[Pearls Before Swine]

I hadn’t heard of this. I wonder if introduction of this soy-based coating was eco-driven.

[alternatives?]

My mechanic suggested putting a couple of mesh bags filled with moth balls under the hood.

[Blood of Tyrants]

I’ve heard of it, too. Appeal the claim to your insurance company.

[Red Badger]

Toyota:

Toyota Camry
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Prius
Toyota RAV4
Toyota Tacoma
Toyota Tundra
Honda:

Honda Accord
Honda Civic
Honda CR-V
Honda Fit
Honda HR-V
Honda Insight
Ford:

Ford Escape
Ford Focus
Ford Fusion
Ford Mustang
Ford Ranger
Chevrolet:

Chevrolet Cruze
Chevrolet Equinox
Chevrolet Malibu
Chevrolet Silverado
Chevrolet Traverse
Nissan:

Nissan Altima
Nissan Rogue
Nissan Sentra
Nissan Versa
Hyundai:

Hyundai Elantra
Hyundai Sonata
Hyundai Tucson
Hyundai Kona
Kia:

Kia Forte
Kia Optima
Kia Seltos
Kia Soul
Kia Sportage
Subaru:

Subaru Crosstrek
Subaru Forester
Subaru Impreza
Subaru Outback
Mazda:

Mazda3
Mazda6
Mazda CX-3
Mazda CX-5
Mazda CX-9
Volkswagen:

Volkswagen Golf
Volkswagen Jetta
Volkswagen Passat
Volkswagen Tiguan
Audi:

Audi A3
Audi A4
Audi Q3
Audi Q5
Other Brands:

Buick Encore
Cadillac XT4
Chrysler Pacifica
Dodge Journey
GMC Terrain
Jeep Cherokee
Lexus ES
Mercedes-Benz A-Class
Mini Cooper
Mitsubishi Outlander
Porsche Macan
RAM 1500
Volvo XC40

[Blood of Tyrants]

I think that the experiment with the soybean oil-based insulation ended because of the problem with animals chewing the wires.

[linMcHlp]

The rodent magnet.

[matthew fuller]

Unless you are positive on the ID of squirrels, I’m betting on rats as the wire-eater. Look for the rat turds on your engine. They also eat windshield washer containers on f-150’s.

[delta7]

It is happening with Airbus aircraft also. Many aircraft that fly into LGA and JFK pick up rats from the catering trucks, not to long ago rats the size of a small dog are retrieved ( by the exterminators) when the planes are laid down for days ( sometimes weeks) to repair the wiring and ducting made of environmentally “ friend.y” rat food.

If I was willing and able to post pictures I would, ( I won’t), you would never fly an Airbus again…..

[ArtDodger]

Friend of mine just bought a new Ford Ranger and after a month, he smelled gas so he took it to the shop. The smell was so overwhelming, the vehicle had to be removed from the indoor shop. A rat had chewed through the fuel line!
The truck was still under warranty so that was no problem but it was a major fix. He had been leaving it out on the street in front of his house in town.
I keep my garage and basement well supplied with rodent bait and every so often, one turns up dead on the floor but no problems, otherwise.

[Clay Moore]

Supposedly, rodents don’t like the smell of vinegar and you can pour some around the area and they will avoid it. If no pets are around something like Tomcat rodent killer might entice a tree rat.

[waterhill]

I’ve always heard it was a corn-oil base.
And I always have had cats around.

[Captainpaintball]

I heard 90s Mercedes and 90s and up fords use this. There are likely other examples as well. I’m looking at a certain Mercedes and it has this problem that is relatively easy and “cheap” to fix. But who knows

[Clay Moore]

I’m not sure that they are attracted to the wire itself as they just need to chew on something to care for their teeth and the wiring harness is just appropriate size and hardness. I’ve had other rodents destroy harnesses from the’60’s up.

[Fury]

Comprehensive coverage on a call would not cover that?

Eh, that sounds like not very good insurance.

[eastforker]

We had the dealer install a device that repels these critters after having wire damage. No more problems.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

I have had the same thing happen with my two trucks. Soybean based plastic coated wires.

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

My brother had the wiring eaten out of his brand spanking new Toyota pickup truck some months ago. The insurance company wanted to Total the car(!) the dealer wanted 13k another dealer wanted about 4.5 k the part is about 1.3 K but there is a considerable amount of snaking and pushing and pulling to get it installed.

He often goes 10 days or so in between episodes of driving his truck. In that time he leaves the hood up. It has worked so far.

[KC Burke]

$1,100.00 to repair chipmunk damage to a 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe parked outside in central Missouri. Happened three years ago.

[fuzzylogic]

I had a 2005 Mercedes SLK 350 (fun 2 seater!). Best car I ever owned, just sold it a couple of weeks ago. It was bullet proof, never had any major issues outside of standard maintenance (I almost didn’t want to get rid of it but I’d bought a BMW M3 convertible, needed 4 seats).

Anyway - one day I start her up. I get several ECU errors all at the same time. I’m an automotive software architect. I knew almost immediately - this is a CAN bus cable problem. No way so many different ECU’s would fail together.

I lifted the hood - and there it was, a perfectly round nest (squirrel/chipmunk). After looking around - yep, chewed right through the wire harness. I’ve heard of this soy based shielding. Yep, $3.5k for a new harness and install. Almost 20 year old car, taken down by furry.

That said, while I had a high deductible, the insurance DID cover it. It wasn’t just mechanical wear, I equated it to vandalism.

[chief lee runamok]

A trucking outfit I worked for had the same issue with squirrels munching on
wiring harnesses in heavy equipment.