Technology
Will Chipmunks Eat Our Electric Car?
At least we have a garage. Do you?
My wife and I will definitely be leasing an electric vehicle when our current lease is up. Even without subsidies or tax incentives, this decision is a no-brainer: cheaper, less maintenance, less pollution: it would be silly not to. We drive less than 200 miles most weeks and when we do travel longer distances, it’s unlikely to be more than the range of current vehicles.
Another family member has reached the same conclusion, but she has a concern because she’s already had problems with a chipmunk chewing on cables in her car. They don’t have a garage, so a warm engine block is an obvious target for rodents. Once they also notice something to chew on, they will return and keep returning.
Apparently, this problem is aggravated by newer cars using soy-based insulation on electrical wiring. That’s great from an environmental point of few, but it also seems to be tastier for rodents. Rodents will gnaw on any wire, probably because it looks like something that might have grown from a plant. If the soy version happens to be tastier, that might be aggravating the problem. I’m not sure anyone has proven that, though.
