Will it make it?

Porsche Taycan swims through the Dubai floods

(Bild: Instagram.com)

Dubai was recently hit by a rainstorm of the century, causing immense flooding and subsequent damage. Videos show countless cars submerged in the masses of water. Most of them are only worth scrap metal. But one clip shows a "brave" Porsche Taycan plowing through the water ...

The video of the electric Porsche with bow wave goes viral on Instagram. People just want to know if it will make it through. The apparently all-wheel-drive car floats and only makes slow progress because the tires lose contact with the ground and propulsion is only generated by the wheels spinning in the water. However, the driver eventually manages to cross the water.

Here the Porsche Taycan floats without traction.

(Bild: Instagram.com)

There is, of course, no record of any damage caused by water ingress. However, it is likely that he would not have gotten this far if the drive had been an internal combustion engine.

This is because they have the problem that they suck in water when it reaches the air intake. And this is usually not at a very high altitude unless you have an off-road vehicle. A Range Rover has a so-called wading depth of one meter, so it can "wade" through water that is up to one meter deep. But only if you are not driving too fast and the bow wave spills over.

If water is sucked in, the result is a so-called water hammer. The water penetrates the cylinders and the pistons try to compress it like air. However, this is not possible, resulting in engine damage because the material is weaker than the water.

Incidentally, there is no need to worry about electric shock in an electric car, as the high-voltage components are well insulated. Nevertheless, it is not recommended to go into the water.