[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by silverado

Best and most foolproof way is to get a Cat. ...

Coming back to topic of cats, Even if you dont have a desire to maintain one ( I am sure many dont ), you can get in touch with some cat owner and request their pet cat to spend some bonnet time.( This is extreme measure but i would have done it if menace was severe ).

Bonnet time with a cat means scratches.

Sometimes I wonder if they try to make car paint soft and vulnerable to ordinary every day things

[silverado]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Bonnet time with a cat means scratches.

Sometimes I wonder if they try to make car paint soft and vulnerable to ordinary every day things

I meant engine bay, a cat sits in my engine bay and has lot of hairs attached to my bonnet from inside.

[Thad E Ginathom]

The cat will sit where it wants to sit, which will probably be the roof.

[Sandeep500]

Originally Posted by silverado

I meant engine bay, a cat sits in my engine bay and has lot of hairs attached to my bonnet from inside.

It can be equally dangerous as the cat can also damage wires by biting them. What is the guarantee that it will sit quietly in the engine bay doing nothing only waiting for the rats.

[silverado]

Originally Posted by Sandeep500

It can be equally dangerous as the cat can also damage wires by biting them. What is the guarantee that it will sit quietly in the engine bay doing nothing only waiting for the rats.

I know a couple of friends who own pet cats, if i was in such a situation i would request them to bring their cats and make them sit in my engine bay for some time.

I have had a stray cat sitting inside my car bonnet since 4 years, not had any issues till date.Thankfully that cat is not bringing any food stuff inside bonnet just sits there since it might be feeling cosy ( Due to bonnet insulation layer )

[nickolajj]

Please try tobacco leaves...
it is a very potent rodent repellent..
had my E Class destroyed..
This was a suggestion from a driver and it seems to work...

[silverado]

Originally Posted by nickolajj

Please try tobacco leaves...
it is a very potent rodent repellent..
..

Depends on rodents, for smaller one's it might work.
But if you have monster rodents which we call "Ghus" in mumbai then you stand no chance.

I had padmini long back and once a Ghus entered it and stocked up on its foodstuff behind battery. This inspite of keeping tobaco leaves, tobacco pouches etc.

When i opened bonnet, it was merrily eating its stuff and had the guts to aggressively squeal at me. The only way i could get it out was by pouring hot water.

[Thermodynamics]

Originally Posted by silverado

I have had a stray cat sitting inside my car bonnet since 4 years, not had any issues till date.Thankfully that cat is not bringing any food stuff inside bonnet

Once, there happened a cat fight, leaving my friend's car with pinhole ruptures on fenders, dents and scratches. Well the other party in crime is of course Maruti's built quality. Eventually, he had to do a proper tinkering/repainting.

[Shan_Kmu]

Mod note: Excessive smilies edited out, please go through Announcement section to understand posting etiquette better. Thanks.

Hi All,

Hope everyone is doing good and safe during this pandemic time. Like fellow owners here, I'm also having ordeal with rats. I would like to share my experience with you all, so you can be cautious with your ride.

This is the first time in 9 years of car ownership i'm facing this issue -Have owned Chevy Beat Diesel (2011-2016) and Mahindra Bolero (2016 - present date).

I work in Chennai but I came to my hometown Kumbakonam (where our car usually stays) on March itself. Since the initial days of lockdown, once a week, I drive our car for 10 mins within our locality just to prevent it from being idle. Usually our car is interior is kept well clean. No food items/trash.

Interior pics of our car




Parking area and the car



Rat infestation in our car
Despite driving it once a week, keeping exterior/interior clean, parking area also clean, it's during June I noticed something like lizard poop in car mat. Also the cloth used for wiping is bitten. Thought may be rat. So I placed rat cakes under driver seat, middle row and last row. And also placed some under the car(in the floor). Next day one of the cake inside car is gone, so I placed a new cake. The same happened for two days and on third day a bad odour came when I opened the car door. Thought the rat is dead and I looked for it under all seats. Nowhere to be found. Smell came from back side. So removed the left side jump seat's cover. No, Not found.

Mahindra service centre is just 10 mins from our home. So went there and told the issue. They pointed out that the rat is defeinitely inside Left rear tail light section and yes it's found dead there and its a big one. In that hollow section, I saw paper and cloth bits, some minor nibble on wire. Told the SA to check full car for any possible damage. After 3 days got the car back. As told by SA, the car was kept all doors open in sunlight to let the odour out, then car interior is sanitized, engine bay is cleaned and applied repellentd, dashboard removed and inspected, door joints and holes present are applied repellent and cleared some error codes that appeared. The bill amount is RS 4,818!!! It's nearly the amount which we do general service for Bolero. Got the car and drove back home. Just thanked it wasn't something more serious damage/expensive than this.

Repair Bill

Engine bay coating


No it's not over yet
So after this issue, i was idling the daily. People adviced me to put Uncut/solid tobacco. We are not able to get that specific one so got normal tobacco, punctured the packet and kept it inside car in 4-5 places(inside glove box also). I thought the pb is solved but no. Again I saw poop in mat. After searching some places, finally got the solid tobacco. Placed it also in same places and engine bay also


Normal tobacco and Solid tobacco







After all these, rat came again!

Went to accessory shop and they recommended rat repellent. Not sure about the product but just wanted to try. It's extremely noxious and NOT to be sprayed in cabin. Wore a face mask, towel over that mask, an old helmet over these two and I sprayed it evenly in engine bay and some neat front suspension. Despite the precautions, I can smell the fume. Finished the process quickly and went straight to wash thoroughly. Even goggled water as I felt it in throat. Parked the car and went to sleep.

ps: I'm not recommending any products mentioned. Just sharing my events



Yes, you should have guessed Next day I still found poop in mat and near the tobacco I placed in engine bay. This rat guy is really starting to annoy me, I don't want another huge repair bill.

Friend recommented me to put rat trap glue pad. Can't find it in 4 to 5 stores either (got only rat cake and spray).Ordered the pad in Amazon. It'll take 10 days to arrive. So for next two days my work in morning is to remove poop.

Can't leave it like this till order arrives. Again went to some stores and finally found it in a store. Bought two of them. The pad opens like a notebook.

The one that I ordered


The one that I got in store



Placed a coconut piece in the black spot on pad and placed it in passenger floor area. Left the dashboard open to ease it's movement.


Next day Got the guy. It's caught sticking on one side, so I cut the other half of pad and kept it in the car again incase if any rat enters again. Threw the other half of pad along with rat far away. Can't be sure no rats will come again but atleast the pad works for now.

Even though I kept the car well cleaned, drove the car once a week, idle and move it daily, got engine coated in repellent, sprayed it again myself, placed tobaccos the rat still came. IMHO, I think there's no permanent solution to stop rats entering your car ever again.

Regarding the repair bill, its just a humble Bolero that's charged nearly 5K. Imagine if you have cars from from other brands which charges more. Better to prevent issues before any major damage occurs. Don't think any minor poop as lizard poop. Rat poop is almost like lizard's. Stay safe and safeguard your car also.

[Jaggu]

Best solution is rat cakes, keep them outside the vehicle egs on top of tyres or inside bonnets. Keep replenishing it till the cakes remain intact, so that the menace has been taken care off.

[Swapnil4585]

I am relieved of my rat trouble. Rats have stopped coming to the place as I changed my car parking spot.

[janakiram_m]

I don't know if this has been discussed already, what if we keep the bonnet open throughout the night?. The rat/mouse always sit on top of the engine cover. I keep finding poop and other rat items only on the cover.

I don't have any security concerns in doing so. Are there any consequences in keeping it open?

[Chillout]

Originally Posted by Thermodynamics

Once, there happened a cat fight, leaving my friend's car with pinhole ruptures on fenders, dents and scratches....

Agree, my tenants Swift had lots of scratches over both the front wheel arches,some of it was like wolverine had scratched it. My own car, has a few scratches. Going to tie tobacco leaves now

[Thermodynamics]

Another tip.

Rat infestations have increased in recent times perhaps due to long parked vehicles that the rats find home. 2 weeks ago, during routine checkup, I noticed wire nibbling under the hood. Took it to service center to ensure wiring is intact. I know that service manager for years and so I sought his advice on repellent technologies. I was keen on ultrasonic ones and mesh guard for the bay. He sheepishly admits there is no effective way to stop the cheeky thugs. Only tip he gave is to change parking spots regularly. If you don't have the privilege of multiple parkings, try to create variations the way you park i.e. forward, reverse, at an angle etc., so that the rat gets confused of address and moves over to a more immobile real estate.

[Jagann13]

Unfortunately rat took out the wire connection to a spark plug. Only 2 out of the three cylinders are functional as of now. I will visit a service centre tomorrow. Hoping for a low bill amount.