Honda guarantee received’t cowl rodents chewing wires, so Arlington Heights man sues for ‘misleading practices’

Jay Caracci was driving his Honda CR-V out of his driveway on a fall day in 2017 when the power steering stopped working.

“You can’t even make the car,” says Caracci, who lives in Arlington Heights.

At first he thought the power steering fluid must be too low.

But when he took the 2-year-old compact SUV to the dealer for inspection, he got a shock.

“They came out and said rodents chewed through my cables,” says Caracci.

The repair would cost about $ 500. And Honda refused to cover them under its new car warranty. The damage was a “natural act”, it said.

It all seemed a little crazy. But things happen all the time and people move on. Just another little annoyance in life, albeit not a cheap one.

Caracci could also have moved on. But he researched online and soon found other car owners who were also complaining about rodents nibbling on their cables covered in soy-based insulation.

And Honda, he realized, knew this was a problem. In fact, it sells anti-rodent tape fortified with chilli pepper and even installs some components that are prepackaged with duct tape.

Caracci didn’t think it was fair that he had to pay for the repairs. In 2018, he sued Honda in a lawsuit recently amended to include new information proving that Honda was aware that its wiring was tempting to rodents but was looking the other way.

He asks a federal judge in Chicago to grant his case class action status. This would expand the lawsuit to at least 73,000 consumers who bought or leased Honda CR-Vs in Illinois in 2015-2018.

In its lawsuit, Honda “engaged in fraudulent and / or unfair practices” by failing to warn consumers that rats and other rodents could nibble on its cables, despite its authorized dealers reporting “serious vehicle malfunctions” to the company .

It is also said that Honda’s cable and harness suppliers had informed Honda that covering the wires with tape would deter rodents and that Honda had instructed some suppliers to pre-wrap certain parts of the cable – even though they failed to wrap all of the exposed parts.

Honda sells this chilli-pepper-infused tape – decorated with pictures of dead rats – to keep rodents from chewing on wires under the hood of its vehicles. Provided

“Honda’s Rodent Tape is designed to wrap vehicle cables and is a blend of spicy flavors that Honda claims will deter rodents,” Caracci said in the lawsuit. “However, the need for Rodent Tape will only be disclosed after the vehicle has been sold, malfunctions, [is] brought in for repair and Honda refuses to provide warranty coverage. “

According to his lawsuit, “hundreds” of consumers have complained to Honda about rodents chewing their way through wires and causing damage that in some cases requires thousands of dollars in repairs.

Honda declined to provide a representative for an interview.

In a written statement, spokesman Chris Martin said there was no evidence that rodents would find Honda – or any other make of car – soy-based cable insulation palatable.

“It has been a long-established fact that rodents are attracted to chewing on electrical wiring in houses, cars, and elsewhere,” said Martin. “Class lawsuits have been filed against a number of automakers alleging that certain vehicles contain soy-based cable insulation and that such insulation attracts rodents to chew on the cables. Honda believes these class actions are unfounded. “

For years, consumers have reported rodents getting under the hoods of cars, nesting and chewing on wires.

Other automakers, including Toyota and Hyundai, have been sued for soy-based insulation but have prevailed in court, arguing that insulation does not attract the critters. They say squirrels, rats, and other rodents move into warm, sheltered spaces and chew on anything they can find – so consumers should be careful not to park in places where rodents are known to congregate.

However, some experts suggest that the environmentally friendly soy-based insulation of some automotive cables is particularly attractive to rodents.

An example of rodent damage to a vehicle. The area with chewed wires is circled. Provided

The circled areas show rodent damage to a vehicle. Provided

Larry P. Smith, one of the attorneys working on Caracci’s case, says Honda has an obligation to warn consumers and pay for their repairs once Honda found out its cables were vulnerable.

Smith says Honda installs prepackaged knock sensor harnesses on certain models, which proves the automaker knows there is a problem.

“They knew they had a vulnerable wire,” says Smith.

The wiring that controlled the power steering on Caracci’s new vehicle wasn’t covered with special tape.

“Why are you wrapping this part and not this part?” Blacksmith says. “And whatever, you call it ‘an act of nature’? ”

Smith and co-attorney Stacy M. Bardo say they are investigating complaints about rodents chewing on other cables, including one case on a vehicle’s gasoline line.

“It’s about consumer safety,” says Bardo.

A previous lawsuit filed by Smith and Bardo in Illinois on behalf of two other consumers whose Honda wiring was chewed by rodents was referred to a federal court in California, where it was dismissed by a judge in 2018, despite being later resuscitated and remains in legal limbo. Unlike Caracci’s lawsuit, this case wasn’t about Honda’s promise of guarantee.

Chicago attorney Stacy M. Bardo. Provided

Chicago attorney Larry P. Smith. Anthony Vazquez / Sun-Times

A complaint database maintained by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration contains numerous recent complaints about rodents damaging vehicles, including models from Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Ford, Lexus, Volvo, and other brands that involve fuel lines, oxygen sensors, steering, and other functions . Soy-based wire insulation is mentioned in many of these complaints.

Consumers Reports warns people who leave their cars idle during the coronavirus pandemic or over winter that they should check their cars for rodent droppings, scratches, chewed wires, or belts and nesting material.

As for the organization’s tips to keep rats and other rodents out, try parking far away from garbage cans or vegetable gardens and, if possible, park in an enclosed garage. Also keep groceries, newspapers, cardboard, rags, and other nesting materials away from your garage.

When you need to park a car, under the hood mothballs can help keep rodents at bay, they say.