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Does Aptera have any built in rodent mitigation strategies?
Recent EVs have had a persistent problem of mice, squirrels, chipmunks, etc finding their way inside to get warm, where they end up nesting and chewing on wire insulation. It’s been a problem with ICE cars forever as well ( and it doesn’t matter if the wiring is soy or petroleum based), but it seems to crop up a lot on recent EVs because if you leave them outside in the cold, the battery thermal management will kick in, so it’s a more consistent source of heat than an ICE car that’s only warmed up when needed. Still happens with ICE cars though.
But yeah seriously, go check the Bolt EV forums, or any other forums you want, you’ll see lots of rodent complaints. This can be a few hundred dollars of work to fix, that annoying amount where it’s just enough to be an inconvenience, but not enough to get insurance involved. There are lots of reports from people who’ve never seen rodents in their area before and had no idea it was even a thing, when suddenly their new EV doesn’t start one morning and the bonnet is full of mouse nest and chewed wires.
So does Aptera have a strategy for this? Has it even been considered? I mean, we don’t have to think rats and mice, let’s say a squirrel hops onto the wheel pant and walks over the suspension to the big obvious mouse hole in the side of the vehicle and finds himself a nice comfortable home somewhere around your battery’s thermal systems. It’d be a problem. Surely there’s gotta be something we can do about that?
And remember, Aptera will be much more likely to be kept outside due to the solar charging, meaning “keep it in a garage” isn’t a real answer for this particular vehicle.