Where can mice enter the cabin on a Leaf

I have a 2013 SV, and live in a area where deer mice are prevalent. Drive my car daily except weekends. Discovered evidence of a mouse getting into the cabin of my leaf (droppings on top of the dash and in the cup holder. I tried to figure out where he is getting in. It must be from the "engine" compartment through the firewall into the dash area. But I could not find any holes, either existing by design or something chewed through (they way mice do). Some cars have holes in the firewall that are sometimes plugged with a rubber grommet or something. A mouse can chew through those (ask me how I know), but I didn't see that sort of thing in the Leaf though there is a fibrous cover on the front side of the firewall that makes it hard to see the metal behind it. Does anyone know the most likely place for entry on a Leaf or where to look?

It happened to me, the leaf is not totaled sealed and rats all they need is a small hole, the rat in my car went all the way to the bottom where the passenger seat is, the bottom floor is hollow so rats can travel thru there, one of them was dead and i had to remove a lot of things to take it out and i realize how they can move thru the car, my advice is put traps around you car, but don't use poision because they may end up dead inside your car

Deoc said:

It happened to me, the leaf is not totaled sealed and rats all they need is a small hole, the rat in my car went all the way to the bottom where the passenger seat is, the bottom floor is hollow so rats can travel thru there, one of them was dead and i had to remove a lot of things to take it out and i realize how they can move thru the car, my advice is put traps around you car, but don't use poision because they may end up dead inside your car

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The Hindu avatar Ganesha has a rat as a familiar, representing remover of obstacles (because they can go most places!)

John Kuthe...

Deoc said:

my advice is put traps around you car, but don't use poision because they may end up dead inside your car

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Not sure if this is true or not, but I was told that poison made the mice thirsty and therefor they would generally not go inside an enclosed place after eating it, they would go outside looking for water.....I could be proven wrong, it's just something an exterminator told me once
One issue with poison though is for other animals/cats that might eat the dead mice, they in turn could be sickened
Traps are probably best but I got tired of mice making it in my shed and causing havoc so I finally put some Decon in the shed and end of mice problem :twisted:

Solution: Mouse Traps

A few months ago we started seeing signs of mice in our house, then a few weeks ago our daughter screamed so loud we thought their was an armed intruder in the house late at night - actually she just went into the kitchen and saw a mouse run across the kitchen counter. The next day I went to Home Depot and bought a 2-pack of white plastic Tomcat mouse traps.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ortho-Home-Defense-Max-Press-N-Set-Mouse-Trap-0321110/202601814

They worked like a charm. They say disposable, but I just reused them and still have them set out.

I put a little peanut butter in the trap, set them, and within the first hour (I set then late at night) it caught it's first mouse. I think it breaks their back, because within a few seconds the mouse was dead. I just carried the trap outside to the trash can and opened it up to reset and the mouse fell out. The next morning there was another dead mouse. Next day another two mice. This continued until we had caught a total of 12 mice. Nothing since then so I think we got them all.

I suggest that you set them, one on each of two walls of your garage, as the mice run along the wall. After a few days, once you find out which walls they use, then use one along the wall, and the other on the dash of the car. Since it is only peanut butter, there is nothing unsanitary in your leaf.

Good Luck. Oh, if traps are not to your standards of fair play with animals, then just check with all your neighbors to find that kid that keeps a pet snake. Maybe he will set it up in your Leaf at night to catch and eat the mice.

That was needlessly snarky.

BTW I do have a mouse trap in the passenger floorboard of my Leaf. One of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E1RIUU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

Caught one already, but still would like to find out how they are getting into the Leaf in the first place to try and block their entry. Either with metal foil tape https://www.amazon.com/3M-Foil-Tape-3381-Silver/dp/B06XBPJQSC/ref=sr_1_1 (which I used on another car to tape over a rubber grommet they had chewed out in the firewall) or with pest block spray foam https://www.amazon.com/GREAT-STUFF-Pestblock-Insulating-Sealant/dp/B007TUF0FY/ref=sr_1_1, depending on the opening.

Hi,

I have had the same problem with mice.
(Useful info. first)
I found where they entered the car. the air duct just under the wipers there is a hole to let fresh air in. I covered it steel net. but mice are still getting in as I have caught two inside the car with a trap(Non-lethal by the way) already. If anyone finds all the entry points please let us know.

Initially the park button went dead and I thought something must be wrong. And then the remote key stopped working. I though the battery was dead (as it was showing low bat for a while ). replacing the battery didn't solve it.
Smelled like mice inside the car so I did a check removed the cabby and there they are, mice have eaten the soft linen lining in some parts and made nest.
trip to a repair shop found mice have eaten through about 6 wires and soldering them back on only fixed the parking button. A wire leading to a remote key antenna was also chewed and thus the programming may have been removed.

We had that happen to my wife's hyundai shortly after we moved to south florida. Apparently it's common with roof rats down here. An adult rat can fit through a 1/2" diameter hole, so just about all cars are vulnerable.

The exterminator just used a glue trap and was able to get the rat without killing it. He said the worst he had seen was when a snowbird (Florida term) left their vintage corvette covered in the garage all summer, and by the time he came back to Florida and took the cover off every inch of wiring and upholstry was completely chewed off.

Hmm mice getting into the LEAF? Thru the vents is the only logical place unless...

I am thinking I need to stop that habit of leaving window rolled down. Do it cause I lazy and frequently need to grab something out of car or open charge port door and its easier to reach inside to push button than it is to get FOB...

Yes, if you are in a garage, I think you should always have traps along all 4 walls. I have heard good things about those electric shocker ones. Another easy way is to put an electric one IN your car. If they work hard to get into your car, then you should reward them??? Also not messy,.

We had a rat in the garage. Caught and killed him perhaps a couple of days to a couple of weeks after he might have gotten in. About a week ago.

My windshield washer stopped working.

I just found out why.

Maybe that's why my Leaf's windshield washer stopped working too. :-(

John Kuthe...

JohnKuthe said:

Maybe that's why my Leaf's windshield washer stopped working too. :-(

John Kuthe...

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Park the car someplace where the pavement is dry. Try the washer for a while. Get out of the car and see if there is a puddle of windshield washer fluid.

Go to the local auto parts store, get some "vacuum tubing" the same size. Replace the chewed part. Couple of dollars, lots of bother.

Oh, and I inspected the wiring I can see. The rat chewed on one of the DCQC lines. Not all the way through the insulation to the wire, and not close to any other conductor.

Not happy.

I have no substantiation for this, but it kinda does seem plausible... A friend once told me that coating things like wires that you don't want chewed with tabasco sauce will deter rodents, and that some kinds of electrical wiring come with tabasco already incorporated into the plastic.

I went on a mission this morning to figure out where the mice were getting in. I was surprised to find a HUGE hole in the firewall, just a little to the driver's side of center.



It doesn't seem to serve any purpose, so a fabricated a patch using a bit of plastic and some leftover flashing tape.

It looks like something might have been there that the rat chewed off. Anyone know what should be in that hole?

Levenkay said:

I have no substantiation for this, but it kinda does seem plausible... A friend once told me that coating things like wires that you don't want chewed with tabasco sauce will deter rodents, and that some kinds of electrical wiring come with tabasco already incorporated into the plastic.

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Honda used to carry "rodent deterrent" tape. It was an electrical tape with a bittering agent embedded in it. I used it on my truck. The mice still ate the wiring. Something to try though.

You might check the firewall material under the hood. I had to take that off to get a family of mice out of there.

I've trapped them from stem to stern. Once one was sticking his nose through that slit where the seatbelt is.

I've successfully used that aluminum foil tape for ductwork to tape over holes, they don't like chewing metal