If you haven’t noticed by now, we’re having a somewhat… wet Winter season. From puddles stretching across half a country road, to floods transforming your local Main Street into a murky river, we thought we’d start off the new year with a little FYI on driving in water.

You may think you know all there is about driving through water, we mean, you’ve read about it and you’ve seen it lots of time on the television. Physically driving through a large body of water, however, can be very nerve wrecking. To combat this our first rule when driving through a large body of water is not to panic.

When Faced With a Flood…

Breathe. Before make sure the flooded section of road is shallow enough for you to drive through. 6 inches of water can reach up to the bottom of your doors and has the potential to be sucked into your exhaust pipe. If this happens your car can suffer great and costly damage- especially if the flood water is pulled into your cylinders or if it cracks the catalytic converter in your exhaust.

The centre of the road will be shallower than the edges though, if  you’re at all uncertain, turn around and find a different route.

When Driving Through a Flood…

If you have no choice but to drive through the flooded section of road, put your vehicle into 1st or 2nd gear and drive through at a brisk walking pace. If you attempt to drive through a flood at speed, as soon as you hit the water, the feeling will be similar to hitting a brick wall. If you manage to keep control of your car after that you’ll risk forcing water up over your bonnet and into your engine.

Slow and steady wins the race… at least with flood water. If you feel your wheels start to lose traction, your vehicle might well be trying to float. It’s a pain, but to counterbalance this open one of your doors and let a little water inside- this will help to weigh down your vehicle until you’ve reached the other side.

When Coming Out of Flood Water

Once you’ve survived the treacherous journey through the water, it’s important to make sure your vehicle is in good working order. Drying out your breaks is your first point of call. Gentle push down on your breaks as you’re driving to remove excess water.

Just because you may be driving an awesome 4×4 doesn’t mean you’re safe from flood water either. Flowing water is always dangerous and only 2ft of flowing water can sweep your vehicle away. Make sure you always check the depth of the water before you attempt any kind of crossing.

If you do find yourself rushing through flood water and are now searching for Land Rover spares in Somerset to replace your damaged 4×4 parts, don’t hesitate to contact us on 01458 834930 today!

Providing you with quality 4×4 salvage parts, spare parts, engines, gear boxes and breakers is all in a day’s work for us here at CWS 4×4. We like to know that your vehicle is well taken care of, especially if you’re intending on venturing off road during the new year.

To make sure you’re vehicle is running smoothly throughout 2016, we’ve come up with a couple of useful New Year’s Resolutions for your vehicle.

Clean Inside and Outside

It may not sound very technical but trust us, keeping your pride and joy clean inside and out will keep your vehicle looking its best. When you’re off-roading, your vehicle is subjected to all the dirt, dust and grime left on the roads as you plough on through country lanes and unpaved tracks. This can kick up a lot of dirt covering your wheels, licence plates, headlights and doors.

Make sure you can use your vehicle safely by cleaning the exterior regularly.

Cleaning the inside of your car is just as important. Spilt drinks, melted chocolate and crumbs from that take-away you chowed down on last week all add up to one very smelly car. Make sure you take out your rubbish and give the inside of your car a good Hoover and a dusting on a regular basis.

 
Deal with Small Problems Fast

Do you hear that rattling sound whenever you turn on your engine? The one that sounds like your vehicle is suffering from a small case of metal insects in its body? You should probably get that looked at. Like now. It doesn’t matter how small a problem may seem at the time, if you leave it for too long, you may find that your small problem has suddenly spiralled into a big problem.

The last thing you want during your new year is to deal with a costly repair job for something that could have been quickly and easily fixed. Make sure that you take your vehicle to a professional mechanic as soon as you see, or hear, anything out of place with your vehicle.

 
Schedule Regular Checkups

You may have an MOT every year but, if you’re one of those people who love taking their car out for a spin, it’s a good idea to book your vehicle in for a check up every six months. If you’re constantly using your vehicle you can wear down the various mechanisms and components without even realising it.

A regular check up will be able to identify any issues with your vehicle before they turn into small problems. This can include checking your tiers, keeping on top of your vehicles fluid and checking the electrics in your vehicle.

 
This new year, make sure you’re taking good care of your vehicle. We’re all guilty of neglecting the general care and consideration our vehicles need in order to run smoothly. If your 4×4 needs any spare parts after an adventurous 2015, contact us on 01458 834930 today and we’ll help you get your vehicle up and running for the new year.

Supplying drivers with quality Land Rover Discovery parts, we’re used to seeing the heartbreaking states that our beloved vehicles can get into. During the winter weather, we have a tendency to push our cars to the extreme, whether we mean to or not. With the ice and snow descending, here’s the second part to our winter safe driving tips to help you, and your vehicle, stay safe on the roads!

 
Do You Want to Drive in the Snow?
 
As we mentioned in How to Drive in Snow and Ice Safely (Part 1), when you’re planning your driving route this winter, it’s a good idea to give yourself plenty of time. It’s one thing to plan out your journey, however, and another to actually drive it. No amount of planning can prepare you for a road blanketed in snow.

• Take Your Time: When travelling on snow, everything takes twice as long and braking distances should be doubled. You’re basically driving on condensed water after all, take your time and don’t hurry anywhere.
• Just Keep Driving: It takes a lot more power to get your car moving after you stop than it does to keep the wheels rolling. When you’re coming up to traffic lights, slow your speed right down to crawling, try and keep moving as much as possible so that your car doesn’t lose the tracking it has in the snowy road.
• Remember Gravity? Powering up snowy hills will do nothing but have your car slipping and sliding all over the road. The trick is to accelerate on the drive up to a hill instead of on the hill. Once at the crest, reduce your speed and travel down as slowly as possible and, of course, try not to stop on a hill!

 
It’s Not an Ice Rink!
 
One of the key mistakes when driving on ice is speed. Going too fast can cause your car to lose traction which can lead to your vehicle skidding all over the road. Not nice. What do you do when you skid though?

• First off, don’t panic. If you’re travelling at speeds above 45 mph you’ll need to act fast in order to correct the skid.
• Don’t brake, don’t accelerate: Slamming on your brakes will more likely lock up your brakes and do nothing to change the trajectory of your skid. Accelerating will speed up your trajectory and make it harder to recover your skid.
• Turn into the spin. When your car starts to fishtail or skid, turn the wheel in the direction of the rear of your car. You need to get the balance just right though, if you turn your the wheel too far you can overcorrect your spin, causing it to skid in the opposite direction.

 
Most of the time, if you think the weather is too bad to drive in, it’s a good idea to stay home. If, however, you’ve ventured out into the wild winter weather and your vehicle’s suffered as a result, we have quality spare parts to keep you covered. To find out more, contact us on 01458 834930 and our friendly team will be more than happy to help find the spare part for you!

Off road driving is a thrill many of us simply can’t imagine driving without. Testing our skills on rough and rugged roads, through rushing streams and powering up muddy slopes is what we live for. If you’re looking for the ultimate high, why not try your hand at these nerve wracking roads!?

North Yungas Road- Bolivia

If it’s a road with many daring twists, turns and the occasional sheer drop you’re looking for, look no further than the North Yungas Road in Bolivia. This monstrosity has attracted dare devils the world over, some of whom met their match on the uneven, dirt road. At 4,650 metres high, you’ll need nerves of steel to navigate this rough, adrenalin fuelled road.
 

From the tallest mountain, to the deepest ocean; we hope your car can swim on this 4.3 mile long ocean road. The Passage du Gois, located in Northern France is 1 mile below sea level and floods twice a day. When travelling across this long, winding road, make sure you pack a dinghy, a wet suit and your flippers, you never know when you may find yourself submerged in the briny ocean!
 

Flying back across the world now, if the Bolivian road of death didn’t get your blood pumping why not take a trip across the Zojila Pass in India? This 3,500 metre high dusty mountain road gives way to a sheer, dusty, dirt road. There’s nothing along this highway to slow you down if you take a tumble over the side so make sure your off road driving skills are on point!