Water Crossings

Off-road driving tips, skills & practices

River crossings are an inevitable challenge. Handled correctly, they can be made without incident, but they can also go wrong fast. Avoid deep crossings if possible, and always approach them with respect. We’ve had our fair share of mishaps − from a blown engine in a V10 Touareg, to a partially submerged Land Rover pulled out by a three-wheeled digger.

Step 1 – Assess the situation

By ‘assess’, we mean make sure that you won’t drown your vehicle or get washed downstream. A very rough rule of thumb is that standard 4x4s shouldn’t ford deeper than tyre height, because many manufacturers locate the air intake at the top of the wheel arch.

You can wade deeper than this without a snorkel by creating a bow wave in front of the vehicle;keep to a steady speed just above walking pace (about 10km/h) in second gear low range.

Know your vehicle’s wading depth, but also approach every situation with due caution. Look for the shallowest point, signalled by current flows, and watch where animals or the local people are crossing. If the water is flowing too quickly to walk through, then it’s also too strong to drive through. Always try to walk a deep crossing before driving it, to check for depth, rocks, holes and traction.

Step 2 – Get your vehicle ready