Video: I FINALLY figured out how to keep mice out of my Gen 2 Prius (12 years later)

I’ve been fighting to keep mice out of my Gen II Toyota Prius for many years. I blocked the holes under the front cowling with hardware cloth as well as the louvered rear vents. I’ve tried repeatedly applying peppermint oil to the cabin air filter (helps for a little while), and also added hardware cloth to the bottom of the cabin air filter tray.

They were still getting in. The hardware cloth below the wiper cowling up front doesn’t stop all of them because there is still another way into the space behind it, and the actual air intake opening is hidden further behind and nearly impossible to screen off directly.

Upon further inspection of the cabin air filter area, I discovered they had chewed a hole through the plastic next to the damper, so they were getting in and out without having to penetrate the cabin air filter. I think I’ve FINALLY found a solution. I removed the blower motor below the cabin air filter and stuffed the better part of 2 rolls of stainless steel mesh into the air intake, pushing some into the gaps on each side as well as filling the space in between. The mesh shouldn’t block the air flow too badly since it is air permeable, but the mice don’t seem to want to deal with it.

It should also be possible to install the mesh from the outside if you’ve removed the wiper cowl to install your hardware cloth. I hope this helps someone else still trying to deal with this issue.