spicy_mchaggiz

Whats now a long story short, street flooded and my scion tC got water in it from the storms last friday/saturday. Witnesses say at 1:30 it was above the license plate, it rained for 3-4 hours after that meaning more and more water got in. Under the hood was soaked when I opened it about 6:45am. The car also had 3-4" of water above the carpet. Insurance company I'm going through is Geico, and vehicle is at a shop in Yorktown waiting to goto Toyota. Anyone have ANY experience with flood vehicles and repairs? Or even Geico? Vehicle is titled in Illinois so it falls under Illinois' insurance laws.

Known issues:
Airbag light is on (Claims adjuster claimed it magically went off today)
Unlocking the vehicle went crazy morning of (Adjuster claims it works fine)
Vehicle bogged down moving it out of the driveway (Adjuster claims it works fine. Said he checked "all fluids" and saw nothing so he let the car run for 20 mins today. According to the wife he barely took the dipstick out)
Standing water in car, carpet like a waterbed
Exhaust spewed water for quite some time after it was started even at the Adjusters facility. (He claims its all completely normal)
2 main wiring harnesses run along the lower end where the door meets body. Both were submerged.
Seats wet with water almost to where you sit
Horrid mold and mildew smell in cabin

nftuatn

they should total loss it...a freshwater flood car is better than a salt water flood car but its still a flood vehicle...tell geico you do not want a flooded car....i dont know what ill laws are but in va they salvage flood cars on a regular basis..

nftuatn

and yes they will spit water for hours till it all dries out...

will the car be fine? most likely for years yes...wires that get wet(fresh water) will dry and wont corrode nowhere near as fast as saltwater...

but i would raise hell till they totalled it...

spicy_mchaggiz

Yea, the Adjuster is saying because it was fresh water it won't corrode AT ALL. My entire job in the AF and why I'm out here is dealing with corrosion on a daily basis. And while the electronics may be fine now, I don't want problems down the road that could endanger the vehicle. That and the value has already dropped a ton just because of this. According to Illinois it will be branded a flood vehicle "anytime rising waters enter the vehicle and passenger or trunk compartment." And the issue that I don't feel safe hauling our 5 month old in a car that has a higher potential of issues.

nftuatn

tell the adjuster that and if he wont total it make sure you have those pics and talk to another agent...

brian (cobra4b) was a insurance agent...i dont know if he will chime in...but you could pm him if you felt the need

TATTRAT

Looks flooded. Stop hitting the gas and let it rest

spicy_mchaggiz

It coasted to where it got parked outside the house. The adjuster has been the one messing with it.

Fabrik8

You can tell the adjuster to get a proper education before asserting bullshit like that. I've worked in the marine, automotive, and industrial fields as an engineer and technician, and it would be very convenient if the adjuster was correct. Unfortunately, that's not the case.

Unless the flood water is pure (distilled) water, there will be corrosion. The corrosion might be minor depending on the ion composition of the water (salts, acids, etc), but there will be corrosion. Most of the electrical connections outside of the passenger compartment use waterproof connectors which are fine for shallow submerged situations, but the passenger compartment connectors are not. I'm not trying to say that everything will self destruct (because it won't), but it's naive and insulting for the adjuster to imply that a flooded car is just like a non-flooded car.

The bogging down could be a simple issue of the water in the exhaust making too much backpressure.

Fabrik8

Also, don't let the adjuster start dicking around with a flooded car unless he's going to take the car off your hands. I'm assuming he isn't a certified mechanic (and this isn't something easily visible like collision damage), so I'm not sure what kind of assessment he can make about whether the car is safe and in good working order. As far as I'm concerned, he has no more business inspecting your engine and drivetrain for damage than the high school kid who bags your groceries.


This is why you have insurance after all. If the car has been damaged and devalued, insurance should cover that.

spicy_mchaggiz

So Geico order parts and started the repair of the vehicle without authorization by me. Apperently because it went to this specific shop it was an EXPRESS FIX claim and we had little say in what happened. I immediately stopped the repair process and asked for an explanation and second opinion. I also sent a lengthy email saying my concerns with the vehicle were going unnoticed and that they aren't looking at the pictures I had posted on Geico. The adjuster claimed my concerns are real and not falling on deaf ears, but he cannot see the photos.

The story shall continue. But in the meantime, anyone know of a decent shop to get an opinion on a flood vehicle?