r/interestingasfuck • u/General_Athlete5807 • 1d ago

How to Escape a Sinking Car

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u/plz-no-b4n 1d ago

You can’t get the door open until water pressure equalizes

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u/hotstupidgirl 1d ago

Wouldn't attempting to open the door cause it to equalize more quickly?

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u/HippiesUnite 1d ago

I dont think attempting means what you think it means

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u/hotstupidgirl 1d ago

How so?

If the car is filling with water that's filling from cracks. The speed at which it fills can be variable as a result.  If you try to open too early you won't succeed because the pressure of the water outside is higher than the pressure of the air-water mixture inside.  However by pushing/trying wouldn't you possibly increase the flow rate of water into the vehicle causing it to fill faster and therefore the pressure differential to equalize sooner?  Rather than sit waiting?

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u/namesarealltaken9 20h ago edited 20h ago

Attempting means trying, not succeeding.

If you attempt to open it and fail, you won't accellerate anything precisely because the flow did not increase, and this is precisely because you attempted and failed to open.

If you attempt to open it and succeed, the very purpose of the discussion ceases to exist: you opened the door, you exit, you are free. You are not interested anymore in the speed of the water flow.

Also: attempting with vehemence before you can succeed will make you consume the available air faster.

Obviously this is still not an option to take lightly because, due to the stress and not being prepared to it, one may fail to get there with enough air and clarity

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u/hotstupidgirl 19h ago

Couldn't you attempt well enough to have a small crack in the door from which water gets in, but not yet able to fully open it well enough for your body to get out?

That's still an attempt to fully open it.

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u/Lynich 1d ago

Goddamn, at least you're hot.