Flooded my 4runner passenger side!

[Carova Colton]

Long story short, I flooded the right side of my 4runner in a water filled cross ditch and got stuck. Sat for a few hours until I could get it pulled out. It was my 2015 5th Gen Limited. My key fob won’t work and am getting the dash board disco. Cabin air filter is dry but the engine air filter is wet as well as the passenger floor carpet seats from front to back. The engine should be fine. It was shut off and not hydro locked thank god. I was planning on pulling seats and carpet to clean and dry out (already getting mold inside because the rig has not been able to dry out due to non stop rain. Any ideas on the electrical?? The water did not get to the center console electronics so that should be fine. Any help on the dashboard disco would be awesome!! Any tips on carpet and seat removal too. I watched videos of all the seat removal (yes I have 3rd row too) and it seams pretty straightforward. Thanks

 

[delloro]

What I would do:

Pull all carpet and padding out, have a professional clean the carpet and pad, using a mold treatment.

While that is being done, disconnect all wires you can see and clean and dry out the connections. 91 % IPA and a little compressed air works well.

Also, add and sound deadening you may want.

Remove all plugs, clips, anything else which goes through the floor, and seal them with some silicone. Might as well, while you can.

Reconnect and test before you reassemble.

Good luck!

 

[RichinRidgewood]

I would disconnect the battery right away

 

[Nobody Special]

Slap a dehumidifier in there if you can for now. Run an extension cord if you must/can.
Then lightly with an ozone generator to get in nooks and crannies.

Too much ozone is not good for certain materials.

That will at least slow things down if it is still raining.

 

[jp.vegas]

There's a whole bunch of electronic connections, cross connects, junctions etc. behind the passenger side kick panel. You'll see it when you inevitably pull everything apart anyway because you'll have to in order to address the mold and dry out the carpeting etc. If that area got wet, and it probably did, that's a decent place to start pulling apart connections and cleaning as noted above.

Next thing I'd do, once you have it running and the light show turned off, is sell the thing ASAP. You'll have endless grief from this.

 

[rageandlove]

Next thing I'd do, once you have it running and the light show turned off, is sell the thing ASAP. You'll have endless grief from this.

Yeah, that's a great plan. Screw over someone else. SMH.

 

[Mudballz]

That sucks but Park it real close to a bonfire doors open lol :lookout:

 

[JLTD]

There's a whole bunch of electronic connections, cross connects, junctions etc. behind the passenger side kick panel. You'll see it when you inevitably pull everything apart anyway because you'll have to in order to address the mold and dry out the carpeting etc. If that area got wet, and it probably did, that's a decent place to start pulling apart connections and cleaning as noted above.

Not to mention the wiring inside the door.

Next thing I'd do, once you have it running and the light show turned off, is sell the thing ASAP. You'll have endless grief from this.

Unfortunately, I have to agree… This might be a complete nightmare.

 

[flyrv9]

After battery is disconnected, pull and check all fuses with a meter (one at a time) in both fuse blocks.

 

[jp.vegas]

Yeah, that's a great plan. Screw over someone else. SMH.

If he goes through insurance it will have water damage noted anyway. If not, then caveat emptor. I'd never keep a water damaged vehicle for long, it will likely keep causing gremlins for the rest of its life. Why should I have to keep it forever? Am I somehow obliged to be noble and suffer myself for the good of mankind? I don't remember signing that contract when I purchased any vehicle.

 

[ForRun]

Yeah, that's a great plan. Screw over someone else. SMH.

Dealers do it every day, where to you think most the flooded vehicles go and please don't say the insurance companies eat it. I worked for insurance and they have no spine, heart or concern for anyone but themself and the shareholders.

 

[02SE]

Yep, there are A LOT of dishonest, corrupt people out there.

Anyone with integrity would disclose a vehicles past, to any prospective buyer.

 

[NYRunner]

Depending on how much damage is done your insurance company may total it anyway... every single thing that need to be done has a certain number of “shop hours” they’ll have to pay for to repair and that stuff adds up quick. Certainly worth bringing it to a repair place for an estimate to make it good as new

ETA- I know after my accident that really wasn’t so bad that it still came close to the ratio of cost to repair vs it’s value (I believe 75%) at which point they automatically would have totaled it

 

[Carova Colton]

Thanks guys. I’ll start with the toe kick and the door panel removal.
I disconnected and removed the battery immediately. Don’t want to sell it because I wouldn’t get what it is worth or into another one for the price. Eagle Scout here, couldn’t screw someone over for my own gain. My Dad is Navy EOD and beat the whole integrity lesson into me. Lol. It’s not salt water, just fresh rain water and I have a compressor and dielectric grease. I will keep you all posted on how it goes. Thanks!

 

[Mudballz]

Good luck scout certainly a uphill battle

 

[4FL]

I have a friend that partially submerged a Dodge truck in water, talking engine and driver side interior. He sprayed the hell out of everything with WD-40, smelled like, well, you know, lol, but seems everything so far is fine.

 

[ThorRides]

As long as you get after the connections soon (before they start to corrode), the Water Displacement formula #40 (WD-40) will keep the connections from corroding and you won't have the electrical gremlins people can experience if they don't treat all the connections. It is a PITA to get to everything that was submerged, but it will save the truck.

 

[Carova Colton]

Thanks guys. Been running the dehumidifier for a few days now to dry out the rig. Started pulling the toe kick electrical and sprayed it down with WD-40 and used an air compressor to blow everything out. Removed all the seats to give me room and remove the carpet. I strategically cut the carpet under the seat for easy removal. I was going to pull the plugs to ensure any water (if any) is blown out at first start. This rig has a push button (I’m not a fan-prefer a key but anyways) so is there any connection from that right side to the dash? Does anyone have a wiring diagram somewhere? Thanks.

 

[rageandlove]

Thanks guys. Been running the dehumidifier for a few days now to dry out the rig. Started pulling the toe kick electrical and sprayed it down with WD-40 and used an air compressor to blow everything out. Removed all the seats to give me room and remove the carpet. I strategically cut the carpet under the seat for easy removal. I was going to pull the plugs to ensure any water (if any) is blown out at first start. This rig has a push button (I’m not a fan-prefer a key but anyways) so is there any connection from that right side to the dash? Does anyone have a wiring diagram somewhere? Thanks.

Wiring from Toyota.

Will cost you a few bucks for a temporary subscription.

Drives me nuts this stuff isn't free.

 

[mountainbiker42]

Hey guys,

I come from the heavy equipment world which I know is different. The electrical systems, wiring harness, and ECM's all operate on a similar theory. Would that ECM in the passenger kick panel be waterproof, and would the electrical connection be waterproof as well?

If not, maybe that is where your Christmas tree dash is coming from (water allowing unwanted voltage to jump from terminal to terminal). I would imagine the fuse panel would have protected circuits from direct shorts. I would guess the harness is fine, but needs to have the terminals dried out. Worst case scenario, maybe that ECM in the lower kick panel would need replaced assuming you can dry out the harness okay?

I just don't see how this would create electrical gremlins for the life of the vehicle. When diagnosing electronics, the issue can only come from 3 things. The sensor, wiring, or ECM. Software issue's shouldn't apply to your situation.

I know this is all armchair diagnostics, I'm just spitballin' here and sharing my thoughts.