Animals attack your car

[YodaBird]

Have any stories of animals destroying something on your car, whether your fault or just the animal likes your car ?

[timothyone]

I made the mistake of taking a couple of granddaughters out for a burger and fries in my new car. Three hours and many miles later I turned to see what my little wild one was doing to find her entire cheeseburger, missing only it's top, stuck firmly to her window, cheese side out. If I hadn't pulled it off right then it might still be there today.

[bronsin]

Oh this should be good!

But no, animals have left my car alone.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by timothyone

I made the mistake of taking a couple of granddaughters out for a burger and fries in my new car. Three hours and many miles later I turned to see what my little wild one was doing to find her entire cheeseburger, missing only it's top, stuck firmly to her window, cheese side out. If I hadn't pulled it off right then it might still be there today.

I took my little cousin out for some (IIRC) yogurt after school on her first day of Kindergarten. When we got back to the house, for some reason (I can't remember exactly why) I parked on the opposite side of the street, facing traffic (in a gravel space, off the road). She grabbed her mother's sunglasses and a cell phone (mine or her mother's), crawled into my lap behind the wheel of my Yaris, and put her foot up on the dash. Her foot was jammed up against one of the heat/ AC system 'wheels' on the dash. She looked so comfortable, I didn't tell her to move her foot. The neighbor (whose house we were parked in front of) came out to pull her trash and recycle bins back (from where the refuse company needed them to be prior to emptying them). The neighbor saw us sitting in my Yaris (both with sunglasses on) and my little cousin with the cell phone pressed to her ear (a 'mock call'), and laughed. She asked "How was the first day of Kindergarten". I pointed down to the top of my cousin's head and said "She's pretending to call Mrs. _ _ _ _ _ (my cousin's new teacher who had also been the Kindergarten teacher for the neighbor's 3 kids)". The neighbor laughed and then resumed moving the trash and recycle bins back from the edge of the driveway. My cousin's foot ended up permanently pushing in the wheel...to 'sit crooked' from that moment on. I vowed that the last picture I ever take of my Yaris will be of that bent wheel.


A couple of years before that, she was giggling in her car seat and I looked in my rear view mirror to see what was up. She had taken the stickers from her bananas and affixed them to the back seat passenger side window. I ended up leaving one of the stickers on there for a LONG time.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by YodaBird

Have any stories of animals destroying something on your car, whether your fault or just the animal likes your car ?

Not re my Yaris, but with another car. When I was 16 I drove, for a bit (until I got my own car that I was saving for), an extra car (a Firebird convertible) that my dad bought to drive in case he found himself without a company car. Our cat liked to crawl up from the slab (under the hood) and sleep on top of the air filter cover.

[WeeYari]

^ that often does not end well.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by WeeYari

^ that often does not end well.

It came to my attention when I got in the car (with the top down) and shut the door fairly hard. I heard a bump and then saw the cat come out from under the car. After that, if I didn't see her in the house or in the yard, I'd pop the hood open before starting the car to make sure the cat wasn't in there. Once, she was still trying to sleep after I raised the hood and I had to shoo her away.

[Kalispel]

Parked outside, I have had critters crawl up into the engine compartment area and gnaw on wiring and stuff before. Had to spray pepper-spray in there to get them to stop.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by Kalispel

Parked outside, I have had critters crawl up into the engine compartment area and gnaw on wiring and stuff before. Had to spray pepper-spray in there to get them to stop.

^^^^^

My memories above = San Francisco Bay Area. I can see your scenario being more of an issue in general (not for me personally....I park in my garage with the door closed) in my area in Texas.

[YodaBird]

Originally Posted by Kalispel

Parked outside, I have had critters crawl up into the engine compartment area and gnaw on wiring and stuff before. Had to spray pepper-spray in there to get them to stop.

A year ago I left some candy in the glove box, a few days later, I opened the glove box, the case my car manual was in had chew marks. Two weeks ago, I went to get an oil change, they checked the car, and found the cabin filter was ripped apart, that and my parking break had become loose, the cabin filter was because of a squirrel and the candies as mentioned earlier. I park under I tree, I also have the privilege of cats marking my car, leaving a bad odor in the cabin.

Toyota charged me $50 to replace the cabin filter, including labor and $50 for tightening the parking break, the mechanic told me, tightening the parking break will be a yearly thing. I was informed a year ago at the most I should only pay up to twenty dollars to tighten the parking break, and Toyota was generous to give me a discount, they originally wanted seventy dollars.

I still have warranty on the car, I'm in my final year, well less then a year at this point, you'd think they wouldn't charge me, the excuse they kept telling me is, your car has low millage, yes it does, that is so I don't have to keep opening my wallet all the time, or at least up to two years after my warranty is expired, well, part of my warranty, I still have power-trains warranty and one other.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by YodaBird

I also have the privilege of cats marking my car, leaving a bad odor in the cabin.

Thankfully, this hasn't happened to me with any of my vehicles over the years.

and $50 for tightening the parking break, the mechanic told me, tightening the parking break will be a yearly thing. I was informed a year ago at the most I should only pay up to twenty dollars to tighten the parking break, and Toyota was generous to give me a discount, they originally wanted seventy dollars.

Wow. The person a year ago was more on the money from what I've experienced. Quite a while ago, my brakes were making a funny sound. I took my Yaris to a trusted local shop (not my local Toyota dealer). It turned out that all dust just needed to be cleaned out/off the rear drum brakes and that the parking brake needed adjustment. Total for both together was about $40 (or a bit less).