How far can you submerge a cruiser?

[JordanJ]

Anybody know if the hybrid batter is water tight? No reason other than curious… I’ve been through my share of very sketchy crossings in my Tacoma (fried ecu with water up to the windshield). But saw some convos about snorkels and whatnot, got me to thinking… if the hybrid batter is exposed to water, and it isn’t water tight… what’s the point of a snorkel anyway? Anybody have a clue?

 

[Nuke]

Not sure re the hybrid battery, but from another thread it appears the rear differential is not vented properly (needs an extension hose) for water deeper than roughly the centerline of the differential. Easily solved, but something to be aware of.

 

[JordanJ]

Yea a diff breather is about as easy a mod as possible, I’m just very curious if Toyota even knows. I haven’t been able to get a straight answer from anybody at a few different dealerships… it’s always “well don’t do that.”

 

[EOD Guy]

The hybrid battery is not watertight by any stretch of the imagination! Imagin a hundred or so, 3v dry cell batteries hooked together and covered by a tin shield, while the individual cells might be water proof, the connections are not. (just an example, the individual cells Toyota uses are way different)

 

[JordanJ]

Well that’s disappointing and scary (living in hurricane country)

 

[JordanJ]

But I suppose it would have to be pretty well sustained in water to penetrate the seals enough to seep in that much

 

[katekebo]

It's not published in the US documentation, but without modifications most off-road Toyotas (4Runner, FJ Cruiser, older LC) can safely go into water 700mm (28 in) deep. The LC 250 should be the same. It's the number quoted in UK and Australian publications. This assumes that you drive slowly, don't stop in the water for extended time, and it's not sea water (highly conductive).
It's a good practice to lubricate the prop shaft yoke and U-joints after deep water crossing, and check the oil in front and rear differentials and the transfer case for signs of water. The transmission vent is routed higher (about 800 mm above ground) so transmission should stay dry as long as you don't "race" through the water.
When I had the FJ Cruiser I crossed deep water (20-25 in) many time and never had any signs of water in the differentials - the vents are supposed to be designed to keep water out and apparently they did the job. The LC shouldn't be any different.

 

[EOD Guy]

I wouldn't recommend anything deeper than the floor pan or you might be replacing a lot of components as the stereo amp is mounted to the floor under the driver's seat. But to each their own.

 

[Nuke]

The hybrid battery is not watertight by any stretch of the imagination! Imagin a hundred or so, 3v dry cell batteries hooked together and covered by a tin shield, while the individual cells might be water proof, the connections are not. (just an example, the individual cells Toyota uses are way different)

Just curious EOD Guy, how are the Toyota individual cells different? For good, or bad? Thery definitely have a generous warranty.

 

[JordanJ]

28” is very very shallow in my opinion, and I’m by no means saying I’m heading to some rivers to test things out or anything. Diff breathers are easy enough to cover I’d say most bases, but let’s say another hurricane rocks the gulf coast here and on our way north there’s areas of 3’ or more (not unheard of at all), I was just curious if there was any kind of actual testing for the battery “housing” or anything to that nature. Obviously driving through a river isn’t a good idea but I’ve never had a hybrid before, so this is a new spectrum of potential water related issues I’ve never encountered. Just thinking out loud here guys.

 

[Markarian421]

From the Japan catalog (translated by Google): 700mm.

 

[JordanJ]

So what I’m interpreting from this is, above bumper=bad

 

[Nuke]

Even this seems it would suck water into the rear differential vent. Not sure how the front differential is vented...

 

[JordanJ]

I would assume so, that level is far above the diffs, but from my experience, I think you would have to be under for a good little while before water had a chance to really suck in. I went through quite a number of crossings of that relative depth on my Tacoma and never had an issue. But of course then I learned hard lessons the more tenacious I got… diffed out hard in a crossing that was just shy of door handle height, took about 10 min to recover but cab was already full and fried my ECU among other things to include water in diffs and essentially everything, not to mention the mud and silt that was absolutely everywhere. Anyway, I soon had breathers on everything and a snorkel and dielectric grease as part of my regular kit. But obviously, I’m at a stage now of plan for the worst, and hope for the best. Fingers crossed I never find out with this rig!

 

[EOD Guy]

Just curious EOD Guy, how are the Toyota individual cells different? For good, or bad? Thery definitely have a generous warranty.

The Toyota batteries, at least the ones I've seen taken apart, are more of a liner flat plate approx 1/2" to 3/4" wide and 12" to 18" long, stacked and bolted together with conductor strips connecting the cells together. The after market rebuild kits look more like oversized AA batteries stacked into plates (cells) and the plates are bolted together and conductor strips connected etc......... My ebike batteries are built with the oversized "AA" in one massive bank (52 volts) etc........

 

[Nuke]

The Toyota batteries, at least the ones I've seen taken apart, are more of a liner flat plate approx 1/2" to 3/4" wide and 12" to 18" long, stacked and bolted together with conductor strips connecting the cells together. The after market rebuild kits look more like oversized AA batteries stacked into plates (cells) and the plates are bolted together and conductor strips connected etc......... My ebike batteries are built with the oversized "AA" in one massive bank (52 volts) etc........

I presume this is referring to the Toyota NiMH batteries, not the Li-Ion?

 

[EOD Guy]

The diff vents are mounted just on top of the axle. If any fording in your plans, you really should extend the vent to a higher location up in the engine compartment. Very much a DIY mod.

 

[EOD Guy]

I presume this is referring to the Toyota NiMH batteries, not the Li-Ion?

I couldn't swear to that, but I assume so. The ones I've seen apart were on a Prius.

 

[Blue Sky]

Ahhhh, pretty sure my forum photo says it all. Should I be worried about this? Sounds like the diff. vents are cheap and easy insurance but I’ve already done a handful of mellow low river/wide stream crossings about 12-18” deep.
Wondering if I should change my rear diff. fluid after seeing this thread. Am I overreacting?

 

[Nuke]

Ahhhh, pretty sure my forum photo says it all. Should I be worried about this? Sounds like the diff. vents are cheap and easy insurance but I’ve already done a handful of mellow low river/wide stream crossings about 12-18” deep.
Wondering if I should change my rear diff. fluid after seeing this thread. Am I overreacting?

I would just check the levels and examine the fluid, to be sure water has not entered.