It’s the nightmare scenario: you come down in the morning, your garage is flooded and your cherished classic is sitting in dank water. Here's what to do if you find yourself in this situation.
Here’s the plan:
1. Obviously the first thing to do is drain the water out of the garage. Easier said than done until the flood waters subside.
2. Use a plain water hose to rinse off every surface of the car inside and out.
3. Get the vehicle into a dry and warm garage, then begin dismantling. The whole interior will need to come out, along with all soundproofing and fabrics. Usually the headliner can stay in, and in some cases the dashboard. Dry everything out separately, and while it’s all drying, mop up the steel interior of the car.
4. Once the car has dried properly indoors — 20-25 degrees Celsius for three-four days with localised heat applied with a heat gun or hair drier (gently!) should do it — you can repaint, re-Waxoyl, repair and re-assemble.
5. If your engine has been submerged, remove spark plugs and turn the engine over, then change all oils before actually starting up.