Rodent Damage - any advice

[66tim99]

My case lodged with the Motor Ombudsman still hasn't been allocated, but has been accepted for allocation...
I am putting these fox spikes round my van to try to prevent vermin getting underneath. Takes 3 mins to wedge them round the edge of the van. Has worked so far, but recognise isn’t a solution if you’re in and out all the time.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Happened to my 2008 T5 twice.

 

[Kayleigh]

My Cali is currently with the dealer getting the AdBlue injector replaced for the second time in 5 months at a cost of over £500, due to rodent damage of the electrical cable. Apparently, it is quite low down and an easy target for rodents according to the dealer.
So I’m now thinking of using some kind of rodent deterrents to help prevent it happening again. I know there are no guarantees but having browsed several threads I can see these options.

- Marten deterrent
- Ultrasonic alarm (not sure if this is the same as above)
- Anti-rodent electrical tape
- Anti-rodent/peppermint spray
- Spiked mat under the van (not sure its practical for on street parking)

Does anyone have any other ideas for vehicles parked on London streets?

 

[66tim99]

My Cali is currently with the dealer getting the AdBlue injector replaced for the second time in 5 months at a cost of over £500, due to rodent damage of the electrical cable. Apparently, it is quite low down and an easy target for rodents according to the dealer.
So I’m now thinking of using some kind of rodent deterrents to help prevent it happening again. I know there are no guarantees but having browsed several threads I can see these options.

- Marten deterrent
- Ultrasonic alarm (not sure if this is the same as above)
- Anti-rodent electrical tape
- Anti-rodent/peppermint spray
- Spiked mat under the van (not sure its practical for on street parking)

Does anyone have any other ideas for vehicles parked on London streets?

This is a real pain. VW dealer admitted to me in writing that they had changed the coating to a soy-based compound more attractive to vermin. I have a case lodged with the motor ombudsman - expecting a decision before Xmas. The case has been open over a year, since my NoX sensor got munched. Dealer charged me £700 and told me gleefully that I was lucky it wasn’t £2,500 - which it can be if they go to town under there.
Meantime I use this which wedges nicely round the bottom of the van. I’ve tried chilli flakes, ultrasonic, peppermint spray…nothing works as well as this.
Good luck
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B09YHNHC1Y/?tag=vwcalifornia-21

 

[Viktorgeorge]

My Cali is currently with the dealer getting the AdBlue injector replaced for the second time in 5 months at a cost of over £500, due to rodent damage of the electrical cable. Apparently, it is quite low down and an easy target for rodents according to the dealer.
So I’m now thinking of using some kind of rodent deterrents to help prevent it happening again. I know there are no guarantees but having browsed several threads I can see these options.

- Marten deterrent
- Ultrasonic alarm (not sure if this is the same as above)
- Anti-rodent electrical tape
- Anti-rodent/peppermint spray
- Spiked mat under the van (not sure its practical for on street parking)

Does anyone have any other ideas for vehicles parked on London streets?

@Webbah_in_Switzerland posted a while back (probably on this string) that some owners he had met or heard of put mesh bags of dog hair somewhere warmish (by engine). I went as far as visiting my local dog trimmers and left them a bag to fill (asking for the most smelliest they could offer), but never went back. I was thinking of filling the void above the spare wheel with it too. This new post reminded me, thank you @Kayleigh.

 

[Kayleigh]

This is a real pain. VW dealer admitted to me in writing that they had changed the coating to a soy-based compound more attractive to vermin. I have a case lodged with the motor ombudsman - expecting a decision before Xmas. The case has been open over a year, since my NoX sensor got munched. Dealer charged me £700 and told me gleefully that I was lucky it wasn’t £2,500 - which it can be if they go to town under there.
Meantime I use this which wedges nicely round the bottom of the van. I’ve tried chilli flakes, ultrasonic, peppermint spray…nothing works as well as this.
Good luck
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B09YHNHC1Y/?tag=vwcalifornia-21

Thanks for the response @66tim99. It would be good to hear the Ombudsman verdict.
So did you wrap cables with that mat or have you tied it on underneath the van?
Thanks.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Thanks for the response @66tim99. It would be good to hear the Ombudsman verdict.
So did you wrap cables with that mat or have you tied it on underneath the van?
Thanks.

I used the electrical tape on everything in the front wheel areas. Drove onto chocks and lay on my back on yoga mat. Its a very grubby job wrapping tape over everything but I'd had 2 wires expensively chewed. No repeat.

It was tape off ebay with the picture of a mouse on it. Has chilli in it. Cheap tape, very dirty job but worth it.

 

[Kayleigh]

I used the electrical tape on everything in the front wheel areas. Drove onto chocks and lay on my back on yoga mat. Its a very grubby job wrapping tape over everything but I'd had 2 wires expensively chewed. No repeat.

It was tape off ebay with the picture of a mouse on it. Has chilli in it. Cheap tape, very dirty job but worth it.

Yes I was looking at that kind of tape. I may well do the same.

 

[66tim99]

Thanks for the response @66tim99. It would be good to hear the Ombudsman verdict.
So did you wrap cables with that mat or have you tied it on underneath the van?
Thanks.

I wedge it in vertically around the van when i park up in the underground garage of my block of flats, to create a fence to stop critters getting under the van. Realise this wouldn't be likely to stay in place out on the street.

 

[Ffrenchie]

Never had problems with T6 for 6 years. July 2022 after 3 weeks ownership of T6.1 we had rodent damage. No warranty, 130 euro repair cost. Since then we have ultrasonic rodent repellant device under engine hood and rodent repellant spray with us when camping. I believe especially new cali’s have an irresistible odor for rodents and alike.

My T6 is in for repairs to rodent/fox damage to wiring plus ad-blue pipes plus sensors, cost £1700.00. VW says there’s no design fault with materials being used.

 

[Mattsv]

I have just suffered rodent/fox damage almost exactly 12m since the first incident - £500 the first time, and another £1k last week. Have now placed ultrasonic detectors in driveway and under bonnet. Have never seen any sign at all of rodents, but foxes and badgers are regular visitors as we live about 100 yards from a nature reserve.

 

[Corradobrit]

VW says there’s no design fault with materials being used.

For a moment I thought you also lived in Hannover Germany. This was the response I got when I tried to replace my leaky 03S bellows.

 

[66tim99]

My T6 is in for repairs to rodent/fox damage to wiring plus ad-blue pipes plus sensors, cost £1700.00. VW says there’s no design fault with materials being used.

This thread worth reading. @oryx white has excellent negotiating skills.
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/rodent-attack-repairs.36313/post-670826

 

[newboldi]

Hi, I had this problem x2…I use the rodent spray which so far is working. VW and the motoring ombudsman have been utterly useless. I was contacted by Rip Off Britain recently and did some filming on the subject…it will air in January.

 

[AdamsFamily]

Interesting read, and some neat ideas to help deter the little buggars.
Daughter lives on a farm and they got inside her Freelander and had a field day!

No Auto Electrician would touch it, LR said its a complete rewire job so she ended up having it written off. Lucky for her she bought it when the market was down, and had it written off in a high so she only lost £1100 on the rice she paid after owning it for 3 years.

 

[66tim99]

Hi, I had this problem x2…I use the rodent spray which so far is working. VW and the motoring ombudsman have been utterly useless. I was contacted by Rip Off Britain recently and did some filming on the subject…it will air in January.

What happened with the Ombudsman? Just called them today - decision is waiting to be approved and I’m told should be issued ‘this year’. Has taken about a year. Got allocated as a ‘more complex complaint’ in August, so I hope they’ve done a proper job.
I gave them written evidence from VW technician themselves, which reads:
“We cannot prevent this from happening, as we have no control over external influences causing
such damage to the customer's vehicle, so we cannot offer a guarantee it will not happen again in the future.
It is a common issue that we see quite a lot of, and the manufacturer is aware that the substance the wiring is made from attracts rodents. Maybe a change in the production of the wiring used would be a solution.”

 

[newboldi]

What happened with the Ombudsman? Just called them today - decision is waiting to be approved and I’m told should be issued ‘this year’. Has taken about a year. Got allocated as a ‘more complex complaint’ in August, so I hope they’ve done a proper job.
I gave them written evidence from VW technician themselves, which reads:
“We cannot prevent this from happening, as we have no control over external influences causing
such damage to the customer's vehicle, so we cannot offer a guarantee it will not happen again in the future.
It is a common issue that we see quite a lot of, and the manufacturer is aware that the substance the wiring is made from attracts rodents. Maybe a change in the production of the wiring used would be a solution.”

Really interesting to hear what they have to say to you - they never discussed mine as a complex case as far as I know. I supplied mountains of evidence, talked them through my issue and several other cases in my area. They made all the right noises and I felt they’d push VW to do something about it. When I got the ruling it was complete waffle about how this was not a common problem, VW were not in any way liable for, not a warranty or design issue and basically to clear off…utter waste of time.

This is essentially a design issue. What bright spark thought it sensible to run wires underneath the vehicle exposed to the elements? The new coating material is creating a bigger issue but, as the CEO for JCT600 told me “rats have been eating wires for 30 years”. They should be protected (encased) or run internally through the body of the vehicle. The cynic within me suggests this is a nice little earner for VW and they have no incentive to solve it.

For info - mine was caused by foxes.

 

[66tim99]

Really interesting to hear what they have to say to you - they never discussed mine as a complex case as far as I know. I supplied mountains of evidence, talked them through my issue and several other cases in my area. They made all the right noises and I felt they’d push VW to do something about it. When I got the ruling it was complete waffle about how this was not a common problem, VW were not in any way liable for, not a warranty or design issue and basically to clear off…utter waste of time.

This is essentially a design issue. What bright spark thought it sensible to run wires underneath the vehicle exposed to the elements? The new coating material is creating a bigger issue but, as the CEO for JCT600 told me “rats have been eating wires for 30 years”. They should be protected (encased) or run internally through the body of the vehicle. The cynic within me suggests this is a nice little earner for VW and they have no incentive to solve it.

For info - mine was caused by foxes.

Sorry to read this. I’m not holding out much hope for the Ombudsman, but presumably they’ve done SOMETHING in the year. If they just repeat the same lame VW line fed to you it will have been another pointless bureaucratic exercise.
I suspect mine was foxes too but can’t be sure. I now prop plastic fox fencing round the bottom of the van. As it’s only used occasionally it’s not much of a chore, but it is a 3 minute faff.

 

[newboldi]

Sorry to read this. I’m not holding out much hope for the Ombudsman, but presumably they’ve done SOMETHING in the year. If they just repeat the same lame VW line fed to you it will have been another pointless bureaucratic exercise.
I suspect mine was foxes too but can’t be sure. I now prop plastic fox fencing round the bottom of the van. As it’s only used occasionally it’s not much of a chore, but it is a 3 minute faff.

I think the difference here may be that a VW technician has offered something??? My local VW van centre told me to move house (as we live opposite a park) or get rent-a-kill in. Not sure how popular we’d be to ‘nuke’ the area the day before we arrived at a campsite! Anyway, good luck…interested to hear if you have more success than me

 

[Meoncoast]

So far we only had this issue once back in 2012 on our T5se while away. At home the road has a good cat population.

 

[Alan Greensall]

In January I picked up a new California Beach. Last Thursday I filled up with Diesel and an hour later I found a significant amount of diesel dripping from the bottom of the van. Called roadside assistance who took the van to the local repair centre and they organised a hire car. They explained the van might not be looked at until later this week as the garage had a jolly to Le Mans but that was no problem as i had a hire car and no trips planned. This morning my phone rang and i thought "great" they've repaired it. The conversation went along these lines - they have found the problem and sent me a video - rodents have chewed through the fuel line - this is not under warranty and will cost £370 to repair and the parts aren't in the country and they have no estimate as to when they might be. Now like many on this forum I would imagine you will be using your van for holidays/festivals/weekends and I've got a whole summer planned nearly every weekend. So i changed the subject changed to replacement campervans which they didn't have but then came the killer punch. Because the damage is not covered by warranty we need the car back now. I decided i was to angry to carry on the conversation and put the phone down. An hour later the MD of repair centre called me and after further investigation they could repair it but it would not be under warranty and would cost £300. He informed me that Rodent damage on Vans was very common and short of setting rat traps around your van at night there was not much i could do. So i have a couple of questions. 1). Has anyone else had rodent issues with a new van and what was the outcome? 2) It appears VW and other van providers are using new rodent friendly covered plastic on fuel lines so are VW going to take any responsibility as I'd imagine this is a serious accident waiting to happen.

had the same issue with rodent damage in 3 areas. This was following a previous damage 6 months before that was repaired. I too have had multiple BMW cars even now, and never had any damage. After months of wrangling. VW HQ conceded to replace the damaged wiring and paid for the fitting of a rodent deterrent. The Garage admitted that the wiring is wrapped in soy based tape for eco reasons. Hope this helps.

 

[WelshGas]

had the same issue with rodent damage in 3 areas. This was following a previous damage 6 months before that was repaired. I too have had multiple BMW cars even now, and never had any damage. After months of wrangling. VW HQ conceded to replace the damaged wiring and paid for the fitting of a rodent deterrent. The Garage admitted that the wiring is wrapped in soy based tape for eco reasons. Hope this helps.

So you use the California as often as your BMW, as a daily driver throughout the year?

 

[Gecko_Bioyag77]

Never had problems with T6 for 6 years. July 2022 after 3 weeks ownership of T6.1 we had rodent damage. No warranty, 130 euro repair cost. Since then we have ultrasonic rodent repellant device under engine hood and rodent repellant spray with us when camping. I believe especially new cali’s have an irresistible odor for rodents and alike.

It’s possible that the cable insulation attracts rodents. I work in telecoms and this happens sometimes to fibre optic cables which are chewed by rodents, we suspect there’s an ingredient that is attracting them. However check there’s no food left in or around the vehicle when finished camping. Traveling with kids can mean that half eaten or dropped morsels can be left in or around any vehicle which will attract rodents, just like at home. My friend who drives a Ford focus had to replace her wiring loom at her own expense recently, but she noted leftovers from her daughter’s snacks in the vehicle, which probably was the root cause.

 

[Alan Greensall]

So you use the California as often as your BMW, as a daily driver throughout the year?

Both are used infrequently. I had another BMW as a daily drive

 

[66tim99]

After months of wrangling. VW HQ conceded to replace the damaged wiring and paid for the fitting of a rodent deterrent. The Garage admitted that the wiring is wrapped in soy based tape for eco reasons.

Good to hear, and good for you.
Frustrating that VW HQ give different service to different people. My NoX sensor was munched by vermin, according to the dealer. Despite their technician writing in an email to me that the new soy based material was delicious to critters, HQ refused to admit fault and I was charged £700, with no rodent deterrent offered.
Eagerly waiting for the Ombudsman to report...