaced.
– Inspect the lights. Headlights and taillights are expensive to replace, and a visible water line may still show on the lens or reflector.
– Inspect the difficult-to-clean places, such as gaps between panels in the trunk and under the hood. Waterborne mud and debris may still appear in these places.
– Look for mud or debris on the bottom edges of brackets or panels, where it wouldn’t settle normally.
– Search around the engine compartment. Water lines and debris can appear in hard-to-clean places, such as behind the engine.
– Look at the heads of any unpainted, exposed screws under the dashboard. Unpainted metal in flood cars will show signs of rust.
– Check to see if the rubber drain plugs under the car and on the bottom of doors look as if they have been removed recently. That may have been done to drain floodwater.
Source: WSBT