An amputee veteran claimed a Toyota dealership in Minnesota sold him a $68,000 truck only to discover it was infested with a family of starving rats.
Ron Knudson, 57, was delighted when he brought home the Tundra Limited from the Walser Toyota dealership in Bloomington last month.
But he said his excitement soon vanished after he allegedly noticed a softball-sized 'blur' underneath the truck after he parked it up in his garage.
Knudson told the Daily Mail he then found a rat that was 'probably 10 inches long,' not including the tail, sitting under the car.
He claimed that he found rat feces and chewed up rubber from the engine compartment when he opened the hood of the car.
'We didn't have one rat, we had a family of rats' Knudson told the Daily Mail.
He took photographs of the damage and droppings, which he claims he documented over several days before taking the truck back to the dealer.
'I'm driving wondering, when does the rat come running out underneath the dash as I'm driving down Highway 169?' he added.
Veteran Ron Knudson, 57, who is missing one leg, alleged to the Daily Mail that the Walser Toyota Dealership in Bloomington had sold him a $68,000 car with a rat infestation issue
Knudson claimed he found rat feces inside his Toyota Tundra Limited and that he saw a ten inch rat in his garage after bringing the car in
Knudson photographed the alleged rat feces over several days
Knudson, who is missing one leg from a motorcycle accident, is a volunteer at Fishing With Vets, a nonprofit that organizes free fishing excursion for veterans. He was going to use the car for a trip on May 31 to take two 90-year-old Korean war vets on a trip.
He explained that he initially purchased a 2025 Hyundai Palisade SUV before exchanging for an initial lower-trim Toyota Tundra after realizing the initial vehicle was unsuitable for he and his wife's needs.
He forked out $8,000 more for a higher-end Toyota Tundra Limited, bringing the total cost of the upgraded car to $68,000.
But when Knudson took his new vehicle home, he claimed he made a shocking discovery.
'I wake up the very next morning, and as I'm coming out with one leg, I look straight down from my steps, and there's my truck sitting there, and I'm like, what's underneath my truck?' he told the Daily Mail.
Knudson claimed that the rats could not already have been in his 14-year old garage, saying that he had never experienced any issues with rodents.
'In my garage, you can actually eat off my floor,' he told the Daily Mail.
Living in a wheelchair, Knudson said he had to ensure 'everything [was] clean, swept, put away, organized' because he was unable to dig through items otherwise.
Knudson claimed that the rat infestation did not come from his garage, as it was so clean 'you can actually eat off my floor'
Knudson returned his truck to the dealership but claimed they were difficult about addressing his complaint
Toyota was previously the subject of a class action lawsuit that claimed its use of soy-based insulation for writing made their vehicles attractive for rodents, but the suit was dismissed
Knudson claimed the Bloomington dealership initially informed him he could not turn in his truck again because he had already upgraded from his initial Tundra.
He then claimed he was told they would repair his truck for free, only to receive a text message from the dealership just days later telling him to file an insurance claim.
Knudson said the message read: 'After further inspection. It is in your best interest to take on an insurance claim.'
He questioned whether the dealership had ever carried out a follow-up on his truck, claiming the Toyota app showed his car had never been started, moved or opened since being taken in.
'They never touched my truck, they never opened the doors, they never moved my truck since the Tuesday I dropped it off,' Knudson told the Daily Mail. 'So how did they do another inspection to find more damage?'
Once Walser learned that Knudson's deductible was $100, they suggested that he should file an insurance claim with State Farm, Knudson claimed.
The dealership offered to cover the deductible, Knudson claimed, though he said the proposal only made him think that the alleged rat infestation happened before he took his new pickup truck home.
The Walser Toyota dealership in Bloomington (pictured) referred all questions about Knudson's allegations to Walser
Knudson said that he told the Walser dealership he would file a complaint with the Minnesota Attorney General's Office over the car incident, but claimed it was laughed off
Knudson alleged the Walser dealership waved off his threat of filing a complaint with the Minnesota Attorney General's Office regarding the alleged infestation.
He claimed a dealership employee responded by saying: 'We're not afraid of the attorney general or anybody else.'
'They would rather be known of for selling a truck with a rat in it and not taking care of their customer versus taking the truck back with a rat in it,' he told the Daily Mail.
In 2018, a US federal judge dismissed a class action lawsuit that alleged Toyota's use of soy-based insulation for their wiring made it more attractive to rats, according to Assembly Magazine.
Knudson said his truck had been moved to a separate dealership in Mankato, about four miles from his house and roughly 72 miles south of where he bought the vehicle in Bloomington.
That was because he said State Farm told him that Walser had been 'black flagged' because they allegedly have a history of repair estimate disputes.
Knudson told the Daily Mail that the dealership just received authorization from the insurer and all repairs would be covered except for his deductible.
State Farm told the Daily Mail: 'State Farm is here to support our customers as they work through a range of unexpected challenges, and we’re glad to hear this situation is now resolved.'
He said the dealership would be giving him a loaner truck for his veterans' trip scheduled at the end of the month.
When contacted by the Daily Mail on Wednesday morning, the Walser Toyota dealership in Bloomington referred inquiries about Knudson's allegations to Walser.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Toyota and Walser Automotive Group for comment.