So while my Roadster was in for its annual check-up (the first since I purchased it in early August), they discovered that some nasty little varmint had tried to make its home "near one of the high voltage components!" :cursing: Below are pics of the nest they removed and of the high volt cable the little creep had decided to dine on. I suppose this is one potential down-side of picking up a 2011 Roadster with only 4500 miles on it. Since I have been driving it almost daily since I got it, I'm guessing this must have happened while the previous own had it sitting up for long periods at a time. Where did he store it? A barn? Anyway, $1,667.11 worth of new coolant heater/chiller, wiring and labor later, I have the Roadster back and certified Rodent Free! I suppose I should count myself lucky the car didn't burst into flames or fry itself... I do hope, however, that the little rascal that did this managed to fry himself on that cable (evil grin).
Well, Chevy's have long had "RAT" and "MOUSE" engines. Guess you will need to revert back to gasoline, but the upside is you can say you have an electric rat-rod. My suggestion... Adopt a feral cat. SERIOUSLY. When our cat died, the squirrels got into the roof. $5k damage. We immediately left food out and adopted a new cat. Home, cars, property is vermin free again and ever since. Glad you got off cheap and without being stranded. Best, T
I'm sorry CruzInVa. That sucks. Where were the coolant lines that were chewed? I had a red squirrel climb up on top of my PEM and battery one day. I know because I saw his footprints in the dust. Fortunately I took care of him before he chewed on anything. - - - Updated - - - Gasoline cars have a long history of rodent damage. Plenty of people have had to replace wiring harnesses, coolant lines, and upholstery.
I saw a Roadster at Menlo Park in for Rodent damage, same thing happened twice! They had to put in a new wiring harness in as well as chewing on the high voltage lines that also needed replacing.
My statements were tongue in cheek, implying his car was now a Chevy and play on words with Rat-Rod. I'm perfectly aware of rodents and their seemingly insatiable lust for chewing on soft plastic. Best, T P.S. - Stop messing around on this forum and perfect the CAN II already. LOL. Be well.
We're having a terrible problem with rats eating the tomatoes and peppers in our garden this year. Rat traps have not been effective. I had not considered that my Roadster might be at risk once the veggies are gone.
As far as the garden veggies... Animals like rats do not like the smell of cat urine and do not like the taste of chili peppers. Adopt a feral cat and consider making a tea out of chili peppers and spraying it onto the plants. I however do not suggest keeping a cat or its urine in the Roadster. Best, T
Mice chewing on car wiring... Mouse in Frunk - Warning: Graphic Picture Rats! Fixing a mouse chewed wiring harness: Bob vs Mouse | Flickr - Photo Sharing! I want to go home now. | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
Ours eat the anaheim chilies and even sometimes the jalapeños, sigh. Sorry for taking this off-topic.
Missed opportunity...should have asked them to add supercharging capabilites the whilst doing the repairs...:smile: Now where'd I put them rodents...:wink:
Back when I had a Lotus Esprit V8 for a couple of years, I let it sit idle for a while during one winter -- and when I got back to it, a rat had chewed up the wiring, badly! I had to have it hauled to Austin, where they replaced the whole wiring harness, which had to come from England. The guys at Lotus said nobody had ever ordered that replacement part before. I'm planning to put out a fresh tray of rat bait in my garage every month from here on out. It's a cheap and easy precaution against repeating that experience.
Better to use a spring trap than poison. The problem with poison is that it works its way up the food chain.
Also, watch out for Groundhogs!:wink: Seriously, though, I have always kept a baited spring trap in my garage. Additionally, you can reduce your risk by searching for small entry points and filling them with steel or copper wool, which will stop rodents from getting through. Remember, an opening as little as a quarter inch is large enough for a mouse to enter! Poison bait is a bad idea not only because it works its' way up the food chain, but most are slow acting enough (12 hours to several days) for the rodent to do some significant damage before it dies.