Critter nest and damage

Ted Hurst · Jun 7, 2018

This evening I was curious what the engine looks like and pulled the cover off. I found a little critter nest. After I cleaned out the fur and chewed up insulation I notice a wire harness was gnawed on. Amazingly I have not had a CEL yet even with these wires looking a little thread bare. Since this is new old stock I bought about a year ago I'm assuming it must have happened while sitting on the lot. I'm going to call the Dealer tomorrow and see what they say. I'm trying to think positive but I have a feeling this is going to cost me.

740GLE · Jun 8, 2018

best of luck, with NOS in owners possession for almost a year now, it becomes a more and more gray area.

1854sailor · Jun 8, 2018

Our GSW is a buy-back CPO and I found a small nest of wire wrap insulation material in pretty much the same spot, but haven't found any chewed wires yet and I've looked closely with an inspection mirror. I pointed it out to the dealer within a few days of buying the car, so it is on the record. Mice love VW's soy based plastic insulation, so I've got my fingers crossed.

bizzle · Jun 9, 2018

In the meantime I suggest you document it well with pictures and then get something like liquid electrical tape to coat those bare wires ASAP.

Ted Hurst · Jun 10, 2018

The Dealer was non receptive. Found out that State Farm will cover it under comprehensive. Filed a claim and uploaded pictures through the PocketEstimator App. Waiting on a claim settlement.

ssffnomad · Jun 10, 2018

Take it to another dealer. If still no , get VW rep involved. They know there where Vermin problems with long term storage. They will fix it. Most importantly get it documented in case of further issues down the road.

740GLE · Jun 11, 2018

ssffnomad said:
Take it to another dealer. If still no , get VW rep involved. They know there where Vermin problems with long term storage. They will fix it. Most importantly get it documented in case of further issues down the road.

Not when "dealers thoroughly inspected every inch of the cars" before they were released for sale last year, take a look, they have a signed off piece of paper showing no damage was identified.

VW being VW

KITEWAGON · Jun 11, 2018

ssffnomad said:
Take it to another dealer. If still no , get VW rep involved. They know there where Vermin problems with long term storage. They will fix it. Most importantly get it documented in case of further issues down the road.

I'm sympathetic to the OP. But after owning the car for a year I can't say that I'd expect VW to eat the repair. The nest and damage could easily and likely have been since the car was resold. Or maybe not, who knows. But mice making nests and chewing wires happens all the time and is not limited to long term Diselgate storage.

Good PSA to poke around under the hood now and again. I'm going to be sure to check mine out this week.

compu_85 · Jun 11, 2018

Ted Hurst said:
The Dealer was non receptive. Found out that State Farm will cover it under comprehensive. Filed a claim and uploaded pictures through the PocketEstimator App. Waiting on a claim settlement.

IMHO I'd cancel that claim. Why make your rates go up over something fixable with $20 of tape / sealer

-J

1854sailor · Jun 11, 2018

compu_85 said:
IMHO I'd cancel that claim. Why make your rates go up over something fixable with $20 of tape / sealer
-J

Ted Hurst · Jun 16, 2018

compu_85 said:
IMHO I'd cancel that claim. Why make your rates go up over something fixable with $20 of tape / sealer
-J

With my luck the second I try to fix it the wires would short out and I'd end up causing more damage than it's worth. I'll brace myself for a big rate increase!

bizzle · Jun 17, 2018

Ted Hurst said:
With my luck the second I try to fix it the wires would short out and I'd end up causing more damage than it's worth. I'll brace myself for a big rate increase!

You're not going to fix the wires any more than painting a bit of coating on it to protect the bare wires and prevent them from shorting. I recommended you do that more than a week ago...regardless of whether you make a claim to your insurance. It's the same thing as painting nail polish on a nail--you don't touch the wires any more than dripping and spreading the coating around the bare wires. If something shorts while you're doing that it was going to happen in the next few minutes of driving anyway and not because you dripped liquid electrical tape on it. Who knows how long it will take them to process the claim and get it in to a shop and, depending on who does the work and how those wires can be repaired, the fix could be worse than the problem.

1854sailor · Jun 17, 2018

If it were mine, I'd unwrap the harness, splice in new sections of wire, then rewrap everything. Just my 2¢...

bizzle · Jun 17, 2018

Sailor,

Why go so drastic? The integrity of the wires are fine, the coating is not. Replacing the coating is an appropriate and simple task. Cutting and splicing factory wires is inviting a can of worms in the near and long term.

That's exactly the kind of surgery I'm hoping the insurance claim doesn't end calling for and what I was alluding to when I mentioned the cure could be worse than the problem. If the wires are damaged in any way, shape, or form, the correct procedure would be to replace the entire wiring harness rather than splicing a new end on. I doubt the insurance is going to pay for that extensive of a repair.

1854sailor · Jun 17, 2018

Sorry to inform you, but the wiring has been compromised. If you look closely at the OP's picture, you can see that the individual strands in the wires have been unlaid from their original twisted construction and contact between the strands has beed disturbed. Just "painting" on some sort of liquid insulation will trap moisture and other mouse laden contamination within the wire. Short of replacing the entire harness, I stand by my opinion.

bizzle · Jun 17, 2018

You stand by your opinion that Ted Hurst, who already responded that he isn't comfortable applying liquid electrical tape to his exposed wires, should hack apart his factory wires and solder in new ones?

Ted, pictures can be misleading in that they might make something appear worse or better than they are standing there, but if the wires are damaged in any way then the only correct fix is to replace the harness. Assuming this is all going to be covered by your insurance, you might consider asking for the old one once the job is finished.

1854sailor · Jun 17, 2018

bizzle said:
You stand by your opinion that Ted Hurst, who already responded that he isn't comfortable applying liquid electrical tape to his exposed wires, should hack apart his factory wires and solder in new ones?...

Did I ever mention soldering? The only VW approved method of wiring repairs is crimped butt connectors. If I lived near the OP, I'd fix it for him for free. Go away, please.

Critter nest and damage

Ted Hurst

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740GLE

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bizzle

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Ted Hurst

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