[jetsetgo08]

A dreadful experience, that too on a new car.

Time to have rodent protection insurance add-ons.

[SchrödingersCar]

Originally Posted by stallmaster

Hell no! Cigarette tobacco is the michelin star food grade tobacco of the tobacco family. It is treated to be as non-offensive as possible.

Yeah, add to that the prohibitively expensive costs!

Originally Posted by stallmaster

You should source the gnarly black cancerous-at-first-glance stuff that's used for preparing khaini(google it). Gnarlier, the better. It's pure poison, to humans and rats alike. Usually found at roadside khokhe with the tobacco all laid out to dry like Medusa's hair.

Yup, got it. That is what I was referring to as Chewing Tobacco. Thanks!

Originally Posted by stallmaster

Also I have found 'gudaku' to be useful. It's a similar gnarly disgusting tobacco product consumed by humans. Gudaku is sticky, jaggery infused with cancer-grade tobacco that gives off an offensive smell. It sticks to surface and hence I had lined up the rat highways in my car with gudaku. None of them had dared to taste the gudaku since I used to find rat carcasses around my car.

Okay, got it. So basically any cheap, low grade foul smelling tobacco will work.

Any idea how goos is the 3M rat repellant treatment?

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by soji

What's more funny is that MG dealerships insist you buy their "rat mesh" add-on when buying a new car which makes it all the more evident that they're well aware of these issues, to a point I feel this is intentionally provisioned.

Wait, there's an official rat mesh add-on by MG / their dealers? What is it, and cost? I'm surprised by the uniqueness of such an add-on; if they felt the need to provide one, why not stock.

You're not the only one, this fellow seems to have installed the wire mesh, but that didn't deter the rats.

https://www.carwale.com/mg-cars/hect...eviews/280441/

I found that MG Customers are complaining about this on daily basis ( when I visited the service centre I found 4 customers with the same issue). So better not to go with MG unless they fix the rats issue.

I'm curious, what is it about MG that this is such a well acknowledged problem?!

[RD150]

My Polo had to suffer from rat damage some years ago. One fine morning, the car refused to start and had to be towed to the service center. The service guys shared me the photo, some harness and hoses were chewed and also they found some dead sparrows, not sure if it was done by a rat or a cat. They changed the damaged wires and fortunately they did not charge me. They put 3 packets of "Gaychaap" under the bonnet and asked me to change every 6 months. It works !!

[soji]

We were charged 4000 INR for the rat mesh installation. The total bill came upto 11.5k which included the wire mesh installation, airbag wiring harness, sunroof drain tubes (3) and some repairs and patches.

The service advisor did mention this is a commonly recurring problem among Hector owners and also had a few other cars there with similar problems. It seems to corroborate with your findings on that link/review.

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Wait, there's an official rat mesh add-on by MG / their dealers? What is it, and cost? I'm surprised by the uniqueness of such an add-on; if they felt the need to provide one, why not stock.

[Rahul Bhalgat]

Originally Posted by soji

The rodents entered the vehicle making a hole under the rear seat (still no idea how and they say it can't be covered now) and made its way all the way to the sunroof chewing pretty much everything on the way.

Sorry to see the rat damage, so extensive.

But I wonder how did the car make hole in sheet metal of the car underbody? Or was there already a hole, which was covered / plugged by a soft material like a rubber plug or carpet?

[.HEM]

The best way I found useful was to keep my parking illuminated throughout the night. I tried using tobacco leaves for the engine bay, keep sticky mat under the car, etc.; nothing worked like an illuminated parking. I have 2 lights burning through the night. From day one I could see good results.

[som9729]

Originally Posted by SchrödingersCar

Any idea how goos is the 3M rat repellant treatment?

Its actually quite good.
I used to have this rodent issue in BLR, where I parked under a tree in our property.

Rats had chewed up the AC wire of my Etios.

Got the 3m Rodent treatment done in Sep'19 at 3M-JP Nagar (Near the Raghavendra Swamy Mata)

I can confirm that for the next 6 months , I did not have any rodent issues.

At times I used to open the bonnet to check for any tiny footprints, but found none!

Very soon, the lockdown started, after which my car wasn't used until Sep'20.

In Sep, my friend noticed that the pickup was quite low and the check engine light was coming on.
Turns out the rodents had had a feast again!

The 3M rodent treatment needs to be re-done every 6 months atleast!

When getting it done ensure they thoroughly spray the entire bottom of the car, tyres area (where the rim connects to the chassis), and below the engine too!

I insisted on this and they did a 2nd coat in front of me.

Originally Posted by Rahul Bhalgat

Sorry to see the rat damage, so extensive.

But I wonder how did the car make hole in sheet metal of the car underbody? Or was there already a hole, which was covered / plugged by a soft material like a rubber plug or carpet?

As mentioned in the original post, there's a "hole" which the manufacturer left in the underbody, below the rear seat, for some mysterious purpose which we mortals are yet to divine!

[JLohchab]

Originally Posted by soji

I have seen rats nest in the engine bay but never seen them convert a car to a rat mansion.
...
...
Apart from the rat mesh and sprays and what are some other humane ways to keep the rodents away?

Rats or other rodents can create a menace and the real solution will always be regular use of your vehicle. The stationary vehicle or for that matter any spaces with roof over it can be a potential abode for rodents. Considering lock down, you may resort to some of the solutions mentioned like mesh or pesticide container etc. but eventually the usage will solve such issues.
And if you have multiple vehicles in garage and even with a round robin kind of thing, the usage ends up being less, then real benefactor can be the used car market.
For the design part of it, I would say designing cars have some other priorities like comfort, appeal, accessibility, safety etc. take preference over outlier situation like a lock down happening making a large set of vehicles stationary.

Take care and stay safe.

[sunikkat]

Originally Posted by GTO

- Varna Suraksha. I put two of these in the 5-Series & Superb.

Thanks GTO. Are these ultrasonic rodent repellent safe for the car? My normal parking area is fine and I do not have an issue, but when I go my native, car lies in the open space for 2 to 3 weeks with less usage and rat repellent sprays are not very helpful. The next option I have been planning is these ultrasonic repellent but doubtful about how these regular sensors will interfere with electrical and other parts in the engine bay.

[jeygani]

Sad to see such extensive damage.

Forget wires, even hard plastic is not safe from rodents!

My City's air filter housing top cover was damaged, fortunately I opened and checked before starting my car. Cleaned debris and fixed tape as a temporary measure.


I have ordered the part from Boodmo and awaiting delivery.

[wheeledwanderer]

I have used this earlier costs INR 400 and works like a charm. Alternatively you may use a pet cat (outside the car) which can do the job!

[LaRoca]

Originally Posted by GTO

Here's what appears to be working for me (7 years, no rat damage)

That's quite a fortress you got there!

[OldWays]

I went through this same trauma of parking the truck under open shed in the farm - only to find droppings, urine, nibble marks, cut wires, dash board warnings. I had to take the truck to service center to open the dash pull out them damn nests. I did install wire mesh around EVERY opening I could find and that seemed to work - only for a while.

I tried everything from the all knowing YouTube recommendations and the rats / mouse population knew exactly what I was up to. They always worked around or overcame obstacles. I also have 2 dogs that are Rat / Mice assassins. The rat / mice only have 5 seconds to live if spotted by these dogs. Unfortunately the dogs are inside the home during night hours and that’s when these rodents strike. My daily morning routine used to be - run to the truck, open the bonnet and look for damage, traces of rodent activity and curse the universe for such a rotten evolution.

I had enough of it and built a garage and rat proofed the structure. The doors / roof have been installed to tight tolerances. Insides kept clean - always. Ventilators have been double meshed. Even after the garage parking, I still go and do the same routine - you know, open the bonnet......and continue to question my purpose and rodents purpose in this vast universe.

[Wheelie_mate]

So sad to see this on a new car. On my Nexon, I had used the 3M rat repellent spray two months back and this seems to have kept the rat at bay for now.

But, it's a bit expensive compared to tobacco or Gai-chaap alternatives and lasts only 6 months.

I suggest you give it a go and see if the rats stay away