Anyone ever open their hood to find their hood insulation ripped down into a nest on top of their valve cover and filled with little football shaped excrement..

Well I did..

Within a week I detailed my engine which needed it anyway..

-covered the battery, alternator and distributor with plastic bags

-used simple green sprayed on engine components and used small brushes to disturb grime

-sprayed more simple green and let sit for a few minutes

-rinsed and dried engine with paper towels and shop vac for crevices

-used soap solution and sponge for painted surfaces

-quick detailer and terry cloth on painted surfaces

-Tire foam on plastic and rubber.. let sit over night and did final wipe down and inspection.. (had tire foam on my last thirdgen for 10 years and never had an issue with anything..It cleans and drips gunk to the ground which is nice..other products are just for shine)

I got a new hood liner from 1A Auto and it looks better than the dusty old original one did..

How mortifying that was!

We have a small horse farm so we have critters.. need more work on the garage clearly!

 

Wow! You sir are an inspiration, an engine detail is at the top of the list on my recently purchased IROC.

 

That looks so clean, just a fantastic job well done!!

 

Looks so damn good you make me want to go try to polish my lil turd of an engine.

 

very nice indeed!

 

Thanks guys!

I almost had a heart attack when I saw that nest of feces on my valve cover..

Other than that I was also inspired by GASPEDDLAR’s engine..

I’m going to keep going over every nook until the spring.. it’ll be some winter fun!

Anyone know any tricks to keep the critters out lemme know! I’m working on sealing up the garage better.. I think dryer sheets might work??

 

I also think I should swap out the battery for an AC Delco.. the Interstate sat for a while and never failed, but looks out of place sometimes to me..

 

Not lately.

 

My wife says we need a barn cat, I guess I need one for the garage too!

Ha ha!

 

Mice were pretty bad a few years back. Getting into bird seed and dog food in the garage, and you'd see them from time to time around the outside of the house, or along the privacy fence. Had a nest under the hood of one of the daily drivers that sits in the driveway. Had to start putting out bait stations they were so thick. Then lil Ms Raylene decided to move in.

For the first couple years, Raylene would bring home her catches and kills. Once she learned that bringing them inside was frowned upon by management, she started leaving them on the front porch. Usually about three mice a week, with a bird, or a rabbit here and there. Now, I can't remember the last time I saw a live mouse, or evidence of mice. Even the surrounding neighbors have far fewer mice. Their garages don't smell like vermin urine anymore.

Now that she has been here awhile, the mice and rabbit population is under control, she seems bored with birds, and has entered into a cartoon rivalry with one of the local squirrels. Lot's of empty ACME crates laying around, and infrequent smoking craters, but it's all good.

 

Those pics of the engine look AMAZING!!! Nice work

 

I looked at the picture you posted and thought I would help out so I went ahead and circled all the areas that needed refinished and use arrows to point out the spots you forgot to clean. Good luck.

 

Looks great!

 

Get a few bars of Irish Spring soap and put it all around the car on the garage floor, under the hood etc etc. I do it every year on my RV Camper and never any mice. The others around me have Mice.

 

Thanks guys! Ha ha... make those arrows bigger there Tibo I missed them!

I think a TPI cat is the way to go! I’ve been popping the hood every so often making sure they don’t come back.. had some tarps folded up on a shelf and found a nest in there too.. My cats growing up were excellent hunters.. lots of decapitated critters on the front porch every couple days... that’s an awesome pic of the cat on the TPI Drew!

Irish Spring, huh? I’ll try it.. that stuff stinks!

 

Ive always kept dryer sheets under my hood when I'm storing the car long periods of time ive heard it works and I haven't had any problems.

 

Dryer sheets were the original plan. We’ve used those on our horse blankets to keep the flies off the horses.. seems like a good deterrent.. i know some people use moth *****, but i can’t stand the smell of those..

 

Doesn't work. The mice eat the soap and poop on it. True story

 

I use Bounce scented dryer sheets, don't know if they work or not but haven't seen any mice or signs of.

 

I live in the country.
Several feral cats around.
In the garage I have baited (p-nut butter works best!)
spring traps both on the floor and INside the cars.

Works good and eco-friendly to boot!

 

So I have dryer sheets in the engine compartment.. the garage smells awesome as a result!

Let’s hope I don’t need to start trapping.. saw mouse traps at Home Depot with a warning about diseases they carry and not to touch the mice without gloves.. not looking forward to that..

There are a couple cats that come through our yard time to time.. they seem more interested in climbing up to the birdhouse though..