case of the rodent - Toyota 4Runner Forum

yoyomonkey · 10-29-2019, 07:21 PM

so i usually don't park outside but this week i happen to park the '18 outside for the night. Temperature has been dropping over night in my area. Came out today and the 4runner has a engine light and it misfires.

From checking around seems like rodent or something probably chewed the wires. Anyone has any idea where to look under the hood?

llDemonll · 10-29-2019, 07:39 PM

pull the code and start there

yoyomonkey · 10-30-2019, 02:21 PM

I meant visually, don’t have a scanner. Probably going to have it tow to dealership since I have no choice. Can’t drive it.

wsgoat · 10-30-2019, 02:28 PM

Check your cabin filter.....they love nesting in that area!

yoyomonkey · 10-30-2019, 11:33 PM

Found it, chewed my fuel injector on passenger side... nice big shelf for the rodent in there. Why don’t they just stick some foam under there. Dang it, just 15k miles on it. And it’s under the manifold. On to YouTube how to take off the manifold.

pDubs · 10-31-2019, 12:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yoyomonkey

Found it, chewed my fuel injector on passenger side... nice big shelf for the rodent in there. Why don’t they just stick some foam under there. Dang it, just 15k miles on it. And it’s under the manifold. On to YouTube how to take off the manifold.

Chewed the fuel injector? Do you mean the wiring? If so you should just able to fix the wiring.

yoyomonkey · 10-31-2019, 01:16 AM

Yea wiring, one of wire is gone. Chewed on the coil pack wires too, but they are still good. The damn thing was still in there taunting me while I was looking around. Had to push the 4Runner back outside cause I don’t want it jump over my other car. Pop the hood, hopefully it will go away.

pDubs · 10-31-2019, 10:23 AM

Sucks. I had same issue with my older 4th gen, rodents chewed through the injector wiring.

My mom drives a 4th gen 4runner also and they live a neighborhood with massive trees everywhere and tons of squirrels. She has had a few instances now of squirrels chewing wiring. One time they even chewed through the fuel line coming off the gas tank and we had to drop the entire tank to replace everything. Gas was all over the driveway and she didn't realize until she started the truck, reversed out and saw the puddle where the truck was parked.

Shamish · 10-31-2019, 07:50 PM

Has anyone tried any of that rodent repellent you can spray under the hood?

4R4Trout · 10-31-2019, 09:07 PM

I just had this happen to me earlier this month. Cost me $200 bucks to diagnose and repair. My #5 injector wire got chewed on. I was told by the mechanic shop to open your hood at your destination to help release the heat from the engine as that’s one thing that attracts them in is a warm place to nest. It also helps to leave the hood up as they don’t like the light above them ( even star and moon light). They are open to predators and don’t like the openness of the hood.

One thing I notice after getting it fixed is my miles per gallon dropped by 3 because of this. I drove it 20 miles of 5 cylinders to get it fixed. I hope I did not permanently screw something up.

Thermal · 11-01-2019, 02:31 AM

Had this happen last winter. Luckily it was just one of the windshield hoses. I've been using peppermint oil mixture and it seems to work.

You may need to spray a few times a week at first then you can spray 1 - 2 times a week for maintenance.

Combine two teaspoons of peppermint oil with one cup of water and then add a few drops of dish detergent to help the ingredients mix better. Shake it all together in a spray bottle and apply the mixture any place that you have or suspect you have mice

The rodent ended up being a rat. After I started spraying the 4R with peppermint oil, the rat decided to move into to the attic. Eventually I caught it in a trap. Rofl, just my luck.

Jivewalker · 11-01-2019, 09:25 AM

Just get a cat or a rat snake and keep it in the garage. Feed it some milk.

Ehahn84 · 11-14-2019, 10:54 AM

Im an exterminator and can offer a little advice.

Toyota uses soy in the plastic insulator for wires....making them food sources. I have a ski boat that I store outside year round and a few years ago had a rodent issue with the wiring in it. After a $2000 rewire I just happened to go to a rodent workshop (for licensing credits) and learned that rodents don't like the smell of minty herb stuff. So, I filled large pitcher size tea bags with herbs and mints and rosemary and attached three of them under the cover in my boat. Seemed to work! I know its holistic, and its probably coincidence, but a real solution would probably be paired with a ton of rodent bait stations.

4RunnerL2016 · 11-14-2019, 11:17 AM

Had one build a nest on top of the cabin air filter...so gross. Check there first (behind the glovebox, accessed from inside it). To ensure it didn't happen again, I put some chicken wire over the top of the opening in the engine bay, and epoxy'd it down on all sides. Problem solved! Be sure to deal with it ASAP as mice follow other mice's pee to look for safe places to eat and sleep....in other words, one quickly leads to 10.

2112 R · 11-14-2019, 12:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ehahn84

Im an exterminator and can offer a little advice.

Toyota uses soy in the plastic insulator for wires....making them food sources. I have a ski boat that I store outside year round and a few years ago had a rodent issue with the wiring in it. After a $2000 rewire I just happened to go to a rodent workshop (for licensing credits) and learned that rodents don't like the smell of minty herb stuff. So, I filled large pitcher size tea bags with herbs and mints and rosemary and attached three of them under the cover in my boat. Seemed to work! I know its holistic, and its probably coincidence, but a real solution would probably be paired with a ton of rodent bait stations.

^^ Yes for this solution.
I have also tried the soap technique. Found some paw prints in my engine bay and now every winter I take a bar of Irish Spring soap, cut it into strips, put them in a sock and zip tie it somewhere in the engine bay. If it's up high enough it won't get wet and generate suds, you just need that soapy Irish Spring smell in the engine bay somewhere and it drives them off.
I leave it there all year and then replace it when winter comes ... thanks for the reminder, I'll probably do it this weekend.

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