When it comes to waterproofing, Florida swamp buggy racers have their game on. In their world, a properly waterproofed rig is as standard as Florida humidity in August. If their rig isn't able to resist water, bad things will happen when it gets immersed in the deep water of the Florida Sports Park. Needless to say, that takes the fun out of swamp buggy racing.
To learn how these folks defend against the evil water, sand, and even pond grass, we scoured the pits and talked with numerous teams. We examined a number of rigs in a variety of classes, and what we found was surprising. A few of the steps are pretty standard, but the vast majority of waterproofing tricks these folks use are homegrown and derived from trial and error. Further, each team also has its own approach and opinion as to how to waterproof a rig. By far, the four-wheel-drive Jeep class faces the biggest challenge because these rigs are almost completely submerged when they enter the sippy holes. The faster classes have less to worry about because they actually skim over the surface like a boat, so their main concern is dealing with water spray as opposed to total submersion.
What follows are a few of the fascinating tricks swamp buggy racers use to keep their rigs alive.
One approach to keeping distributors...
One approach to keeping distributors dry is to seal them up by wrapping them with various materials. This GM HEI distributor is wrapped in three 1-gallon Ziploc freezer bags, which are zip-tied securely in place and then further sealed with silicone. The entire creation is then wrapped in duct tape for an added layer of protection.
Buggies with bodywork and...
Buggies with bodywork and the speed to stay on top of the water don't have to worry about full-on submersion. This rig belongs to one of those teams. They simply covered the distributor with a chunk of rubber innertube material and used zip ties to hold it in place. This protects the distributor against a fair amount of water spray.
This rig's 600-cfm Holley...
This rig's 600-cfm Holley carburetor is fed water-free air by a simple, high-mount air intake system made from 8-inch PVC sewer drainpipe which has been wrapped in duct tape. We saw air intakes built a variety of ways, but most shared the same traits. They were mounted securely at each end, had a large diameter for good airflow, and they drew air from high on the vehicle.
Some teams have chosen to...
Some teams have chosen to eliminate the wet distributor problem by eliminating the distributor. What they've done is switch to a direct-ignition system. Below you can see the crankshaft gear and sensor of said system. These two items are impervious to water and can operate even when submerged. Some teams use various types of covers and shields to keep the crank sensor from being damaged or clogged with pond grass.
On the left you can see the...
On the left you can see the waterproof box that this particular team used to house the direct-ignition electronics. It's mounted high on the vehicle, and it too is slathered in silicone at the base to help keep water out at its mounting points.
Silicone is used everywhere...
Silicone is used everywhere to help keep water at bay. It's not unusual to see it coating surfaces like where the starter motor meets the engine, and so on. Here you can see a carburetor ready for battle, slathered in the stuff. Some teams use red silicone so they can visually see that everything is protected.
Here you can see the electronics...
Here you can see the electronics in a Six-Cylinder Class buggy. These are the buggies that skim over the water and don't get immersed in the deep sippy holes. Most also have bodywork that helps to repel water to a degree. This team waterproofs their electronics by spraying them with marine application anti-corrosive spray and sealers.
Then they wrap the whole works...
Then they wrap the whole works in cut-down innertubes and secure the tubes in place with zip ties as shown in the bottom photo.
Keeping water out of engine...
Keeping water out of engine oil is also a good idea. A marine application oil dipstick (shown) can be used to keep water from entering the crankcase. The low-buck approach is to silicone the dipstick, fabricate a long breather tube, or temporarily seal the hole.
Porous material like this...
Porous material like this can be used to break down and dissipate large quantities of water to help keep it from flooding important components. On the left you can see how it is placed to dissipate water that could blast into the engine compartment on a full-bodied rig during racing.
Below you can see how it is...
Below you can see how it is used on the top of an air cleaner to help dissipate water so it doesn't flood into holes in the top of the air cleaner.
On the other hand, here's...
On the other hand, here's the low-buck approach. This team simply draped a Ziploc bag over the gauges and hoped for the best.
When water invades fuel, bad...
When water invades fuel, bad things happen. Some drivers take the extra step and wrap the top and cap area of the fuel tank with duct tape or other material in an effort to ensure that the fuel stays uncontaminated when the tank goes under water. Extending the tank's vent hose to the top of the vehicle is also standard. We also saw that some drivers were using fuel-system water separators as an added amount of insurance.
Gauges and water don't mix...
Gauges and water don't mix either. Since buying new gauges after every race isn't an option for most teams, they devise ways to keep them dry. This custom overhead system keeps the gauges out of the water even when the Jeep is immersed in the 5-foot-deep sippy hole. The gauges are mounted in a box that also serves as an airbox. The gauges and switches are sealed with a healthy dose of silicone for added protection from water spray.
Most teams seal up the axle...
Most teams seal up the axle vent tubes to prevent water from entering the housing. Drivers tell us that water and sand still manage to seep past the axle seals and gaskets, so after every weekend of racing the axles are thoroughly drained and flushed to clean out water and contaminants. The same procedure applies to transmissions and transfer cases. Some teams tell us that because transmissions are especially sensitive to water (ie: it kills 'em), they drain the transmission fluid after each day of racing to ensure that no water is in the system.
This is the high-end approach...
This is the high-end approach to waterproofing a tachometer. This team integrated some plumbing technology into a custom mount for their tach. The result is a gauge that's easy to read and safe from the elements.