Rodent damage to vehicle wiring - yup, fell victim and repair costs are a lot higher than expected - even with insurance coverage (my deductible is high). What can one do to prevent the issue from occurring? I have placed dryer sheets in the area true nest was found, but I don’t know if that really works. Mothballs are illegal in some locations as they are considered a pesticide. Just curious, as I am sure you have seen damage these rodents can do and with vehicles relying more on electronics these days, the damage can be extensive and costly.
Rodents don't like people, commotion, or predators (cats, dog, hawks, etc).
Frequently open hoods and doors and look around, make a little racket, walk with you pets, and catch/release traps are legal almost everywhere. Keep areas free of anything that may attract them, like leftover food (and guess how many people park right next to a trash can).
But the bottom line is, if they want in bad enough, they'll get in.
@oldrangernut
40% of mammal species are rodents. They have the same parts of the brain that humans have which allow for things like empathy (not something that can be said of, say, reptiles or birds). They are part of our ecosystem and while it's a bummer to run into the issue that poster described, they are not "pests" to be eliminated based on some fascistic concept of "radical hygiene".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkOmaLlXiVs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ez5rcRvNQ9g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MSOJgPkVfc
Here are some tips for avoiding the situation in the first place:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efidCfmuhKs
Get a cat
Not sure if this would help or not, depending where your car is parked, but the following worked for us:
We had some mice in our garage (attached to the house) in early 2019 and they were making nests in both our car's HVAC filter compartments. I found this out the hard way, when I opened up my car windows on the first warm day and all of the nesting blew out of the AC vents! My wife read somewhere that deodorant soap will repel them. So we each put a bar of Irish Spring (still in the box) in our cars. We also put some around the garage. Happy to say, no more mice (knock on wood).
