So last night while driving home from a nice night out, my check engine light pops on.

Huh... weird.. car has 10500 miles on it... oh, right I just washed it earlier that day, maybe something weird happened with water, etc. Car seems to be running fine... so I'm thinking I'll have to make a trip to the dealership on Monday. In the meantime I have to drive to work this morning, so oh well...

I'm at the gas station and I decide to take a peak... I mean, why not....

Start looking into my air box and see what looks like dog food... oh yes... I then remove the box to take a closer look.

Appears that someone has been busy... lots of rice grains, dog food, etc... plus the little bastard(s) started chewing the corner of my filter.

Dumped it out... cleaned... no more check engine light... (weird?)

So now... what do I do? Traps everywhere? Hell, I'll stuff a cat in there if I have to. Anyone ever have this?????

 

I have seen this before, not on a turbo, but on several vehicles. It's more common for those who live in rural areas. You can install screens until you catch the culprits. Traps in the garage will work but takes time. Typically they go back to where they have nested in the past until something changes.

Good luck

 

I just moved to a new location a week ago... so you think this is my check engine light? Why would this throw a code? Can the car tell there's crap in there?

There will be pictures of whatever I catch... oh yes...

 

When I've seen this in other cases, the check engine light is produced due to restricted air flow. In more severe cases, the mice have chewed through wires and peices of the air filter, under the hood insulation, etc... that allow dirt/debris to pass through that causes the light to come on. Getting it early the better to avoid damage to other items they may bite, etc.

As a precaution, you may want to check the vehicle all over. There are many areas up front they could hide, make a nest etc.

 

Good call... son of a b.

Thanks!

 

I've seen it many times. I've had it happen on my Lexus before too. They eat through the wires and all kinds of carp. Very costly to repair...

 

Ok, well the check engine light came back on while driving today.... and now it feels like I have a single turbo instead of two. Something isn't right.

Boost leak? Something might be lose I guess... off to the dealership because I can't see anything wrong and I cleaned everything out, checked the gas cap, etc etc.

Any other advice or something I should look for?

 

Buy a cheap code reader from Sears and check it out.

 

...what Gasman said...

 

Those little rat-bees chewed my cooling fan wires and that set off the check engine light!

 

Now that you have figured out the problem and cause, the next issue is how do you make sure it doesn't happen again. I used to have mice in the garage until I started using a small device you plug into an electrical outlet which emits a high pitched sound mice don't like.

 

I have cats (indoor as well as feral) . I do have possum and they avoid the cats to some degree and in some cases co exist .
None have ever touched my Porsches.

The key to that is finding and closing all the ports of entry for the rodent . They will go somewhere else . In fact large rodents like possum are nocturnal and hide in rooftops or under toolsheds . They come out at night to feed and them go right back to the spot they have secured .

It is my understanding that mice do not like the scent of peppermint oil . Some rags with peppermint oil ought to deter them if they find an entry point which is unsecured. If you wish to trap them humanely they can not climb out of a bucket . What they want is food. Peanut butter is a good choice. Placing food in bucket with steps to climb up will trap them and then you can release them safely wherever the laws of your region suggest.

 

There are laws that protect rodents - what's this world coming to?

 

I suggest you let the dealership take it apart and figure it out. My Lexus had all kinds of wires chewed up which caused a myriad of different issues.

 

UPDATE Yeah, took it into the dealership today (first chance since this happened over the weekend.)

Cam placement sensor (or something like that) fault code, etc etc...

Engine coming out, getting torn down... sounds like major work.

I think the mice discovery was just coincidence... at least the check engine light prompted me to look around a little bit, probably smart since it sat a lot this winter.

Glad my car is a 2009, CPO'd, under warranty and I haven't chipped it yet, because this sounds expensive!

On the flip side, I would have a preferred a better rental car. Dodge Caliber? Really? Is this what you give your Turbo guys? At least I'll really appreciate the car when I get it back!

Going to get the windows tinted lightly while it's in there as well.. might as well.