Dead mouse in blower motor -questions

[Red04Cobra]

So the other evening my family and I were going out to grab some dinner and when I turned on the AC it sounded like something was caught in the blower motor. I shut off the fan and we got our dinner and came back home. I didn't drive the car yesterday, but had to drive it today. Get in the car this morning and the smell was so bad it would knock you over. It was an uncomfortable 40 minute drive to work to say the least! We made an appointment with the dealership yesterday, but the soonest they could see me was Tuesday. I couldn't drive the car like that any longer.

So last night I bought a service manual online and we worked to drop the blower motor. Inside, dead mouse and mouse blood. I've owned my Mustang about 45 days now and it looks like this guy has set up house in the vent system for quite a while. My car is a 2019 and came off the showroom floor. Inside the cabin air filter area where he had made a bed there were multiple shreds of old newspaper of which we have none, and we live near no one else. Additionally, the Lower Insulator panel that's supposed to be underneath the blower motor and HVAC equipment is missing. I'm wondering if this guy has been living there the whole time?

Any thoughts?

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[Torched10]

Man that's awful.im 75 and had mice issues with a gto I'd park outside.worst thing was theyd chew up the wires.they are usually in groups.the only way I could control them was to put a mouse trap at each of the tires,that's how they get in.cars parked in my garage were fine,but outside cars were mouse targets.so if your leaving car outside,set some traps,because theyre still around..havahart has live traps,if that's where you're at.for a mouse I'd just kill it.im my experience it doesnt,take them very long to set up house.if it was there 45 days you'd have alot if wire damage.

 

[Elp_jc]

First of all, I suspect your car didn't live in the showroom floor all the time. I was told the same thing, and when I washed the car for the first time, it became pretty obvious to me the car sat at least weeks outside, if not months. Oh well. At least mine apparently doesn't have any mice. Ha ha. Now, where the hell can a mouse get into the HVAC??? I thought it was supposed to be sealed. Obviously not. But WHERE is a gap where they can get in? I'd check the hood area, to make sure you don't have any more damage. And get all missing and damaged parts of the HVAC replaced. Glad to hear it wasn't worse than that, but before claiming victory, CHECK EVERYTHING. It's very likely the miscreant chewed some wires, so you need to thoroughly check now, before any more issues rear their ugly head at the worst possible time. Good luck, brother.

 

[Red04Cobra]

May not have been on the showroom floor the entire time, but I do remember it being there in winter of 2019 along with a 2019 GT350. So it had been in there for a few months. My thing is, I wonder if it was able to get in with the windows down while it was in the showroom rather than from somewhere on the outside? That's also why I mentioned the lower insulator panel being missing. I wonder if they had that problem before while it was at the dealership?

If anyone else has a 2019 Mustang GT or Bullitt, could you check to see if you have the lower insulator panel in your car?

 

[Elp_jc]

I'd say no freaking way it got thru the window; it was from outside, most likely. You just need to find out WHERE, to make sure nothing else was destroyed.

Just checked my 2019 Bullitt for you, and the blower motor is completely exposed, so guess no insulator there. I'm surprised it's not better integrated, but it's a Ford. Ha ha. Is that what you needed?

 

[Red04Cobra]

Yessir, that's exactly what I was wondering. Thank you so much!

 

[jrsimon27]

So the other evening my family and I were going out to grab some dinner and when I turned on the AC it sounded like something was caught in the blower motor. I shut off the fan and we got our dinner and came back home. I didn't drive the car yesterday, but had to drive it today. Get in the car this morning and the smell was so bad it would knock you over. It was an uncomfortable 40 minute drive to work to say the least! We made an appointment with the dealership yesterday, but the soonest they could see me was Tuesday. I couldn't drive the car like that any longer.

So last night I bought a service manual online and we worked to drop the blower motor. Inside, dead mouse and mouse blood. I've owned my Mustang about 45 days now and it looks like this guy has set up house in the vent system for quite a while. My car is a 2019 and came off the showroom floor. Inside the cabin air filter area where he had made a bed there were multiple shreds of old newspaper of which we have none, and we live near no one else. Additionally, the Lower Insulator panel that's supposed to be underneath the blower motor and HVAC equipment is missing. I'm wondering if this guy has been living there the whole time?

Any thoughts?

Damn have you ever left your car with the windows opened or doors opened?

If not most probably it came from the dealer that way. The rare thing of all this is that the lower part of the dash you say its missing?
I have a cat in my garage to not have to deal with a mice or a rat. They stay away from houses with cats.

 

[MRGTX]

Pour one out for that poor little fella who perished in the blower motor. That's no way to go.

I have had good luck with the mouse repelling products...some of them smell pretty strong but I finally found one that smelled decent and did the job. Mice seem to dislike peppermint. I tucked them into a couple of strategic spots in the engine bay, etc and never had a problem since.

I'm a strong advocate for the kindest possible interventions when it comes to mice, etc. I haven't yet been able to understand the mechanism by which otherwise decent seeming people can come to believe that crushing a living animal in a trap or worse still, having them panic to death on a glue trap is an acceptable solution...without at least trying other things first. I just hope these folks get better than they give.

 

[Cobra Jet]

The center dash vents are plenty large for a mouse to crawl into IF it made its way into the interior...

The dash cowl (exterior) is what brings fresh air into the interior, so there’s openings under the cowling. All a mouse needs is an opening the size of a quarter and it’s in....

 

[barron64]

I have seen this before when I worked at a Toyota dealer in the past. Another mouse tail...We had a car come in one time that owner complained that the car had no power. After a quick check of everything we found that the airbox was totally full of dog food! Seems the little guy was raiding the dog food bowl in the owner's garage and stashing it in the airbox!

 

[BrianH87]

The HVAC system is connected to the outside. Unless on recirc, you always bring in some amount of outdoor air. There are usually screens and such covering the openings, but all it takes is a small gap. Check under the hood and check the area around the heater supply lines. Also follow the liquid and suction refrigerant lines. All on the passenger side. There is also a good nesting area under the battery box. Good luck. If you have an inspection camera, use it to scope the scene. You can get one for pretty cheap now if you don't.

 

[Sig556]

I'm a strong advocate for the kindest possible interventions when it comes to mice, etc. I haven't yet been able to understand the mechanism by which otherwise decent seeming people can come to believe that crushing a living animal in a trap or worse still, having them panic to death on a glue trap is an acceptable solution...without at least trying other things first. I just hope these folks get better than they give.

Please! It's a rodent that spreads disease. These animals cause more damage than you can list. They contaminate our food supply and cost millions of dollars in crop damage every year worldwide. Grow a pair and move on.

 

[Elp_jc]

Yessir, that's exactly what I was wondering. Thank you so much!

My pleasure. Hey, if you buy that insulator piece for under the blower, let me know if it fits as intended. I'd like to buy it too. Looks like one of the typical Ford cost-cutting measures. It might cut fan noise too. Good luck with the fix.

 

[Torched10]

Ps. Just thinking you might call your dealer and see they have a way of testing all the circuits for continuity to make sure everything is still connected.finding them your self would be bear.every time I had a mouse in my gto there was always a bad wire,in those days there weren't that many wires so you'd find bad wire by testing everything.one time it was so bad had to buy new wire harness and get it installed..big bucks.as an asside though I live trap and release raccoons,squirrels,chipmonks and possums.but not mice,too nasty

 

[rangerryda]

Problem: Dead mouse in blower motor.
Solution: Live mouse ordered. Upon arrival R&R dead mouse.

Mouse R&R - 495.99
Shop fees - 709.99
Warranty discount - .01

*Thank you for choosing Insert Name Here Ford Dealership*



Seriously though, that's gross and I hope you can get something worked out under warranty.

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