Bronco Water Fording Capability

[AllthePonies]

Could an Everglades (or any Bronco for that matter) actually ford water higher than the air intake that is just below the hood with a snorkel?

What kind of damage would this cause such as electrical problems with control modules and wiring harnesses?

I recall that in the F-150 owner manuals it states that differential fluid should be changed if fording water higher than the wheel hubs.

In my experience of fording a stream in a 4Runner, it gets pretty hairy when the water gets deeper than the wheel hubs.

Here’s a Jalopnik article that poses the question about what purpose a snorkel would have, including clarifying if it’s for dust or water: https://jalopnik.com/its-official-the-ford-bronco-everglades-is-coming-in-2-1847872564

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[69BroncoX302]

The rear diff has a rubber hose that goes up about 16 inches if I am correct soooooooo, about that far lol.

 

[AllthePonies]

The rear diff has a rubber hose that goes up about 16 inches if I am correct soooooooo, about that far lol.

Good to know. Wouldn’t they just run the differential breather hose for air expansion higher on an Everglade edition though to match the snorkel height?

 

[Jdc]

If water gets in the engine it will get hydrolocked. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrolock

 

[AllthePonies]

If water gets in the engine it will get hydrolocked. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrolock

Sure, but the air intake is already at the top of the hood. I can’t imagine taking a commercial vehicle like this through that much water without getting pushed around by the current or ruining some of the other systems. I guess I’m trying to figure out if the snorkel is actually practical or just for show. 33.5 inches is already an awful large volume of water.

 

[Jdc]

Sure, but the air intake is already at the top of the hood. I can’t imagine taking a commercial vehicle like this through that much water without getting pushed around by the current or ruining some of the other systems. I guess I’m trying to figure out if the snorkel is actually practical or just for show. 33.5 inches is already an awful large volume of water.

If the snorkel doesn't leak where it attaches to the air intake you could ford higher water assuming the electronics are protected

 

[AllthePonies]

If the snorkel doesn't leak where it attaches to the air intake you could ford higher water assuming the electronics are protected

Yeah, it was pointed out in a pre-Everglades water fording thread that the fuse box next to the battery could pose a substantial problem if submerged.

https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/deep-water-crossings-fording.16877/

 

[AllthePonies]

Since the existing air intake is already so high and designed to avoid water intrusion into the cylinders (plus considering the potential electrical issues), I’m going to assume that the snorkel is an extra layer of protection that doesn’t really increase fording height as much as it provides insurance in case of misjudging water depth.

I appreciate everyone’s input!

 

[MaverickMan]

I've never really forded and depth in something fuel injected. My old cjs use to take water above the fenders but not the hood.The one time i dunked the hood, it took me 2 hours to get it running. towed it in gear with the plugs loose, dried out the dizzy and dumped a can of starting fluid in the carb. Battery dunked and discharged so I had to pull start it. I will say that I have soaked alot of ujoints and gears over the years and it requires maintinence or near certain failure.

 

[Corsair]

If the snorkel doesn't leak where it attaches to the air intake you could ford higher water assuming the electronics are protected

Just make sure the water is extremely distilled, and you won’t have to worry about it.

 

[wetdog]

I like the idea of the Everglades package, repeated dunking even in fresh water put a strain on maintiance...you have to do it more often.

 

[Efthreeoh]

It's not a military HUMVEE with a sealed electrical system. Lol. Once the ECU gets wet, the engine will shut off.

 

[HideoutBronco]

The key to fording deep water is constant speed. Don't hoon it into the water and never ever ever stop. The bow wave you create will keep much of the water out of important places. Once you get over the bumper the fan can spray a lot of water into the engine and once you get over the hood the HVAC intake comes into play. Previous poster mentioned the axle breather but you also need to worry about the fuel tank breather. So while a snorkel is nice, the engine intake is not the only thing to worry about. That said, even at stock depth I would not stop. Yes I do have some experience with this. I had my old Range Rover in water up over the hood multiple times. With a brand new $50k truck I would think twice about going more than a foot deep.

 

[Desert_6G]

I wouldn't want to go any higher than the bottom of the door sills no matter if it's rated higher. Not sure why would someone even attempt it.

 

[FrankenRodz]

What about the Breather on the Tranny?
My Niece bought a Gulf Coast Audi and the trans stopped working within a few days.
Filled with water!
Obviously a Flood Car. She’s still fighting with CarMax.

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