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 Jan. 1, 1998 |
Into the Drink...and Out Again (hopefully)The original version of this article was a bit longer, a bit wordier, and had a few tidbits I've left out here. It was simply too long. This piece will be dealing with some of the Cruiser specific (and a few general) waterproofing concerns that should be addressed before you get into the habit of leading your buddies across the local rivers and streams. Subsequent installments will offer some hints on the actual techniques of getting your rig to the other side with minimal risk, and delay. If you want or need any clarification on any of the concerns I raise here, or if you have any comments or arguments against my comments, please drop us a line via the Land Cruiser Q+A section. Rockcrawler wants to be a helpful source of information, and "interaction" is what the net survives on. Keep It Running!The most immediate concern when you steer your rig into the water,
is that the engine keep running until it reaches the other side. To
insure this, it needs at a minimum ignition, and fuel (and air)
delivery. The factory straight six has an inherent handicap when it
comes to distributor location. They will allow water into the cap almost instantly when submerged, or even sprayed hard. If you can locate one of the later model distributors (and it's matching ignitor), it can be installed in the earlier engines. The '78 and '79 versions will drop right in. 1980 and later units are larger, and require either the fitting of the corresponding side cover, or some creative hammer work for clearance. If you can not find (or afford) one of the sealed type distributors, there is still a bit you can do to improve the stock unit. A good solid bead of silicon will go a long way toward sealing the cap onto the distributor body. Before you mate the two together, smear one side of the joined surface with a little oil or grease. This will keep the cap from sticking solidly when you need to remove it, but will not prevent a water proof seal. After the cap is set onto the distributor, let the sealant set up
for a while before snapping the clips into place. This will keep from
squeezing it all out of the junction before it is firm.
Once the cap seam is addressed, there is still the problem of the
connections between the cap and wires, and the wires and plugs. This
is a concern with the O-ring distributors as well. The answer is
pretty simple. Liberally cover the metal to metal connections with a
coating of dielectric grease. This will help insure a good (and
corrosion free) electrical connection, and will more importantly,
prevent water from infiltrating the junction. A good set of sealed
wires (at the boots) helps a lot too. I have even siliconed the spark
plug boots to the ceramic insulator to prevent water infiltration. You
stand a good chance of damaging the boots upon removal, so I wouldn't
recommend this with expensive wires. With the semi-electronic and the
fully electronic ignition systems, it is important to keep the ignitor
dry too. For that matter even with the oldest rigs, you want to keep
the coil dry. The high factory location is tough to improve on. It can
help a little to move the ignitor and coil to the top of the firewall,
just below the hood. I have also seen it moved into the glove box,
which is a very good location. At the very least you will want to wrap
the electronics with some plastic and duct tape before entering water
which will be deep enough to get into the fan. While this will not
help much if the ignition components are actually submerged, it will
go a long way toward fending off spray and splashing.
Cruisers from almost all of the "emissions era" also have a simple electronic box to control these systems. Assuming that you still have these systems hooked up and functioning, you will need to protect this box from water as well. It is located inside the rig, under the dashboard, on the inside of the firewall, or the side of the footwell. The "tupperware" approach will work ideally for this application. Make sure that you use the gasket between the carburetor and the air cleaner. Also make sure that either the stock rubber backed washers, or something similar are used on the studs which secure the air cleaner to the carb, and which secure the top piece to the bottom. You will want to seal the pre-heater air inlet during deep water crossings. It is also a good idea to apply some non-hardening sealant to the pivot point for the diverter flap, to help keep water from entering via this spot. The seams of the stamped inlet neck itself will not be hurt by a bit of sealant either. Keep Breathing!If your older 2F equipped rig is like most, it is very likely to be missing the rubber extension tube from the air cleaner assembly to the air inlet horn. Even if this piece is in place, there is a high probability that it is split and cracked. You will want to replace it if this is the case. The opening of the air assembly itself is not ideally located. (The F engine air cleaner shares this problem.) Without the extension tube of the 2F assembly, both style air cleaners locate the air inlet in spot where a spinning fan will toss a pretty fair bit of water. Utilize the stock extension tube and air horn with the 2F setup. An additional measure of water protection can be gained by flipping the air horn over, and mounting it on top of the front cross member. This will move it an inch or so higher, but more importantly will place it within the small bubble of air that is formed under the leading edge of the hood when water rises high enough to submerge the front of the vehicle. This will not matter for more than a couple of seconds, but that couple of seconds can be the difference between coming out the other side of an unexpected hole in a riverbed, and stopping dead in the middle of the current.
You folks driving the FJ60s have probably already said "Wait a minute, that's not where my air intake is!" For those of you who aren't familiar with this model, the FJ60 air inlet is lower onthe front bulkhead. Roughly behind and below the driver side headlight. Two words for you. Move it. Relocate the end of the extension tube as high as possible in the front corner of the engine compartment. For that matter, even removing the extension tube is preferable to the factory location. The mechanical fuel pump of the Cruiser has a pair of vent holes in the bottom. During lengthy submersion water can enter through these vent holes. In rare cases it can enter in large enough quantities to result in a burst diaphragm within the pump. To insure this will not happen is fairly simple, but does entail a little work. Remove the pump from the engine for easy access to the area in question. Plug one of the holes (a dab of silicone will do). Then carefully drill the other hole out to a slightly larger size, and insert a press in fitting (a simple piece of brass tubing will work great). Attach a vent hose to this fitting, and remount the pump. Run the vent hose to the upper edge of the firewall. This will keep it well above the water (hopefully) and it can be tied into the other extended vents that will be run from other assemblies.
Make sure that the PCV valve and the dipstick both fit tightly. I have seen an F engine with less than ideal connections at these points suck well over a gallon of silty water into the crankcase as it sat, stuck in a soft spot in the river, idling while awaiting the winch hook. Alternators, Regulators, and Fans...Oh My!If you have an older F engine which mounts the alternator low on the drivers side, it is a good idea to relocate it using a later model bracket. It'll still get wet, but not quite as much or as often. For those of us who are running dual alternators on our F or 2F engines, there is no way around having one of them mounted in the lower position. The only advice I can offer here, is that if you use one for your primary, and one for a secondary, wire the higher one as primary, so that you are less likely to suffer a no charge condition during and immediately after a dunking. The regulators on some models are mounted lower than they could be. Moving it as high as is practical and a liberal application of silicon around the case seams will be helpful in keeping your charging system functioning properly in the long run. Again the tupperware solution would work, as would relocating it to the glove box, but this is probably overkill. Your engine cooling fan is of no small concern either. A standard belt driven radiator fan has got a good bit of grunt behind it. The fan itself is designed to move air however, not water. When it encounters this heavier medium, there is a lot more stress on the fan blades. The very early stamped metal fans generally shrug it off. The later clutch fans will usually not accept enough torque through the clutch to cause problems either. The mid era plastic fans which did not incorporate a clutch are the most likely to cause us concerns. When the blades are stressed by the encounter with water, they will flex forward as they try to pull the water back and past them. This can, and often does lead to contact between the fan blades, and the radiator. If you are lucky, it will just flatten some of the fins. If you are very unlucky, it will tear the guts out of the core. The normal effect is somewhere in between, but it almost always involves a ruptured radiator core, and leaking coolant. Realize too, that you don't even have to enter water deep enough to submerge the fan. Heavy spray and splashing from a high speed crossing of shallow water can toss enough water into the fan to load the blades, and flex them forward into the radiator. If you have one of the fixed plastic fan fans, it can be swapped for
one of the earlier metal ones. These are pretty inefficient however,
and will soak up a bit of power and even effect fuel mileage to a
small degree. The clutch fan from a later model can be fitted to the
FJ40, providing that the matching water pump (or at least the matching
shaft flange) is used. For my uses, the perfect answer to this problem is an electric engine cooling fan. I prefer to remove the mechanical fan completely and use only the electric fan. The advantage of the electric fan is that it can be shut of with an override switch for water crossings. This prevents any possibility of radiator or fan damage, and also prevents the fan from throwing water all over the engine compartment. (This hasn't been stressed here, but it is a definite concern with a belt driven fan.) Earlier I referred to disconnecting a fan belt, tieing a clutch fan or covering a radiator. These approaches make be acceptable when you have only one water crossing, or many miles until the next. Some of the routes I follow however require literally dozens of crossings between 2 and 4+ feet in depth, over 10-15 miles stretches. Stopping before each entry into the current to perform manual modifications is not a practical option. Reaching down and flipping a dash mounted toggle switch is. (Note: It is very often a VERY bad idea to drive into or through a water obstacle without wading across it first. This is not always the case however as I'll discuss when we get to the Techniques section. As it happens, in the example above these are trails which I am very familiar with, I have a good deal of experience at "reading" a river prior to crossing, and I always travel these trails with at least one other well prepared rig and experienced driver.) Stayin' Dry.There are still a couple of lubrication related concerns to deal
with before we take our cruiser swimming. Both of the axles, and the
transfer case have similar vents. The advantage of sealed beam headlights for deep water passage should be self evident. Non-sealed beam units should be sealed as well as possible. A higher mounting point is even better for this kind of use, especially if you want to effectively use your lights while you're in the water. I've referred several times to the need to run the vent lines to the top of the firewall. Without terminating the lines outside of the vehicle (this is an option), or in the interior (an option too, but one which involves the risk of lubricants draining out of the vents, and making quite a mess in the event of a rollover), this is about the highest location you will achieve. Once the lines are routed, my preference for the actual termination is to end them in an open "air reservoir". This can be something as simple as an empty pop bottle, which is sealed at the top, and vented at the bottom. The lines end inside the bottle, at the top. If you have tied adjacent lines together with "T" fittings, this is simplified. With this approach, the components are still open to the atmosphere, but are prevented from ingesting water through the vents, even if the rig goes very deep, and the vents are submerged. Unless the air volume within the combined components shrinks enough from cooling to draw the entire contents of the reservoir in, they will be protected from the water at the open bottom of the reservoir. This has still turned into a fairly long bit of preaching. And none of this stuff is a "sexy" as lift and large tires (which is also a very effective way to ease water crossings).But it is these kinds of preparations which get your rig dozens and even hundreds of miles down a wild trail, and back again. Next time we talk about some of the things to do, and not to do when you really want to reach the other bank. See ya on the trails, Mark... Photo Notes:
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All Rockcrawler content including photos and text
Copyright © 1997 Rockcrawler. Article photos and text Copyright
1997 Mark Whatley. |
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With
the low position on the side of the block, it doesn't take much to
submerge the cap. If you have a '77 or earlier rig, unless you do
something, this will immediately stop all internal combustion. The '78
and later models used a fully electronic distributor, which secured
the cap with 3 screws, and an O-ring. They also have a vacuum line
running from the cap to the air cleaner, and a vent line which opens
inside the cab behind the glove box (or close to it in the case of the
'55s and '60s). This setup is VERY water resistant, and the vacuum
line will remove the trace amounts of moisture which might find it's
way in, before it can cause any problems. Unfortunately the earlier
rigs used the familiar snap latches to secure the cap, and were not
equipped with either O-rings or vacuum/vent lines.
If
you have a modified GM or Delco distributor, or a Mallory unit, you
will have the same concerns about the lack of sealing as these older
factory units. The same approach to sealing will work with them as
well. If you have one of the caps with a "window" in the
side to facilitate points adjustment, you will also want to seal this
securely. 
A
better solution (which doesn't require moving everything to the glove
box) is to find a sealable plastic kitchen container (tupperware, or
the like), which is of an appropriate size to hold the electronics.
Remove the unit from the fender, and then bolt it back into place with
the mounting bolts passing through the plastic container, cut/drill
holes for all the wiring to pass through the container walls, and seal
this around the wires. Then all you have to do is press the top into
place, and the ignition is about as water proof as you can make it.
Just for the sake of thoroughness, while you have your dielectric
grease in hand, it is a good idea to open, clean, and grease all of
the various plugs and connections under the hood. While this is an
easy matter to accomplish in an early model '40, it will be a job in
itself under the hood of an FJ60. 
The
F style air cleaner was never meant to be used with an extension tube.
With careful work with a hacksaw, dremel, or air cut off wheel, the
flared horn on this air cleaner can be bobbed short to accept a tube.
Once this is done, an extension and air horn such as found on the 2F
can be added. Make sure that you use some silicon sealant on the drain
holes in the bottom of this air cleaner too. There is another approach
that can be taken with the F engine assembly. The housing can be
removed from it's mounting bracket, and turned so that the inlet
opening points to the rear. This will shelter it from spray off of the
fan, and will also place the intake in a perfect spot to take
advantage of the reduced depth within the engine compartment that a
proper fording speed will create. Once this is done there is no reason
not to attach an extension to the inlet as previously discussed, to
extend the intake all the way to the top of the firewall. In fact it
would be a simple step to go ahead and install a full fledged snorkel
to this air cleaner at this point. But since our focus here is merely
getting the best performance out of the factory setup, we'll leave
that 'til a later time. My trail companions and myself have so far not
been able to form a definite opinion as to whether routing the air
inlet to the firewall is better or worst than routing it to the front
edge of the hood. In different situations, with varying driving
styles, and crossing conditions, we have see advantages to both
location. Many folks assume that the firewall would be a drier spot,
but in some cases the water is slapping up against it and actually
rising higher than at the front edge of the hood, which will sometimes
see reduced depth due to the bow wave. A snorkel renders it a moot
point, but since we are trying to improve everything as much as
possible before turning to that route... 
The
air (or smog) pump also has vent holes in the body. In rare cases the
pump can actually ingest water and then pump it into the exhaust ports
of the engine. Normally it is only very small amounts, but even those
small amounts aren't doing the pump any good. Especially if the water
is full of abrasive glacial silt as many of our Alaskan streams and
rivers are. In the case of the small holes present in the back of the
housing of many of the air pumps, these can be handled in the same
manner as the fuel pump vent holes. The larger vent fitting found on
the top of the housing will need a larger hose of course. These vary a
little in shape and size through the different model years, so you
will have to see what type hose and junction fits your rig the best.
However you make the connection, run this line to the top of the
firewall along with the others that have been installed. 
On
some FJ55s, I have encountered clearance problems which prevented the
fitting of this fan. If you do have a clutch fan, or if you install
one, realize that it is still possible to incur fan damage to the
radiator. There is a simple trick which can be employed though. Before
entering a water crossing, take a loop of rope and secure one of the
fan blades to a sturdy point under the hood. Since the fan can slip on
the clutch, the rig can be driven for short distances, and at low to
moderate engine speeds with not problems. If the fan isn't spinning,
then there is no possibility of blade flex. Along those lines, the
belt which drives the water pump (and therefore the fan) can be
loosened or removed before a crossing. For a short, deep crossing this
is an option, but you won't wish to continue down the trail this way.
Draping a tarp over the front of the rig, to impede water flow through
the radiator is a simple and often effective trick. Your crossing
technique (speed primarily) will be a factor in just how effective
this will be. Make sure it is secure, or the current of the water may
pull it away and possibly entangle it in the wheels. 
These
all need to be extended as well (to the topof the firewall again) to
prevent potential water intrusion. The transmission does not use a
dedicated vent, but instead vents through the shifter tower, around
the gear shift lever. This can be sealed using a section of motorcycle
or even bicycle inner tube, stretched over the shift tower, and
secured snugly around the tower and the shift lever. A couple of
pinhole punctures will allow pressure build up from heat to escape,
without allowing any significant amount of water in when the tranny is
submerged. Packing the front hubs and steering knuckles as full as
feasible with grease will make it more difficult for water to find
entry at these points. In cold weather your hubs may be a bit tougher
to turn for locking and unlocking. Just exert slow steady pressure and
they will turn though. It is also a good idea to extend the vent for
the manual steering box as well. It will not ingest much water, but
any at all is still more than we want. And it is difficult to remove
once it does get in. (I've considered actually drilling and fitting a
drain plug in the box, but have not ever actually done this yet.) 
Another
approach which some have had luck with (I'm about to try this on a rig
myself) is to slightly pressurize the lines to the axles, transfer
case, and even the steering box and air pump. This has been done on
some miltary vehicles, and a handful of civilian production rigs
around the world and over the years. The pressure needs to regulated
to very low levels, and the volume does not need to be high. I am
leaning toward a constant bleed of air out of a relief valve to ensure
this. These lines are connected to a small air compressor. When a
crossing is started the compressor is turned on. The higher air
pressure will offset the pressure of the water trying to force it's
way past the submerged seal. The flow will also compensate for any
loss of air volume in these units caused by the drop in temperature
when the cold water washes over the components. Too much pressure will
force lube past the seals. And of course in the setup, the rest of the
vent lines would still be simply vented to the atmosphere.