SUVs are irrelevant during floods and here's why

The morning of August 12 came as another slap in the face of Filipinos in NCR, albeit a familiar one. Torrential rain throughout the previous night and well into the morning paralyzed the capital region. Emergency services and their all-too familiar rescue boats have once again taken over the streets of Marikina which were effectively rivers by that morning. The situation wasn't all that different in most other cities near the capital. Everywhere, there is news of stranded residents, jammed streets, marooned cars, and suspension of classes and work from kindergarten all the way up to government offices. Everyone was either stuck or slowly realizing they were stuck.

The commercials and ads would have us believe that SUVs were the end all and be all of our motoring needs. The prophecies of Ford, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Isuzu and all others told us that their powerful diesel engines, copious amounts of seating and cargo space, massive go-anywhere tires, and impressive ride height would be everything that the average Filipino family will ever need. Sadly, when you look at all the pictures taken on the evening of August 11 and the morning of August 12, it wouldn't seem so.

Examine all the pictures from those days and you will find that they all have one thing in common: Absolutely no cars were moving. And no, I'm not being pilosopo just because pictures don't do motion. Take a careful look and no private vehicle is splashing its wheels in the water. They're all parked safely on the asphalt of Marcos highway. The SUVs, along with other vehicles, were among the stranded people it was supposed save.

You see, the scenarios in which an SUV would make sense in a flood are actually incredibly little. In the photos above for example, the typical SUV *might* be able to cross the water no problem. But the handful of sedans in front blocking the SUVs will not be able to. If the sedans in front were crossing the flood, assuming it can, then why have the SUV in the first place?

You might say, "Well my Ford Everest has 800 mm wading depth." And to that I say, "Well, better get your boots and meter stick out then." Because unless your eyes has depth-sensing sonar, then you cannot guess if your SUV has enough clearance to wade through the flood which regular sedans cannot go through. 

If that's too vague, here's a clearer scenario for you to imagine:

You're in your SUV and in front of you is a flooded street. The Vios next to you has stopped and turned around because the driver knew he cannot possibly go through. The jeep to your other side is still pondering if he's going to risk it. The sidewalk is no longer visible and the walls of the nearby establishments give no clear sign of how high the water has reached. A small crowd from the aforementioned establishments has gathered outside, hoping for a safe ride home. A few meters away, a man is carrying his bag over his head. The water is up to his thighs. You use this to gauge the flood's depth. But wait! You don't know how deep the water is between you and him. Is the water on the man's side higher or lower? The ground might not be even. There might even be debris and uncovered man holes beneath the murky water. Do you, the proud SUV owner, charge through the water knowing full well that you might stall and be trapped? I'm not even going to mention the possibility of the small crowd pointing and mocking you for getting stuck like an idiot. 

Oh, and don't even think of comparing your SUV's wading depth to that of the truck that's going through the water. Those things have a higher ride height and are as dependable and repairable as AK-47s so the drivers can absolutely thrash it and repair it with a few tools under their seats. Unlike your modern, electronic and computerized SUV, which is more like an iPhone with a rugged case. I wouldn't throw it in the flood water if I were you. 

Too risky and too embarrassing. Heck, in our street, which also flooded up to thigh-level, half the households have SUVs. Guess how many waited the flood to subside? Yep, all of them. Absolutely all of them were nowhere to be seen on the flooded street during the whole ordeal. Not one of them dared to test the "high wading depth" the commercials have promised them. 

The Filipino people has to stop this mind-set of investing in something excessive for something that will rarely happen. It would be like buying a saw to do all your cutting needs even when a knife or a pair of scissors would do fine, but you have to have a saw because you think that some day, just maybe, you're going to buy some lumber that needs cutting (which you can already have pre-cut when you buy it by the way).

Now I'm not saying SUVs are pointless. They're legitimately useful vehicles. But to buy an SUV specifically because floods are prevalent in the Philippines? That's just pointless. You're just either going to be stuck in traffic along with other stranded smaller cars or too scared to test your SUV's limits.