Driving instructor shares one thing to never do when passing through floods
Driving instructor David Thomas shared the one thing motorists should never do when passing through deep water flooding, as it could make your engine die.
As September is officially here, the Met Office predicts lots of rain will be falling across the UK. If this goes on, it's likely to cause flash floods on roads across the country.
While most people will know to stay off the roads in especially bad rain storms, sometimes it's needed to drive somewhere. In these moments, it's especially important to practice safe driving as to prevent any accidents on the slippery roads.
However, flash flooding can also cause the roads to get dangerous, which can be a nightmare for drivers if you get caught in it, as it could lead to your engine failing if you get stuck in the deep water for too long.
To help, a driving instructor named David Thomas from Stourbridge has shared the one thing you should never do when driving through deep water and flooding, as well as how to get through it safely. He took to TikTok to share his tips.
"Look at that, they've got waves," David is heard saying at the start of the video, which showed him sitting in the passenger seat of his driving lesson car, with a student sitting in the driver's seat.
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Through the window, you can see the car has just arrived at a junction, where they move to turn right by the green light. However, what David commented on was the large puddle that was on the road, which had resulted in several cars creating waves as they drove through it.
Meanwhile, in front of them in the left lane, a smaller black car hiding behind a white van can be seen having gotten stuck in the water.
"Engine flooded," David said. "You know what they probably did was come of the gas."
He went on to explain if you need to drive through any kind of flooded area or deep puddle, the first thing you need to do is put the car into first gear before you actually get to the deep water.
Then make sure there's enough room for your car on the other side of the puddle before putting your foot on the gas to drive through the puddle in one go without stopping.
He also went on to share the one thing you need to avoid doing in these situations to prevent your car's engine from dying.
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"The worst thing you wanna do is come off the gas at any point while you're going through the deep water, because water then goes into the engine, it gets sucked through the exhaust, goes through the engine and kills it," David explained.
"You want the exhaust to constantly be blowing out the back while you're going through deep water," he said.
He went on to explain in the caption of the video: "To drive through deep water in a petrol car, proceed slowly in a low gear, keeping the engine revs high and steady by maintaining a constant accelerator pedal pressure and slipping the clutch in a manual car.
"The high revs create a bow wave, pushing water away from the engine bay and preventing water from entering the exhaust and stalling the engine. Do not stop halfway through, if possible, and test your brakes gently after you have driven through the water to dry them out."
