After rescuing his cats, dogs, and pet gecko from flood conditions, C.J. Todd of Zachary, Louisiana, floated a few miles over to his uncle?s house, where he spent a nervous night in bed, listening to several feet of water splash against the side of the house. Left in the driveway back home with Louisiana floodwater up to its pop-up headlights was his beloved 1985 Nissan 300ZX, which he calls Peaches.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on August 11 this year the Baton Rouge area of Louisiana received more than 30 inches of rainfall in just a few days. FEMA reported that more than 128,000 households registered for assistance and that $385 million has been allocated in relief funds for survivors so far. After flooding this intense, the new reality of having to clean up after the mess won’t be much of a relief.
C.J. said he was the first person in 13 years to register Peaches, and now he?ll be the first to install new carpets and trim in more than 30 years. Determined to keep this Peach from turning into a lemon, he started drying the car by removing door panels, carpets, seats, and the lower portions of the dashboard that had trapped debris when his Nissan was sitting in the flood. He also removed the spark plugs and cranked the engine by hand to help push water out of the cylinder heads. Watch below to see what drained out of the oil pan during the first oil change:

After he was confident the electronics were dry and the ...