Mice in Cab - where do they get in from?

[grumpyunk]

Likeliest in my opinion are the HVAC fresh air inlet path and various openings in the floor or footwell area. Final would be in or around the kick panels at either side. Mice can fit between gaps of 1/4" or less. Do not be surprised if you only find what appear to be openings that are too small. You can stuff steel wool into gaps to discourage entry. It must be well-packed or it can be easily dislodged. Eucalyptus and Pennyroyal oils seem to discourage. Not too sure on mothballs.
If you do use sticky traps, you can use vegetable oil to release anything as the glue is apparently soluble with oil. You can take the traps 'elsewhere' and drizzle oil onto the glue near the critter, and with any luck they will squirm free pretty quickly.
tom

Sponsored

 

[Dad]

Put some peppermint oil on cotton balls in your truck and it will deter the mice. Had that issue with an old ranger. Think they were getting in through the vents, was never 100% sure on that though. But the peppermint oil helped.

Not to mention it's much safer on humans than poison. And, who wants to have a dead rat sitting in your truck for hours.

 

[Dad]

Whatever you do, don't let it slide. They will chew on wires or insulation or whatever and cause an unbelievable amount of damage if left alone. Traps to start with and find out where they are getting in.
Though one mouse can cause leave a lot of evidence. And if you leave the door open for a bit they could have just jumped in and be hiding under the dash.

I thought the same ... perhaps living under a seat or behind the rear seat.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

Anyone else have this issue? Where do they get in? Every morning there's droppings in the cup holders other open places nearby.

I had rats build nest in engine compartment of my Nissan Frontier when new subdivision was developed about 1/2 mile away. Neighborhood was inundated and pickup was not moved for two days. Ate Insulation off wiring harness, battery cables, corner off fuze box, many other things. Repair (covered by comprehensive and deductable from me) was just over $5800.00. My son has Frontier now and has motion detector activated high frequency sound and lights in engine compartment.

 

[NJ Pinelands]

Anyone else have this issue? Where do they get in? Every morning there's droppings in the cup holders other open places nearby.

Well, I see you don’t live in Orlando or Anaheim, so it isn’t due to geography.

 

[Red Ryder]

And we thought snakes on a plane was a bad thing.

The local news has been full of stories of bear intrusions lately, even in cars.

I had a collection of nuts on the manifold of an Escape I owned many years back, but never anything living within the cabin (that I knew about). I originally thought squirrels, but it was likely field mice.

 

[Snax]

I honestly don't know how a mouse would get into your truck with the doors closed. Have you checked your air filter, to see if it could have chewed through that?

Many years ago, I was traveling around the country in an old '84 Subaru to climb in various areas like Yosemite, Hueco, etc. Somewhere along the way, I mouse managed to catch a ride with me. I sometimes slept in the car on long segments, and the damn critter would wake me up. At first, I could just rock the car a bit, kick something, etc., and the mouse would quite down again. On a few occasions, I tried leaving the doors open to give it a way out, but it seemed very happy in my car. Reluctantly, I finally set a snap trap.

 

[225er]

Get rid of the mice source asap! They will chew through wires and plastic and are a huge liability. They can cause some serious damage in your house and to your possessions. Put some ammonia in an open container in your attic and garage if you have one, it will make them leave for a better home since the smell is strong. If you really have to put some in your truck but you won’t like the smell.

 

[Timothyd]

I honestly don't know how a mouse would get into your truck with the doors closed. Have you checked your air filter, to see if it could have chewed through that?

Many years ago, I was traveling around the country in an old '84 Subaru to climb in various areas like Yosemite, Hueco, etc. Somewhere along the way, I mouse managed to catch a ride with me. I sometimes slept in the car on long segments, and the damn critter would wake me up. At first, I could just rock the car a bit, kick something, etc., and the mouse would quite down again. On a few occasions, I tried leaving the doors open to give it a way out, but it seemed very happy in my car. Reluctantly, I finally set a snap trap.

Ahhhhhh, the familiar sound of a snap trap going off in the middle of the night.

 

[icegradner]

I wonder if rats/mice could also get in through the filter thing behind the backseat that is suppose to maintain pressure in the cab when you close the doors? It just has a papery filter on it, they could easily chew through that.

 

[NJBob]

I hate mices to pieces. Seriously they got into my mr2 chewed the shifter wiring in the middle of the console. Nothing I did would keep them out. Dryer sheets, irishs spring, mothballs, ultrasonic deterrents. Has to use snap trap. Not a fan of sticky traps.

 

[Vortan]

placed traps in the cab, will update later on or tomorrow morning, fingers crossed

 

[Edge Haley]

I did not believe this but saw a mouse in my cabin and my motorcycle riding buddy, an Entomologist (insect and biology doctor) told me if you set traps, the spring trap kind, if you don't even catch the mouse it will normally not come back...he says they are very smart creatures and recognize the danger. Same thing with poison, if rats see other dead rats that tends to keep live ones away. But where there are multiple rats they have to all be exposed to the danger before they leave the area. Rats chewing on electrical wires are a fire hazard, so no sympathy for the rats from me.

If you have a bunch of rats that could take more actions. I set half a 1/2 dozen baited spring traps with cheese for 2 weeks and it worked. Did not catch one but one did trip a trap, but have not seen another mouse after several years. A vehicle /motorcycle not used for 2, 3 or 4 days are easy targets for rats.

Rats in vehicles are looking for solitude hiding places, commonly the air filter to make a nest (prior to a cold winter).* Cars with Interior mico-filters have the filter located in the back of glove box so air has to be routed thru the glove box being a route for a rat. They can enter vehicles for food but most often are looking for warm places for leaving a winter litter of mice. A small mouse can enter anywhere thru a hole the size of a nickel, tiny mice can squeeze thru a hole the size of a dime and smaller...usually thru the engine bay area. Did find one entering our RV thru thick rubber molding at the bottom of a door...

If you really want to find out their vehicle access...buy or borrow a game camera sitting on the floor of your garage. Rats eventually have to come out to get water/or food.

*The use of soybeans in wire coating causing rats to chew on wires has been debunked multiple times.

 

[dwkfb69]

Bounce fabric sheets work too and they don't smell bad

 

[Gatekeep]

We have used Irish spring soap before. It seemed to work. I think a lot of wiring is made of sustainable eco soy mice food now.

My neighbor just got her 2020 Toyota declaired totaled because of mice eating the wire insolation. Yes, it was soy based. there is a class action lawsuit pending. A few other makers are also on the lawsuit.

Sponsored