Rodent Damage on the Rise
Rodent damage to cars has been on the rise. In New Hampshire we can thank the mighty Oak tree for the amazing abundance of acorns that have fallen over the past 2 years. With such a splendor of winter food the rodent population has exploded. Though you may not know it the automobile is the storehouse of choice!
Affordable Housing for Rodents
With a heart rate of nearly 400 beats per minute the Chipmunk is a ball of energy gathering a winter supply of acorns. But that energy is not all spent on collecting nuts if you know what I mean. With a gestation period of one month it doesn’t take long for one female Chipmunk to knock out 5 to 6 little munks. Though chipmunks were thought to prefer ground burrows they have learned there are much better places to sleep, grow the family, store and eat their nuts without digging a hole in the ground.
Where They Like to Live
We pretty much live in a rural area with trees, birds, deer that eat my shrubs and rodents. It is not uncommon to be servicing a customers vehicle and hear the sound of an unbalanced blower motor. Unbalanced because a mouse made its way in and built a nest in the blower cage. As a note; the little guys and gals cannot handle the G-force of a blower motor and are often found partly extruded through the blower cage. That was back in the day, things have changed. The chipmunk has surpassed the mouse in its destructive abilities.
The Honda
Sue has been a great customer for many years. She is proud of her 2000 Honda Hybrid and really enjoys the great gas mileage her Honda provides. During a recent service she spoke of a noise that she heard above her in the headliner, “It sounds like something is loose and rolling around”.
The Appointment
Sue’s Honda was scheduled in the next morning for a little look under the headliner, no big deal we’d been here before.
Nick started by pulling the door seal off which held the edge of the headliner in place. As he did some pieces of acorn shells fell from the edge of the headliner. This was our first clue that there was more to this than a loose part rolling around. Next he removed the B-Pillar garnish and there came clue 2, a rodent had chewed part of the plastic trim away.
As Nick started to lower the driver’s side of the headliner more fell out, actually “a lot” of little somethings fell out! Enough so that Nick said this is bad and backed right out of the car. Side note; Nick loves to fish, hunt, is into organic farming the kind of guy that a little rodent poop isn’t going to bother. Nick was bothered! Time to bring Sue out from the waiting room…
We needed Sue for 2 reasons;
1. To see what we’re seeing
2. To call the insurance company, as this was going to get costly!
It was clear, something had been building something for sometime in the headliner of Sue’s Honda. Even though the vehicle had not been disassembled fully, Sue could see that this was bad. We told her we would need protective gear before we went any further. Sue was given a free loaner car and she was off and running.
The Necessary Gear
Rodent waste is bad stuff ; it can make you very ill. It was clear that protective gear was needed for Nick .
In the pic to the left you can see that Nick is ready for the nasty that was coming his way.
With his protective gear on Nick went back to work removing the headliner from the vehicle. Once the headliner was removed the extent of the damage to the vehicle was fully realized.
Note; rodent damage to a vehicle is usually covered under the comprehensive part of your vehicle owner’s insurance policy. The deductible is often much less than the collision side.
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Vehicle Damage Evaluation
Just Click on Images for a better look at things, stuff and stuff
The True Cost
As you can see the rodents had a field day with Sue’s Hybrid Honda. If this problem had not be caught, the damage could have possibly totaled out the vehicle.
How did we know this was the work of a Chipmunk? During lunch, Tony looked over to the Honda to see a chipmunk sticking its head out from the engine compartment. The little guy had the audacity to chew him out. We even got the little dude on film. I just have to figure out how to get Nick’s cursing out of the video.
To repair Sue’s Honda required the following:
Replacement Headliner
Driver’s side curtain air bag
Passenger’s side curtain air bag
Trim/Garnish panel
Cowling cover
Cabin air filter
Hepa bag and filter
Haz-mat suit, gloves, head sock and mask
A lot of disinfectant
And Time
All of which totaled over $2,200
Side Note: Sue’s husband, Mike, an avid Subaru owner lost one of his Subaru’s to fire caused by rodents chewing on the vehicle’s wiring harness. The bare wires contacted and the Subaru went up in flames. Mike escaped unscathed.
Sue and Mike have now stepped up their efforts to push back against the rodent population. How successful they’ll be? We’ll have to wait and see.
I’ll be Back!
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Northwood Garage handles over 25 brands of tires for your automotive needs. We proudly provide expert auto repair and tire service to Northwood, Strafford, Nottingham, Epsom, Barrington and Deerfield.
Northwood Garage… Keeping your Car Good to Go! Since 1955
Hello there Jim, I’m also interested in this. (Please see my latest post for more info.) This article makes for interesting reading; you have certainly provided me with lots of food for thought.
Nice site, nice and easy on the eyes and great content too.
Hey Jim, site looks much better! Any tips on how to prevent these varmints from taking residence under the hood?
Wow! We just lost a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid that caught on fire – we think it was rodent damage. You can see the results at my link.
Our other car was just repaired for minor damage (chewed windshield washer hose).
We live in a rural area of Southern California.
Sure would like to know how to keep the little buggers out! Any ideas?
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