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When Going Green Backfires: Eco-Friendly Car Wiring in Newer Cars Apparently Attracts Rats

"No green deed goes unpunished"

By Rain Noe - October 23, 2020

in Cars

When my father-in-law's beloved Volvo began running roughly, he brought it into the shop. The technicians discovered rats had been chewing through the wiring. This puzzled my father-in-law, as over the years he'd parked other cars in his driveway, and none of them had attracted rats to the wiring; why the Volvo?

He subsequently learned that Volvo had switched over to an eco-friendly, biodegrable wire coating made from soy. As it turns out, this soy coating is apparently quite tasty to rodents. A Forbes article on the subject reveals that some owners of late-model cars made by Volvo, Honda, Mazda and Toyota have experienced the same problem. "The common denominator appears to be soy," the article states, noting that lawsuits have been filed. "Alas, no green deed goes unpunished."

The article reveals that owners of the affected vehicles have been taking matters into their own hands:

"[Volvo owner] JoAnn conducted an exhaustive Google search and discovered a new rat repellent: Coyote urine. She bought a supply of the Coyote formula from Home Depot for $24 -- plus shipping. Every night, JoAnn pours a little coyote piss around her tires. 'I dot my driveway with some too,' she says. She also places a Coyote urine-soaked sponge inside a tin pan near the car. She's not sure it's working yet and does not want to take her car in for any more repairs until she's rid of the rats once and for all."

Any manufacturers reading this: Please consider my wife's suggestion, which is to offer in-car snakes as an option.

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Dave Kat

4 years ago

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Just curious about the location of the Volvo. While in Seattle my Subaru showed some signs of rodents in the engine compartment. While in the shop, I heard a couple of stories of major wire harness chewing by rodents. Just curious if it occurs more frequently in colder/wetter climates.

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Anthony Towers

4 years ago

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Years ago, I designed Bonnet and Wheel arch liners. One of the tests we had to make was the "Pine Marten Test" ensuring that all the edges were totally sealed and the outer material was resistant to birds ripping the liners apart for nesting material.

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Seth Orsborn

4 years ago

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This is actually pretty old news. Toyota research found that animals like to eat wires and that soy is a red herring.

Farmers have dealt with this for years. The real irony is that the reason many tractors are diesel, beyond the torque and efficiency compared with gas, is that mice and rats won't bother engines covered in a thin layer of diesel.

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