Have your Engine Wires Been Eaten?

If you answered yes, you may be surprised to know your not alone. In fact thousands of consumers are finding that their wires and their ever so delicious wiring harness under the hood has been chewed by hungry rodents such as mice, chipmunks and squirrels.

As if automobiles aren't expensive enough with regular maintenance, repairs and wear and tear items. Manufacturers are now making various parts of our cars from parts that attract rodents such as mice, squirrels, chipmunks and possums.

We want to know exactly which automobile manufacturers are using these soy based products. The emails we have received  from people claiming to have parts of their automobiles eaten so far are from from Subaru, Honda, Toyota, Dodge and Mercedes. These automobile manufacturers need to take responsibility for making vehicle parts from what boils down to being tasty food for rodents of all kinds.

When thousands of folks are having to pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars because rodents like the taste of something under the hood it's more than just a little problem. They need to have a recall and refunds should be given to anyone who has shelled out money to replace soy based wires eaten by rodents.

Leave your comment.

Comments

[Barton]

I have a Toyota Tundra 2007 with only 4800 miles on it. It happened to me. A rodent chewed through my wiring harness. I am assuming it was squirrels in the vicinity of my house. They have not caused any other problems until now.
Right now the truck is in the shop and the initial estimate is quite expensive to replace the wiring harness. I am sure my insurance rates will go up because of this! Amazing. I could not believe how many folks this is happening to. It is also amazing how oblivious the insurance companies are to the details! If soy based products are used to coat the wires, I should have the option to get dog food covered ones so I expect the wires to be eaten. Perhaps they can even charge more for this and still not take responsibility for their actions!

[Lou]

My husband just discovered something ate thru many parts in his Honda CRV. We are still evaluating the damage which looks to be a couple thousand dollars! We do not live a wooded area, but he assumed a squirrel. I believed that something in the auto materials must "lure" the animals as we have lived years with no such damage to our vehicles. No surprise then to read that some parts are made from soy or other food based products! ANYONE CONTACT AN AUTO MANUFACTURER YET???? I'd be interested in sending a list of damages to them from any victims!

[Renee]

My husband's chevy truck is in the shop right now with a $2000 charge to replace the engine wire harness because of this and my Tahoe had the same problem last year. Is there any way to deter the animals?

[Squirrel H8R]

I hate squirrels. I had a 2001 Ford Taurus LX Wagon which had over $3000 worth of damage done to wiring (spark plug wires, coil wires, transmission control wires, you name it wires). Finally got rid of the car. Got a 2002 Chrysler Concorde. Squirrels have gotten it twice now. First time-wiring harness-$2500 (luckily covered by insurance). Second time-wiring in the wiring harness (taking it into the shop this week for damage estimate).

I have tried moth balls, predator urine, cayenne pepper spray, humane traps, poison, all of the recommendations given by many others on other boards with no luck. The little bastard still eats my car.

[Rick Suddes]

Try Rataway from Rataway.com it has been very successful in stoping squirrels, rats, mice,rabbits,etc.... from chewing & nesting
nonpoisonous, nontoxic. Go to web site and have a look.

[Rod Marshall]

They got me too.. 95 Lincoln Town Car.. ate three of the spark plug wires and I was driving it every day.. Live in the Maple Valley area of Washington State. Ordered some Rataway and will be treating all three of my vehicles as soon it arrives.

[June G.]

Happened to my 2000 Hyundai too. I got into my car on Tuesday, and the front right blinker wouldn't work. I assumed it was the bulb, went out and bought one, and discovered a huge squirrel's nest inside the car just behind my right headlight - the only open space under the hood. The critter chewed right through the housing over the wires, and got the wires too. I got it fixed on Thursday. This morning (Saturday) I was getting into my car and found myself staring at a squirrel standing in front of the car with a mouthful of leaves. Sure enough, when I opened the hood I found about fifty leaves, some paper, sticks, and other assorted things, and he'd attempted to eat the wires again. So now everything is coated with a paste made from flour, water, Tabasco sauce, cayenne pepper, and hot paprika. Let him chew on that!

[Rick Suddes]

June try Rataway from Rataway.com

Rick

[Pam Jervey]

I have a 2006 Toyota Sequoia that has been in the shop twice now for wires being chewed. It has been due to rats. I'm now in over $2500 of damages including rental car charges etc... How can these companies get away with soy coated wiring? They will recall for other things that are deemed to be dangerous to the public. I think a severed break line due to rats dining on it would count??? All they care about is the bottom line!

[diane]

my husband's trailblazer is in now for the fuel sensor which has been chewed twice, 4 wheel drive wires chewed twice, main engine wiring harness chewed. i've sprayed, irish spring soap,
dryer sheets. i've also tried truck bed liner
spray over all wiring parts. i'm ready to give up and get a horse.

[Lorraine]

Honda Pilot attacked 2x in 4 months.....to many postings of Honda's on the web. I'm trading mine in and hoping for a Manufacturer who still uses PLASTIC......
SEE ALL THE SIGHTS, GET'S MORE DISGUSTING EVERY DAY.

Seven Rat sites
Edited by Mod....Link Did not work....
Rats: About Rattus Invictus very good information
RatTails… and other tales my new Blog site please make a comment
www.Rataway.com Rataway home site
Rodents a good read

WombatNation » Mice Ate My Car on cars this one has several hundred people with rats,squirres,etc. in cars

Rodents Love Engine Wires on cars

[Rick Suddes]

http://globalbirdcontrol.com/pests/rodents.htm

This is the web site for Rodents

Ratawayman@aol.com

[Rick Suddes]

http://www.knbc.com/news/16187125/detail.html

Not Rats in my engine a PITBULL on world news

funny: The dog had somehow gotten stuck inside the engine compartment of Walter Witthoeft's pickup.

The dog tried to get out by chewing through the engine wires and hoses.

The animal eventually wiggled his way out and animal control took him to a county shelter in Vacaville.

He had just paid $1,000 to fix the trucks last week. Now he'll have to shell out even more cash to fix the hoses and wires the dog chewed through.

[Chris]

2006 VW GTI 1600+ worth of wiring chomped on!!!! The dealer says"oh yeah we see it all the time at least 4 or 5 times already this year" (its only may!) Says its been a problem that he recalls from 2000. And the company knows all about it. Funny didnt see any statements in the onwers manual or anywhere else when they sold me the car! OH yeah its not covered in the warranty either, thats great maybe they'll make some parts out of something humans can eat so we can graze as we drive in for repairs!!!

[Drew]

Just happened to my brother's 2008 Honda Civic a few days ago. He was driving and his ABS light came on. He took the car into Honda, they popped the hood and noticed a cookie near the car battery, and the wires were chewed up. I was shocked to find out that the manufacturer uses soy-based substances to coat the wiring. That's just great! What a sure fire way to gurantee that motorists would have to continue to visit their local dealership to have the car repaired and spend additional money, because they refuse to cover these types of damages (which I'm sure they are aware of) in the warranty. It's the ultimate SCAM! Does anyone know if cases like this have been fought and won?

[June G.]

My squirrel visitor hasn't been back since I painted the paste of flour,water, cayenne pepper, Tabasco sauce, and hot paprika inside the hood. Guess he's not into spicy food.

[Rick Suddes]

To June G. Try Rataway from www.Rataway.com

[Dawn]

To June G-
Is there a specific recipe you use?

to Rick:

I have bought so many products that promise to keep the squirrels away that DO NOT WORK. Sorry...

[jim jones]

this site is retarded from ip address 24.125.190.190, MECHANICSVILLE, VIRGINIA in Hanover county.

[Yassir Fat]

TASTYWIRES??!?!?!?!>!>! :D!!!!! mon dieu...
help us all.

[Tom G.]

I helped June with the wires... she just mixed flour and water to make a sticky paste, then added the cayenne pepper and hot paprika and tabasco to that paste. It ended up with a gummy-like texture. We then took a pastry brush (but anything would work) and brushed it on the wires in that area, as well as the large open spot that the squirrel had filled with leaves -- the 2000 Hyundai Elantra has a large space right behind the passenger-side headlight where there is simply... nothing there, except for the wires that lead to the passenger-side headlight. We probably should take another look by now; the mixture may have weathered and fallen off by now.

[Chad]

I go to school at Chico, CA and a big rat or squirrel chewed through the ignition harness in my Toyota truck.

I purchased the Rataway rat repellent from Rataway.com and sprayed it under the hood. I have not had any more problems with them since.

[Reed]

2007 Chevy Uplander. $800 damage to the wire harness leading to the fuel injectors. Here's another thing to think about: my new vehicle sat at a dealership for a year before I purchased it (year end sale) and that happens to sit on the city limits surrounded by grassie fields which I'm sure are full of mice. I live in a residential area with no mice problems (but many squirels). The instant my wiring was fixed, my gas milage went WAY up from what it had consistanlty been since I bought the car. Did I buy this van with the damage already done or not?

[Reed]

2007 Chevy Uplander. $800 damage to the wire harness leading to the fuel injectors. Here's another thing to think about: my new vehicle sat at a dealership for a year before I purchased it (year end sale) and that happens to sit on the city limits surrounded by grassie fields which I'm sure are full of mice. I live in a residential area with no mice problems (but many squirels). The instant my wiring was fixed, my gas milage went WAY up from what it had consistanlty been since I bought the car. Did I buy this van with the damage already done or not?

[AL]

I HAVE A 91 CHEVY P30 VAN THAT PULLS A CAR TRAILER ONCE A WEEK. 4 TIMES SINCE THE END OF MAY THE LITTLE BAST---S HAVE EATEN PARTS OF THE MAIN ENGINE HARNESS. ANYONE KNOW HOW TO REACH BILL MURRUY?????

[AFQ]

We just found out our 2006 Toyota Corolla (with only 16K miles) had it's fuel line chewed through by "rodents." How frustrating! We live in a suburban area too. It's about $300 to fix but then you add in the tank of gas we lost pouring down the driveway, and the two day rental car... it's about $500. So frustrating! I'm sure it's squirrels.

[Rick Suddes]

A lot of people who have problems in the cars, trucks, vans, etc... it is squirrels doing the damage. Half of my sales are from people who have a squirrel problem. Try a little Rataway
from Rataway.com

[hpeck]

Volvo S80 1999 wires eaten twice in two years. Over $5000 repair bill. Rataway.com here I come

[Betty Potter]

I took out an equity loan on my house to buy my first brand new car. A 2007 Toyota Camry. When it was 10 months old [ a few weeks ago ] it lost all its power and only went about 10 miles an hour. I took it to the Toyota dealer and the service dept. kept it for four days, and charged me for a rental, and told me the mice had eaten the harness. That trip cost me $500.00. They said the car was just as good as new when i drove it away. The next day in was back in the garage for the same problem. This time it cost me$200.00. They knew what the problem was because they told me the wires were made with a soy product. I use a spray to keep the mice away and i have to put up with my car smelling like rotten eggs all the time. A pest control business i called said it should be a manufactures problem. I called the Toyota factory direct and i got an e-mail saying they hadn't had any complaints that the knew of. My plan is to write to Toyota and demand my money back. I also intend to get in touch with the closest tv chanel and see if they will run the story. Then i plan to get in touch with my congressional rep. and see if she can do anything. Maybe if we all wrote or called and made more of a stink something. This is absolutely a design and manufacturing flaw in the automobile.

[Bonnie]

I have a 2004 Toyota Echo (Toyota now makes a Yaris instead of this model) which had a mouse nest in the air filter. Now the fan is really noisy until it warms up - I'm sure the mice are at it again. Is there a car which does not attract mice? I was going to buy a Subaru next - but not if it's got the soy coated wires.

[Rick Suddes]

try Rataway spray from Rataway dot com

[Michael Cone]

We just had new spark plug wires put in our 2004 Chrysler Town and Country two weeks ago and something ate through two wires yesterday. We have squirrels, rabbits and rats here so we don't know which are responsible. The manufacturers of these soy based products should be held liable for this!

[Doc]

Outside Austin Tx- Squirrels hit both 1996 Ford 150 truck AND 2007 Chevy Silverado- chewed the electrical harness and plastic connectors.
Found nest under hood.
This was in less than 3 weeks of trucks being parked.

[Jim]

I eat wires

[regina]

Have a Honda Fit, rodents have eaten the pressure release line. Now I need a new gas tank! The tech took off the console, and there was the nest, right between the seats. The car is just over a year old. Not covered under warranty. This is an outrage...these companies need to be held liable for using a product they KNOW creates problems. Read on another site to use Bounce drier sheets. I think we just need to get the word out big time. People should be aware of this, so they can make an informed choice!

[Jerry Waddington]

I have a 2005 Ford F-150 pickup that has had various electrical/sensor wires eaten twice in the past couple of months. Of course, it couldn't be something simple to fix. No, it has to be the anti-knock/O2 sensor/wiring that is mounted in the head of the engine that needed to be replaced. Thus, the head needed to be removed and new seals installed plus replacement of the sensors....?? To date the cost is approximately $1500 for repairing the damage and there doesn't appear to any end in sight. At the moment, the vehicle is setting in my driveway with some new wiring/sensors that have been eaten/shredded and probably will get rid of the vehicle once its repaired.

[Paul]

CRAZY--- 2008 Nissan Titan, wires destroyed by rodents per dealership service department. Advised to send them $2,500.00 and they would be happy to fix vehicle with a new wiring harness. Truck has 6400 miles what a great deal. Do we have proof of soy wire insulation?

[DC]

ARGHHHH. Despite the knowledge that I am in apparently plentiful (& no doubt good) company, I am NOT comforted! I have an '05 F150 4WD AND a '99 Miata, both of which have been FREQUENT victims of rodent (ground squirrels, I think) chewing! COSTLY! AGGRAVATING! Have tried Capcasin (hot pepper) spray, poison, coaching my dogs and cat (to no avail!) and fervent prayer and occasional cursing! No luck. Does Rataway work on squirrels too? HELP.
Going broke in southern Indiana

[Rick Suddes]

Rataway fragrance stops odors caused
by rats, mice, squirrels, etc...

Makes one gallon when mixed
and protects the surface of areas used for nesting.

Rodents and other animals mark territory (your car, house, etc.) with their scent. Animals are attracted by this scent. Rataway fragrance gets rid of the scent. No lingering scent, no more attraction.

Rataway fragrance protects car engines, wiring, boats, motorhomes, machinery, heavy equipment, etc. when sprayed to protect the surfaces

Rataway fragrance is not a pepper spray.

If you are looking for an effective, natural control for odors, Rataway fragrance is it.

Again... Rataway fragrance can be used around children, pets, and service personnel.

What is Rataway Fragrance?
Rataway fragrance is a spray that is very offensive to wild animals such as rats, mice, squirrels, rabbits, racoons, dogs, cats, horses, skunks, and monkeys. Rataway fragrance is not offensive to humans.

We ship it in concentrated form. With concentrated shipping, you get 4 times as much mixed product for the same amount of money, compared to competing products. Concentrated shipping saves you money.

Rataway fragrance concentrate including shipping anywhere in the world is $25.00. It makes 1 gallon (128 oz) of mixed product, enough to spray 10 car engines, 3 times.

Waterproof Rataway fragrance concentrate including shipping anywhere in the world is $33.00. It's like getting two products in one. It makes 1 gallon (128 oz) of waterproof Rataway. go to www.Rataway.com

[Rick Suddes]

Yes, Rataway spray works on squirrels from www.Rataway.com

[BillD]

Just paid $300 to have my 2005 Toyota Tacoma wires repaired. Guess these are also made from soy products that attract rodents.

[James]

My wife just got off the phone with Toyota Customer Experience Center and they stated that they do not use vegatable based products in any of their vehicles. Our 2009 Camry had the front right speed sensor chewed up by a rodent causing $429 damage. Why haven't the automanufatures done anything to prevent this from occuring? Is this soy based wiring officially documented anywhere with a consumer affairs department? This type of preventable damage is unacceptable and should not be tollerated by the public or the government. Have any class action lawsuits ever been filed?

[kim]

My coolant light came on and I heard a loud fan like sound from the engine. Opened the hood of my 2007 Ford Fusion to discover that either rats or squirrels (most common in my neighborhood)ate through the fuel injector line and a cylinder! Taking it into the shop this week and can only imagine the cost...Insurance better cover this one! I will also look into the rataway people speak of.

[Debbie]

In the past month, my daughter's 2007 Toyota Rav4 has had it's wiring harness and other major wires chewed 3 times by a squirrel. She parks the car outside her apartment near Ohio State University. My other daughter, who drives a 2004 Honda Civic has never had any problems with rodents chewing any of her wiring. When we first took the Rav4 to the Toyota dealer, they of course fixed it and told us what happened, and they even showed me where the critter had stored some nuts in the engine compartment. When I asked them if there was any solution, they just sort of laughted it off and said, not really, just park it somewhere else and hope for the best. Thanks alot. Then, it happened 2 more times, each with more damage. Anyway, I plan to find out more about what the wire coating is made of, if that is possible. The auto manufacturers must know about this problem and apparently don't seem real concerned about protecting the wiring systems from hazards like rodents.

[Marcee]

We took in our 2009 Hyundai Sonata in December of '08 because the engine light came on and was running funny. We got a call back a few days later stating that there was nothing wrong with the car and to come pick it up. It was New Years eve so we decided to pick the car up a couple days later when they called us back and said they found the problem. They told us that a rodent ate through the wiring in the harness and it cost almost $2000.00 to fix. I have never heard of such a thing before in my life. But now a few weeks later the car is running terrible again and the engine light is on. We looked under the engine and the wires are fine that we can see. I can't wait to take it in and see what they say now. I will be asking them about soy based wire covering.

[john iacuzzo]

2005 Ford explorer has been hit by squirrels 3 times over the past 6 months costing me $$$$$. Thought I had the answer with an intermittent ultrasonic vibrator for moles that I placed on the hood when I parked in my driveway. Evidently the little $#$%# got used to it. Getting traps and will use the pastes described above. Frustrated as heck!

[Rick Suddes]

Try Rataway spray from Rataway.com

Rataway works on squirrels, rats, mice, raccoons,etc...

[Judi]

Within a short period of time I had two family members have problems that caused them to look under the hood of their cars
.My daughter lost her cruise control and looked under her hood to find a niice little nest of natural outdoor materials. My mother's car quit several times while driving. Upon vehicle inspection by a shop the car's computer wires had been chewed!
I agree with the comments about recalls on all vehicles who have soy based wires on their cars. Going "cheap" has not been cheap for auto owners who may have to pay a $500 deductible for car repair-due to manufacturers use of soy products.

[C. Banton]

My husband's '06 Lexus RX400h had his wires and hoses chewed through by a squirrel resulting in the break line being cut and the car being completely disabled. $7000 in damage. My '06 Lexus GX470 had two nests found in the engine compartment over the course of 4 days. So far no wires chewed that we can tell.

[Barney]

Mine is a 2008 Dodge Ram. In the shop now waiting for a new wiring harness, and has already been there a month. No parts available in the U.S. Chrysler expects to have a wiring harness available in another month and a half. This is the second time I've had a problem, but the first time I wasn't told it was rodents. In my neighborhood it could have been squirrels, rabbits, or raccoons! Right now my concern is in getting it fixed, rather than prevention. Figure there are quite a few rodent deterrents out there.