Ondoy was here and the floods caught us all by surprise. If your car was caught in the flood, don’t fret. It’s not as bad as you think. First things first. Do you have insurance? Does it cover “acts of God”? Good if it’s comprehensive. Enough reading for you, just pick up the phone and call the insurance guys.

Don’t have insurance? Well, the reality is that you will spend money to have it up and running. Either way, with or without insurance you will still spend money. The difference is that without insurance, you might have to spend a little bit more. Ergo, here are some basic steps that you need to go through when trouble shooting your flood-damaged car.

1. Let it dry thoroughly. Sounds like you’ll be helpless but it’s the best way, at least in my experience. Remember that your car will suffer more damage if it conked out during the flood than when you just turned off the engine BEFORE the water reached critical levels. Yes, I know. Your car will stink like hell so be ready for a terrible laborious cleanup. First, let it dry. There’s no going around it. DO NOT TRY TO START THE CAR immediately after the floods have subsided. Patience is key and you might just get out of there sooner if you let the car dry. Yes, that includes the interior. Especially the interior.
2. Once the car is bone dry (which could take days), check the oil by pulling the engine oil dipstick. When in doubt, my mechanic always tells me to touch the oil. The color will betray its real contents. A dark deep reddish amber hue will tell you that there is no water in the engine. However, a blackish/grayish hue means there is water. Again, do not start the car if there is water in the engine, otherwise your repair costs will skyrocket. Change the oil and also check the gas tank for water. You’ll find this out by inspecting your fuel filter. The smell is usually a dead giveaway.
3. Check the electricals inside the car. Electricals are a mostly overlooked by car owners, but in this age of computers, the electricals have become the soul of your car. The scariest part to replace is the ECU or the computer box. This computer box controls practically everything about your car, fuel, brakes, idling and all that, and depending on the make and model of your car, it is situated in different areas of your vehicle. In my Nissan Sentra, my mechanic told me that it is situated under the middle part of the dash, thus bumper-lever water is a no-no for me. Be careful with electrical shock. Wear rubber boots when fiddling with the electricals. If you’re brave enough, you can disconnect the terminals and dry them out before plugging them back in. Only then can you turn the engine on.
4. On a good day, open all the doors and let the bad air out before you start cleaning the upholstery. If you car is equipped with power seats, clean all the connectors and terminals. A tsikoteer suggested that motors of power accessories can take the water, as long as they were’nt working at the time the flood was entering the interior.
5. Check the battery. Dry it out first.
6. Clean the upholstery. This is not because you want to preserve the leatherette. You need to clean the interior because flood waters are dirty and people’s butts will be sitting there. By cleaning the interior you can be sure that neither you nor your kids will contract leptospirosis.

When your car DOES start, peel your ears for any clanking sounds from the engine. If you hear the sound of sardine cans being dragged with a string, then turn the engine off immediately. It means there’s water in the engine and the only solution is an engine overhaul.

Remember, do not try to fix everything yourself. Get professionals to do the job for you.