Reducing slash/spray when driving through standing water

[Filbee]

I'm sure I can't be the first to ask this, but I couldn't find anything when I searched..

With all this water about, I was quickly reminded how much of a splash and spray you get when driving though even relatively shallow patches of water on the road at sensible speed.

Every time I hit a big puddle/standing water/flood, even at low speed, I'm amazed how much water flies up in front of the truck, up the bonnet and onto the windscreen. If the wipers aren't going before you hit the water, you'll not be able to see anything for a couple of seconds.

Has anyone found a way of preventing or reducing the amount of water that comes up at the front?

Quote

 

[Chicken Drumstick]

Drive slower or don't drive through water..

Joking apart. I think it is due to the short front over hang and high ground clearance. When the wheels displace the water it goes up and you drive into it. A lower vehicle with wheels more inboard and a larger distance to the front of the vehicle will likely trap more of the water under it. All IMO

My Jimny and Jeep XJ are/where the same as a 90 when driving through water. 

e.g.

See how much water is kept under the vehicle and directed out of the arches. Remember there is as much water going under as out.

On a 90 the water isn't kept under the vehicle as well.

[Escape]

8 hours ago, Chicken Drumstick said:

Drive slower or don't drive through water..

This! Anything up to the axles (say 1ft) doesn't really matter because a Defender will only displace the water in front of the tyres. It's only when the level reaches the bumper that you want to go deliberately slow. You don't want to make a splash, just a gentle bow wave as that creates a lower water level behind the bumper, so keeps the engine bay somewhat less flooded.

On a paved road, there is no need to build speed, just steady progress will do. When traction is likely to be lost in off road crossings, it's a different story, but then you'll want a properly prepared vehicle so you don't need to worry about water getting everywhere.

[Sigi_H]

Mudflaps on the front bumper? 😁 Could be a unique selling point 😇

[miketomcat]

My ibex confirms all this. The ibex has a shorter, higher overhang at the front than our 110 and is much worse for spray on the windscreen.  In fact it's so bad that when I first built mine I had to ask TSD if his was as bad, because I thought I'd done something wrong.

So the only way to fix the problem is to fill the gap between the body and ground with more bodywork much like most other 4x4's , which completely defeats the point of owning a defender.

Mike

[Snagger]

You could add a boat bull to the front, but I suspect that won’t help with hydro planing…

[jeremy996]

You seem to get a bigger splash with more agressive tyres! The Grenadier does the same thing, hardly surprising as it is similarly short nosed and high-riding.

Slow down is the only really effective solution.

[steve b]

Tall skinny tyres help...

Steve

[Bowie69]

9 hours ago, miketomcat said:

My ibex confirms all this. The ibex has a shorter, higher overhang at the front than our 110 and is much worse for spray on the windscreen.  In fact it's so bad that when I first built mine I had to ask TSD if his was as bad, because I thought I'd done something wrong.

So the only way to fix the problem is to fill the gap between the body and ground with more bodywork much like most other 4x4's , which completely defeats the point of owning a defender.

Mike

Can confirm, LGT is great and getting water on the windscreen, and has a chopped nose... 

[Filbee]

Thanks for the replies folks. It was worth an ask. 

I always drive slowly through anything that looks more than a couple inches deep. The issue is more when you're driving along at normal road speed, you come round a corner and there's a puddle. You don't have time to scrub off much speed off before your wheels hit it and SPLASH!! There's almost a comically disproportionate amount of water spraying up and covering the windscreen and suddenly you can't see anything until you flick the wipers on.

My tyres are 265/75 16 Coopers, so nothing particularly big.

If that's just how it is and there's no simple "if you fix one these (insert description of some piece of plastic/ally sheet/stainless that looks like it cost about half what's being charged to make) here it will solve your problem" option, then I'll just carry on as before and be quicker to hit the wipers 😁👍

[Maverik]

I recently replaced the wiper boxes on my 90 with the design development engineering fancy-pants ones, and one of the pro's of them is they do tend to respond a bit quicker than the previous genuine ones - helps with the splash on the windscreen problem a little.

[simonr]

30 minutes ago, Maverik said:

design development engineering

They make some nice parts!

Having replaced the wheel-boxes once, for the amount of time & effort involved, I would happily pay that to get something that works like it ought to, rather than the genuine replacements which barely work better than the broken ones!

[Chicken Drumstick]

10 hours ago, Filbee said:

Thanks for the replies folks. It was worth an ask. 

I always drive slowly through anything that looks more than a couple inches deep. The issue is more when you're driving along at normal road speed, you come round a corner and there's a puddle. You don't have time to scrub off much speed off before your wheels hit it and SPLASH!! There's almost a comically disproportionate amount of water spraying up and covering the windscreen and suddenly you can't see anything until you flick the wipers on.

My tyres are 265/75 16 Coopers, so nothing particularly big.

If that's just how it is and there's no simple "if you fix one these (insert description of some piece of plastic/ally sheet/stainless that looks like it cost about half what's being charged to make) here it will solve your problem" option, then I'll just carry on as before and be quicker to hit the wipers 😁👍

 I would think if you are serious on tackling this, then lowering the vehicle an inch or two and a big front skirt that runs the entire width of the vehicle and maybe slightly different shaped front wheel arch spats. You could also look at adding some kind of re-profiled and/or aero aid along the leading edge of the bonnet to try and direct the water in a different direction too. Although personally this all seems like a lot of work and effort for a rather specific use case. I'd suspect just buying a different vehicle would be a whole lot easier.

I'd guess a Disco 1/2 or RRC would be much better in this regard, while still being essentially a Defender under the body work. But I couldn't find any photos on a quick search.

I did find this, which shows how well a different front bodywork directs the water away from the screen...

 

Same searched had this image, I'm pretty sure it is an XJ Cherokee and as you can see, a lot more water going up in front of the vehicle compared to the Disco Sport. The Cherokee has quite a similar front end profile/design to a Defender.

 

[David Sparkes]

On 10/22/2023 at 8:50 AM, Sigi_H said:

Mudflaps on the front bumper? 😁 Could be a unique selling point 😇

Some pictures to aid recollections.

Volvo, action shot.         BMC Mini in Australia          BMC Land Crab          Volvo          BMC Land Crab, Action shot, (London to Sydney Marathon?).

[FridgeFreezer]

I'd wonder if a small filler piece between the back edge of the bumper and the bottom of the front wings would help a little (literally a small strip of aluminium might do), likewise however much "mudflap" or skirt/valance you could be bothered to hang below the front bumper / front wing in front of the tyres, just as long as the airflow at speed doesn't push it back into the tyre.

[Snagger]

4 hours ago, Maverik said:

I recently replaced the wiper boxes on my 90 with the design development engineering fancy-pants ones, and one of the pro's of them is they do tend to respond a bit quicker than the previous genuine ones - helps with the splash on the windscreen problem a little.

I fancy some for mine.  They oversweep in the wet.

[Filbee]

6 hours ago, David Sparkes said:

Some pictures to aid recollections.

Volvo, action shot.         BMC Mini in Australia          BMC Land Crab          Volvo          BMC Land Crab, Action shot, (London to Sydney Marathon?).

Those Austin 1800s look awesome 😎😁