Whilst trawling You Tube to help me decide what I'll be purchasing (which keeps coming back to the Freel to be honest!) I found this little gem:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9OxW9i-lfM

I'm reasonably sure that this will be a forum member so if you recognise it then shout up! Now it's undoubtedly a lot deeper than I would dare take one without experience, but it got me wondering about one simple thing- how good are the door seals? Surely that car must have had a little water on the floors by the time it went through that!?

I've been spending some time over at Disco 3 and like the looks of them too but it keeps coming back to the running costs and I have a feeling that all the gadgetry on the Disco will cost quite a bit when it goes wrong! Blue

Mate, if my car was the slightest bit wet inside after that, it'd be on it's way back to the stealers.

Oficial wading depth is 500mm or 19 9/16" (aprox) in old money. We Don't Care About Pot Holes !!

It is OK upto high 22 cm

http://tinypic.com/usermedia.php?uo=JDduC2...h4l5k2TGxc

That clip is AlexG there is another clip on YT showing my crossing just before his filmed by Alex

It is good at wading but that was very deep, mine stated to scrabble a little due to floatation

Totally dry inside too  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

He he, excellent, I'm going to have fun when I get mine then

I didn't realise the door seals were that robust 'cos so many videos I've seen on YT seem to show water pouring in to the old Discos etc. Blue

When I'm wading the only thing I want to keep sealed it my backside

Believe me when it felt like it was about to lose grip and my DSC light was flashing I nearly lost it

Expensive mistake if it went wrong, luckily 10forcash was sat in the passenger seat and he hit the DSC OFF button so the engine didn't cut power and the failed bow wave flood the engine etc Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

The old Freelander was the first Land Rover without a chassis - they did a good job of that part of the design, the body shell was very stiff, you can open and close the door when severely cross axled - ie one wheel a couple of feet in the air.
Don't try this in inferior vehicles - eg Defender
This stiffness means that the door seals "when in good condition" work very well, in deep water the rear floats and you loose traction, not funny

The Freelander 2 is just as stiff, door seals work just as well, pity the air intake is so exposed.

Just don't hit the water at speed, I try to maintain 10 - 15 mph, please feel free to correct as this has just been trial and error. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

So I take it that when going through a lake the best plan is to have 3 well built people sat in the back to help weigh it down?

If water of that depth can cause it to get hairy for someone with experience then I think I'll wait until I've cut my teeth on something softer lol. Blue

Just watch someone else make the first crossing to gauge the depth.

The 500mm wading depth as specified by Landrover I believe is tested by leaving the vehicle standing in 500mm of water for several hours and the vehicle not coming to harm.

The actual depth you can drive through is different depending on the current of the stream you are crossing.
Think about it the 235/60R18 wheels are roughly 740mm dia. so the top of the wheel rim is around 600mm.

I am sure most of us have been as deep as the top of the wheels without hassle, the same depth in a fast flowing stream could be a different matter. Ok for a Defender that fills with water when it as much as looks at a puddle the extra ballast will aid with traction - maybe it's deliberate?

I do remember the first deep crossing, the guys on the bank were telling me to open the doors to let the water out, and were genuinely amazed when the carpets were dry.

A couple of well built passengers sound good, as long as they can be persuaded to get out and push/wade if things go wrong  Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

Andy131 wrote:

The old Freelander was the first Land Rover without a chassis - they did a good job of that part of the design, the body shell was very stiff, you can open and close the door when severely cross axled - ie one wheel a couple of feet in the air.

was your built out of different steel to mine? the windscreen cracked due to body shell twisting whilst driving in a field At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

If you want to see what can go wrong when wading then click this link and forward to the 2:00 min marker (and keep watching)!!

&feature=related

All the gear, no idea!

James

chicken george wrote:

was your built out of different steel to mine? the windscreen cracked due to body shell twisting whilst driving in a field

Hope the insurance covered it

Doesn't take much to get a wheel in the air

typical of a lot of pay-n-play sites.
If the car on your driveway has this registration - sorry, but it was fun and two weeks old.

If you look at this one you can see the tide mark is roughly level with the top of the wheel rim.
 Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

Some people think that if you are light enough and go quickly enough then you can skim across the top!

Mine the other week, and the door was opened just after.

 We Don't Care About Pot Holes !!

Lookers Park Royal wrote:

If you want to see what can go wrong when wading then click this link and forward to the 2:00 min marker (and keep watching)!!

&feature=related

All the gear, no idea!

James