I'm getting royally screwed, I need some help

[elderlycoffee]

Long story short I drove through some not so high high water, It was maybe 2 and a half inches deep but the splash got my CAI filter wet so I shut my engine off almost immediately and coasted to the side

I had my car towed to my dealer and they are telling me I need a whole new engine.

Something just doesn't compute and I'm 100% positive they are ripping me off what can/should i do.

[numbnuts22715]

so you shut it off? it didnt shut off?
Are they trying to void your warranty as well for having the cai?

[mazdaspeedster3]

Yea, did it ever start again? You would have to suck some serious water to get Hydrolock. Also your insurance covers Hydrolock.

[zuku26]

If they are trying to void your warranty and are making you pay out of pocket, I would contact your Insurance Company, You may be able to file a claim that way instead, since it was a traffic related issue.

[mazdaspeedster3]

It is a comp claim... Same as your car rolling into a lake or stream.

[coololddude]

dealers luuuuuuv voiding warrantys. have to keep that in mind when modding. its now their decision.

[mazdaspeedster3]

If you do the insurance claim they will make them prove the Hydrolock and pay for it giving you back the warranty for at least another 12 months or 12k miles.

[15min5k]

Cai Ftl!!!

[mazdaspeedster3]

I will the ass and say it. You need a hell of a lot more water than a 2" puddle to get hydrolock. You have to suck up a lot of water. MOst of the time if you get water in your intake piping you will throw a CEL for the water covering the MAF. If you went through a puddle big enough that you shut the car down yourself and then had it towed in to the dealership without further investigation.... That tells a story in itself. Sorry to be the ass but you put it out there. I would have pull the plugs and cranked it over to get that water out, put the stock air box back on and driven it to the dealership. If it died on the way I would call them and tell them I am stuck on the highway come get it. If I made it, I would just say something isnt right with the motor... Fix it!

[Speed3Rookie]

I will the ass and say it. You need a hell of a lot more water than a 2" puddle to get hydrolock. You have to suck up a lot of water. MOst of the time if you get water in your intake piping you will throw a CEL for the water covering the MAF. If you went through a puddle big enough that you shut the car down yourself and then had it towed in to the dealership without further investigation.... That tells a story in itself. Sorry to be the ass but you put it out there. I would have pull the plugs and cranked it over to get that water out, put the stock air box back on and driven it to the dealership. If it died on the way I would call them and tell them I am stuck on the highway come get it. If I made it, I would just say something isnt right with the motor... Fix it!

+1.........

[08cosmic3]

There is NO WAY you can Hydrolock a Speed 3 with CAI. How many times have we read this? I guess his Speed 3 can't read. Sorry to hear about your car, hope the insurance covers it. If the CAI is mazdaspeed and the dealer installed it, then the insurance should cover it. I hope so.

[ericrapp]

It is under the Mazda green so should be covered. This is not right. Coffee old guy, did the car suck water or what?

[duy856]

if the dealer voids the warrenty, do they tell you its voided? or they just write it down

[15min5k]

Hydrolock isn't covered under warranty. Dude is screwed period. Should've gotten an SRI instead.

[dkswim]

even mscai is not covered under warenty on hydrolock

[FrequentFlyer]

HE SHUT THE ENGINE DOWN AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALER. There is no confirmation that the motor is even hydrolocked other than what the stealership is telling him. Like others have said, if you drove through 2 1/2" of water, that's not even enough water to submerge the bottom of your wheels, much less get through the underbody pan and submerge your filter. You'd have to drive through AT LEAST a 12-18" of water to do that. If anything, you may have sprayed the MAF sensor with some water and caused your engine to stumble or stall, but as you said, YOU shut down the motor, which leads me to believe there probably wasn't a problem to begin with. You were just taking a precaution. Me thinks you set yourself up for failure. I would go to the dealer and see if your car starts up, but if the dealer knows you're coming they can easily sabotage the car to make you think it's broken. If they don't let you touch the car, tell them you're filing an insurance claim. That'll change their minds.

[Huligan]

2 inches of water hydrolocked u? were u doing 80 mph?

[bombermanx]

actually, if you go through the puddle that is high enough to reach the filter, the bumper would have pushed the water aside creating a low point behind the area of water impact. Some water may get pass through vents, fog light, and what not, but if it's not the size of a lake, the filter is not even close to being submerged. Maybe some water splash from the wheel through the wheel well liner vent but that's it.

[mazdaspeedster3]

Short ram isnt going to stop hydrolock either, just makes it harder to get. I seriously hate these conversations because in the 20+ years of using CAI's I have never heard more people getting Hydrolock, never! You would have to be sitting in 3 feet of water and start your car, even then... That is an AWEFUL lot of water to suck up into your intake.

[ericrapp]

speedster you have not been running Cai s for twenty years. hahah But I have had them on my cars since 2001 and never had issue or heard of it occuring. Does not mean it does not happen just seems it would take some effort to do or Rally racing maybe

[Super Unique]

all this talk of hydrolock makes me miss my jeep. But then I was worried about hydrolock when running through 4-5 FEET of water LMAO......

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9102826812545332041

[Antonio DiMarco]

Short ram isnt going to stop hydrolock either, just makes it harder to get. I seriously hate these conversations because in the 20+ years of using CAI's I have never heard more people getting Hydrolock, never! You would have to be sitting in 3 feet of water and start your car, even then... That is an AWEFUL lot of water to suck up into your intake.

Me thinks this is yet another instance of an unsubstantiated report that is sparked on by rumor and hersay:

"I heard a guy who did this." "I heard a guy's, neice's husband who did that and hydrolocked their engine." Blah, Blah, Blah

Don't even pay attention unless there's evidence to back-up this "Hydrolock" occurance.

[Sacrilicious]

what we need is more clarification from the OP. we actually don't even know for sure that his car is actually hydrolocked. all any of us know right now is that the dealer claims he needs a whole new engine...even though he shut his engine off as soon as he hit the water.

here's what we need to know from the OP:

1. what exact do you mean by shutting your engine off almost immediately? did you do it as soon as you felt the car start shuddering/sputtering? did you do it as soon as you saw that you were in the water and killed the engine before it started sounding funny?

2. does the car not start now? have you looked at it? have you scoped the engine through the oil fill hole to see if there's actually water inside?

after you answer these questions, you can start figuring out what to do instead of taking the stealership's word on what's wrong and what needs to be fixed.

[ericrapp]

I feel that speculation and hearsay from a person in seemingly good standing is good enough for me. If you do not like our country just move back to wherever you came from. i will be removing all the sacrilegious parts from my car directly. The Mazda gods infer that it should be so. And I strongly assume them to be noble and righteous and will bow to them as the trees do the mighty winds. i am sure the M god will reward me for my faith in something or another.

[coololddude]

^^^^^^^^
sniffing too much glue, i betcha!!

[ericrapp]

Oh so thats what that shit in my respirator is. They told me it was to make me happy and everything would be just fine! Thanks for the heads up old dude

[HenryK]

The MAF sensor got some water on it and may or may not be ruined. remove it and see if any moisture is there. Dealers are hurting for work so you paying for a new engine realy helps out their bottom line. Is there another dealer or independent you can take it to. Be worth the tow charge. Then make sure you file complaint with your state and BBB if it is proven they lied to you.

[ericrapp]

What is hydrolock exactly? I guess i have not thought it out. I keep thinking, sucking water all the way to the motor. Or is it just enough moisture to mess with the sensor as you mention HenryK?

[Nismothecat]

wikipedia is your friend

Hydrolock (short for either hydraulic lock or hydrostatic lock) is a condition of an internal combustion engine in which an incompressible liquid has been introduced into its cylinder(s), resulting in the immobilization of the engine's pistons. The liquid causing this malfunction is often water, hence the prefix "hydro-". Hydrolock occurs in a 4-stroke engine when liquid is sucked into the engine's cylinder(s) during the intake stroke and, due to the incompressibility of the liquid, makes the compression stroke impossible. This, in turn, prevents the entire engine from turning, and can cause significant engine damage if one attempts to forcibly turn over or start the engine. Typically, connecting rods will be bent, making the engine uneconomical to repair. Confer flooded engine and vapor lock, two unrelated conditions which could easily be confused with hydrolock.

[PCspeed3]

raw deal bro. maybe you could hit the city for not having a road that drain well enough. You could hype up the fact that 2 inches of standing water is public endangerment. Get goin fast enough and you'll be skatin' arcoss the top not able to steer. BTW, were you on the gas when you went thru the small lake? I dont think the engine is sucking hard enough while coasting to get hydrolocked in 2in. water.

[Nutari]

so um..

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4116762&postcount=1