05' V70 hood insulation needed?

[850 LPT]

I'm not driving my V70 much these days and it is parked under a carport most of the time. The local mouse population is really liking this and is using the hood insulation to build homes for themselves. I exposed a rather large one recently in my air filter box when I did a tune up .

My question is about the purpose of the hood insulation which is clearly the preferred building material of these critters. Is it just for noise reduction? Can I just take it out? There is probably not much left of it anyways come to think of it. They even cut a nice round hole in the middle of it, probably so they can transport nuts into the cavities behind.

Thanks, Dirk

[neworleans]

it is for insulation for the engine heat. The paint on your hood probably will fade out so fast without it. I suggest you check out "pull a part" if there is any at your location and get one cheap and install it.