Finally happened--got caught in the rain

[76 Caddy]

So yesterday I decided to drive the Brougham to work, weather forecast was partly cloudy with no chance of rain (at least when I check yesterday morning) and I don't even raise the garage door if there is a hint of rain.  Well right after lunch it started pouring.  In the 21 years I have had this car, it has never seen rain let alone been in it, so for the first time I finally had to use the wipers.  Oh well.     

And yes, it has good blades on it.

 

Tim

[Mark Shaw]

Just wipe it down and be glad it finally had a soft bath in soft water with no minerals or chlorine.

Edited December 31, 2022 by Mark Shaw (see edit history)

[76 Caddy]

2 minutes ago, Mark Shaw said:

Just wipe it down and be glad it finally had a bath.

It was clean, now I will have to clean it again especially those big white wall tires everyone loves on old cars. LOL,

 

Tim 

[TerryB]

As a former motorcycle rider with nearly 40 years in the saddle I can attest to the accuracy, or lack of it, for those days when no precipitation is in the forecast.  One time, early in the riding season, that mistake in the forecast was actually snow flurries.  Makes for an exciting ride on two wheels.

[Pfeil]

The hard part (especially daily drivers) is the clean up. Just the frame and suspension can take 2-3 hours and underbody floor another hour.

My 69 LeMans and my 65 111 VW haven't been in the rain since 1974, my 64 113 VW since 79, my 76 Olds Omega since 89.

[Hans1965]

My cars all get wet or dirty or both from time to time. Come on, they are cars, not candy. 

[intimeold]

4 hours ago, TerryB said:

As a former motorcycle rider with nearly 40 years in the saddle I can attest to the accuracy, or lack of it, for those days when no precipitation is in the forecast.  One time, early in the riding season, that mistake in the forecast was actually snow flurries.  Makes for an exciting ride on two wheels.

Happened to me, more than once. 

 

The cold water running down the back of your neck; just makes you go faster.   

[joe_padavano]

5 hours ago, 76 Caddy said:

In the 21 years I have had this car, it has never seen rain let alone been in it,

I'm willing to bet it was driven in rain and probably even snow in the quarter century before you got it. And frankly, it gets wet every time you wash it. The car isn't going to melt or shrink.

[John_S_in_Penna]

In an interview I did, collector Jay Leno said 

"most of my cars have never been wet" during

his ownership.  "Water gets in everywhere,"

he explained, and he lives in a dry climate where

rain isn't as frequent.

 

I don't have that situation myself--I wash my

cars carefully with water--but since he is such

an ardent collector, his thoughts carry some weight.

 

 

Edited December 31, 2022 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Jim Bollman]

I try not to drive my 50 Ford F1 if rain is forecast because my legs and feet get wet from the leaky window seals, last gully washer I got caught in I had to change my socks and pants when I got home since my legs were soaked to the knees. The 51 FarmOroad has no roof or doors, I have to bail water when it gets caught in the rain. Part of driving this old stuff.

[alsancle]

On a car caravan got caught in the pouring rain back in 2016.   I mean pouring!

[Grimy]

Stuff happens....we didn't put the side curtains on for either snow or rain and still survived

[Marty Roth]

Driving the 1930 Packard Touring on the AACA Vintage Tour based out of KIngston, Ontario, the 2nd (or 3rd?) day with two Board Members as passengers, we drove into a deluge.

I pulled into a covered Car Wash to install the side curtains for the rear passengers, and slid back the rear windshield to better protect them.

It did help some.

The last day of the tour, another Director and his wife were backseat passengers. Near the end of the day, headed back to the headquarters hotel, the skies opened up incredibly!

I headed for a muffler shop and without stopping to ask, I turned to get onto a set of ramps --  but I missed -- and the right front wheel was between ramps. The shop owner and a team of mechanics came to our aid with jacks and strong backs, and soon we were safely inside their garage - only a mile from the hotel, and with time to again get the curtains in place for our passengers.

We never did install the front curtains as the wind wings gave us plenty of coverage.

 

We drive them,

they get wet,

they get dirty,

we clean them,

and drive them again.

They've already earned all the awards, trophies, and recognition they're going to get, other than maybe repeat Preservation, Original HPOF, or Driver Participation-

but of course that would require cleaning them again 

Edited January 3, 2023 by Marty Roth
typos (see edit history)

[Billy Kingsley]

Seeing an old car with rain on it makes a totally different perspective..I don't know why, the basic shapes of the car haven't changed, but it does. 

 

A few years ago at Rhinebeck, probably 2009 or so, it started pouring during the Goodguys show. I took my umbrella and my camera and I was literally the only person on the field that I could see, I was getting great shots without people in them, until I saw a bolt of lightning hit a tree at the other end of the field. I then decided that being alone in a field of metal cars during a thunderstorm may not be the best idea and begrudgingly retreated to the building. 

Edited January 1, 2023 by Billy Kingsley
Found the photo I wanted, it was 2009. (see edit history)

[Hans1965]

I once experienced with my 56 Cadillac cdv a really heavy thunderstorm. Loads of water came down and I feared it will come in everywhere due to the strong winds at windscreen, vent and door windows as all rubber is old and cracked. But nothing, the wipers worked fine and the four of us drove slowly home, dry and safe. Amazing experience. 

[gungeey]

[J.H.Boland]

I only ever got caught in a thunderstorm once with the '21 Chevy. With the two piece windshield, it would have been helpful to have a wiper on both sides of the glass, plus another pair on my eyeglasses ! I finally pulled into a local variety store/gas station that had a protective canopy.

[Larry Schramm]

We have driven our 1913 Touring car so many times in the rain I have lost count.  Same goes for the 1915 Truck.  Both vehicles hours & hours in the rain.  So far the vehicles are fine. Just clean them up and start over again.  I am sure I treat the vehicles better than when they were new and they will outlast me.

 

PS: No side curtains

[Mark Shaw]

12 hours ago, Marty Roth said:

We drive them,

they get wet,

they get dirty,

we clean them,

and drive them again.

Yes, many of us do!  And we are the ones who get the most enjoyment from this hobby!

[Buffalowed Bill]

In 1980 I had recently finished restoring my 1955 Studebaker Speedster. The car was not intended to be a trailer queen (a term I dislike intensely) but it was a new restoration and I wanted to share it before the new wore off. I had shown the car several times that year with excellent results. During the last week in July the last remaining concourse event in the PNW is held in Forest Grove Oregon, so I entered the car. 

 

For those not familiar with summer weather in the PNW we get very little rain and the driest week in the year is that week. So dry in fact that there is only about 3-4% chance on any given day. My wife and I drove the car the 180 miles from Seattle to the Portland area in great weather. We then spent three hours apiece detailing the car. By Sunday, the day of the judging, the weather had changed for the worst. By noon the clouds opened up and just dumped for about 20 min. While I had installed new weather stripping throughout the car I hadn't taken the time to check it for water leaks. What was this going to mean for my freshly installed wool "hogs' hair" carpet-too late to worry about that now! I waited for the inevitable but the car remained bone dry. Better lucky then good! 

 

The strangest thing that I saw was a gentleman showing a Classic Era Packard convertible that day. I watched in amazement as he lowered to top as it began to rain. When I asked him what he was doing, his comments I will always remember. He said that his top was new and was never expected to get wet. The top he said was very expensive and getting it wet could both discolor and shrink the material. He said that everything in the car, like the leather could be toweled off and dried. Food for thought!

[Ed Luddy]

I have a 1971 Cadillac Coupe De Ville that still wears it's original paint and has always been garaged but has been out in the rain more than a few times and still hasn't shrunk. The original wipers are definitely due for a change.

[Soupiov]

Austin Clark sponsored the Run For the Sea Tour on Long Island every fall.  It rained at least one of the days every year and when I say rain I mean it poured.  We jokingly renamed it the Rain for the Sea.  One year the flooding was so bad that the roads became impassable for most modern cars but our brass era cars managed to negotiate even the deepest puddles and no one bailed despite the miserable weather.  That year I wound up pulling out an MGB stalled in a puddle with water over its door sills with my '10 Ford much to the embarrassment (and relief) of the owner and his wife.  It's just water!

[TAKerry]

I wont purposely take a drive in the rain, but if I get caught in it then so it is. I was at a show a couple of summers ago and had made up my mind that I was going to leave at noon. 12 o clock hits I start to gather up and got ready to leave. Wouldnt you know a cloudburst hit and it started to pour. Like rats from a sinking ship, everything got crazy in a hurry. I never saw so many cars made out of sugar. Worst part I felt like part of the crowd!

 

At another outing, all Pontiac show. My power windows stopped working, I was thinking the relays went bad. They were down, it was summer time and a nice day so no biggie. As typical in Aug. a storm came in pretty quick. Not many left but people were scrambling to put tops up, close windows and run for cover. Guys were just opening doors and closing windows of any car they could. Then, the announcement came over the loudspeaker 'There is a black trans am with the windows still down!'  Yes my car. All I could do was stand there embarrassed knowing it was my car. After the brief but heavy shower I went to assess the damage. Surprisingly, very little water got into the car itself, the carpet wasnt even wet! I only found out after driving for several hundred miles that my alternator had crapped out and I was running on battery power only, hence why my windows did not work!

 

For motorcycle riding, I have travelled over the country on 2 wheels. Take rain gear and if the air gets damp just keep going. Not a problem. I have been from a mist to water as high as my footboards. One trip heading north back from Daytona we got into a nasty rain storm in NC that turned to snow in VA. It was adventurous travelling I95 in the wheel tracks of 8 in of snow at 15 mph, feet down on both sides. This only lasted for about 3 hours so no harm 🤨 A bit further north and the snow turned back to rain, just above freezing, careful but no problem. UNTIL, the frozen grate of the Woodrow Wilson bridge. I will let you guys know, sliding sideways on my arce, bike beside me across a frozen bridge on one of the busiest highways in America is NOT FUN!!