My wife has an '82 300 SD. We have had several times where rodents of some form have accumulated stockpiles of edibles and fluff in the trunk. This last weekend she took a proactive approach and cleaned out the trunk and I helped remove the carpeting. I have a few questions.

Behind the carpet on either side down somewhat low are what look like air-vents. They are approx 10" long, 3" wide, louvered, and have a rubber flap that hangs down apparently as a check valve. What purpose do those serve?

Is there any access between the trunk and the passenger compartment for air or rodents?

Is there access into the car under the hood near the windshield?

Any other thoughts or suggestions?

Andrew

I think I have some rodent sneak attacks also. The other morning I had a pellet on the shifter wood, and it looks like they chewed on the sheathing to the emergency brake cable.
My parking area is just 4' from the fence to the dense pasture next door. I'm scared to put mouse poison in there. Don't want them crawling into a small space and dying. And rotting..........
Had one in the house crawl deep into a wall, and it was a horrible couple of weeks.....

__________________
Jimmy L.
'05 Acura TL 6MT
2001 ML430 My Spare

Gone:
'95 E300 188K "Batmobile" Texas Unfriendly Black
'85 300TD 235K "The Wagon" Texas Friendly White
'80 240D 154K "China" Scar engine installed
'81 300TD 240K "Smash"
'80 240D 230K "The Squash"
'81 240D 293K"Scar" Rear ended harder than Elton John

I have been told dryer sheets keep them at bay.

Those flaps in the trunk vent the cabin, those are the main exhuast vents.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

how about a cat?
they may do more damage than the mouse though... and then of course you got to get a dog to remove the cat, then a tiger to remove the dog, then a lion to remove the tiger, then a elephant to remove the lion, then ... a mouse to get rid of the elephant, and really, who has a car big enough for all those creatures...
John

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

After trying commercial poisons and traps, I found this to be most successful... actually suggested by coworker but found it in the internet. No chemicals involved:

http://unexco.com/popups/trapper.html

....No more fishing waders with quarter-size holes, no more mice droppings in the trunk of the car, no more nests in engine compartment, no more droppings in the garage...

sounds cruel but haven't found anything more effective. poisons and traps could harm our pets and not as effective when I tried them... plus they are not any humanely better. But what are you really gonna do with live mice when you catch them anyway... Keep 'em as pets

I've bagged at least a dozen in the garage over the past 2 years....they just come in the winter... this winter, they were down to 3....

There's no good way to stop mice from entering nooks and cranny's in your car. They're small enough to squeeze thru or chew their way in to something.... but they will come out for sunflower seeds....

__________________
the sooner you start... the sooner you'll get done If it ain't broke, don't fix it.. Its always simpler to tell the truth...
2007 Honda Accord EX
2007 Honda Accord SE V6
96 C220
97 Explorer - Found Another Home
2000 Honda Accord V6 - Found Another Home
85 300D - Found Another Home
84 300D - Found Another Home
80 300TD - Found Another Home
Previous cars:
96 Caravan
87 Camry
84 Cressida
82 Vanagon
80 Fiesta
78 Nova
Ford Cortina
Opel Kadet
68 Kombi
Contessa

A fresh dish of Coca-Cola tends to kill rodents also.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

It's there to keep your passengers and yourself from blowing out your eardrums everytime someone closes a door or the trunk.
OK so I exagerate but not by much.

They don't crawl into small places to die. They go off in search of water and die there or on the way.

DAnny

__________________
1984 300SD Turbo Diesel 150,000 miles

OBK member #23

(\__/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy and paste bunny into your
(")_(") signature to help him gain world domination

Okay, it's still not making any sense to me. The flaps are set up to be check valves and so will not allow air from those channels into the trunk, but will allow air from the trunk into those channels. If those are cabin exhaust or pressure release for the inside, then where do they lead to and how does the cabin air get into the trunk???

With regard to rodent poison, they do indeed often die in walls or other small spaces where they are impossible to remove. I'm sure if you investigate you will find plenty of first-hand anecdotes on the matter. I'll spare you mine.

Andrew

Get the sticky-traps. The mice get into the sticky stuff to eat the bait, get stuck there and die. Much better than having them die under the dashboard.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

A friend of mine had an old 65 mustang that he was in the process of rebuilding. A few mice moved in and started chewing up the wiring and the seat foam. He had 2 3 to 4 ft Boas that he always fed white mice to. He would put one in the car for a few days and then put the other in for a few days . After about a week there were no more mice and 2 very happy snakes.

__________________
'83 240D 264k on 100% biodiesel/ 31mpg
83 300D 217K the $800 gem
'82 300D 267K the new WVO project car finished and driving for free
International tractor B275 on B100
Ford 555 backhoe on B100
Sargent 25 ton Rough Terrain crane on B50

Anyone have any info on potential points of entry for the little guys and how to prevent them from getting in, as opposed to creative methods of knocking them off when they do infiltrate?

Andrew

I would not park it near any fields or any place you would expect to find mice. Also , I would place poison bait blocks in places around the garage, barn or any where that the mice be coming from. Obviously you need to keep the bait away from any dogs etc., cats don't count. Don't rely on a cat to keep mice away, they are the laziest creatures on earth.

__________________
'83 240D 264k on 100% biodiesel/ 31mpg
83 300D 217K the $800 gem
'82 300D 267K the new WVO project car finished and driving for free
International tractor B275 on B100
Ford 555 backhoe on B100
Sargent 25 ton Rough Terrain crane on B50

Folks, Catz do work!!! I live in the country (see photo in my sig.), and I have 4 catz for rodent control.....they work well, I don't have any small critter problems, but the downside is li'l cat footprints on my car.....I have a dog who deals with skunks, 'coons, possums, and attempts to deter deer from eating my garden.....

part of the trick with catz is....don't over-feed them.....let them get their own snacks and treats......

SB

__________________

Diesels:
'85 300D, "Max, Blue Benz", 155K, 27.0 MPG
'84 190D 2.2, "Eva, Brown Benz", 142K, 40.2 MPG
'77 240D (parts car)
'67 Eicher ES 202 Tractor "Otto" (2cyl, Air Cooled, 30HP)
Gassers:
'94 Ford F-150, "Henry", 170K (300 Six) 17.5 MPG
'85 190E 2.3, 148K....Parts Car
'58 Dodge W300M Powerwagon (Flat Fenders) Less than 10 MPG

Scatter mothballs on the floor under the car, boat, airplane, etc, keeps the rodents away.

Two more ideas: Cloves are working for us and smell better than the mothballs we used to use.

A continuous mouse trap in the vehicle. They trap the rodents live but do not need immediate tending when one is trapped, and they will trap multiple rodents at a time. A daily check and disposal is sufficient. Peanut butter is the bait. They have names like Tin Kat and can be found at hardware and other retail stores, particularily farm supply types.

Jim W.