Every morning, just as I get into my car and right before I press start engine, I have to hold my breath for a few seconds because there is odor coming from my vents. It lasts for a few seconds. 2013 RX ...
View 13 RepliesI am having this serious issue with my 2007 gs350 awd, whenever I'm on the highway or any were, the air is contaminated with any odor for example (skunk, garbage, smoke from old car) the smell comes in through the vents, I've changed the cabin air filter and still same problem, how to get it resolved?
View 4 RepliesI purchased a used 2007 prius last month. Back then, I noticed a faint smell that reminded me of a barn, horse along those lines. I didn't smell too often because the car still smelled of whatever dealer cleaned with. Now that "fragrance" has worn off, the "horse" odor is more intense. I notice that it smells more in the back seat.
This morning I smelled the vent, and it seems to be coming from there.I heard it was the battery duct battery insulators that accumulate a sticky substance that smells.
09 Corolla S. Odor from the vents when air / AC is on. I know about the TSB. [URL] …..
Has it been pegged to one particular problem ? Is it a clogged drain, evaporator / coil , cabin air filter, or all of the above ?
I can do the CAF and probably even the foam - out / deodorizer before hitting up the dealer. Was curious what other's course of action was.
Co-Worker's '03 Jetta TDI
Blower works intermittently. Sometimes all speeds will work. Sometimes only on high. Sometimes on all speeds but at a slower speed than normal. Sometimes it doesn't work on any speed.
Switch doesn't bind, blower motor doesn't make any unusual noises and I don't think it is the blower resistor. He did notice a strange odor coming from the vents the other day and, it appears that the foam on the blend door is starting to disintegrate.
Decided to take my 2013 GS to work today since I haven't been driving it as much after getting another commuter car. It was sitting in the garage for about 4 days. Didn't quite go wide open throttle, but did push it a little this morning on the freeway and noticed a stank rotten egg/sulfur smell after I did that. Spoke with a former Lexus tech and he told me it's normal. Performance did not seem to be impacted.
View 8 RepliesI've noticed that if the fresh/recirc is set to fresh so that outside air is being drawn in, even without the fan or AC on, there's a mildew like smell in the car. I picked the car up about 10 days ago, but it's a 2013 with 13K miles. Is this a matter of cleaning or replacing the cabin air filter? DIY?
View 14 RepliesOK, I've been reading a lot about this problem occurring in the pre 2010 prius where there is a crack around the hatch that fills the 12V battery well with water. About a month ago, I started getting a whiff of something rotting. A mix of the dead smell and rotting fruit. I was certain one of my kids left some food in the car or something got in the HVAC vent. As time has gone by, the odor has changed to more of a rotting leaves kind of smell.
I got out my shopvac and a snake camera. I went through the HVAC system and found that the filter was pulled back a bit. I replaced it on the spot. I found a few leaves and dust and that was it. The air coming from the vents from the outside smells clean. There were lots of wet leaves in the engine bay, but it wasn't the problem.
I started tearing apart the trunk because sometimes stuff spills into the tire well. I found the spare tire had turned brown on the tread.
I opened the battery compartment and found about an inch of standing milky white water. The kicker here is that the water didn't seem to smell that bad! I dried it all up and bleached the metal to kill any mold that might be in the residue...but the odor remains. The car smells awful!
I have torn apart the back of the car but I cannot find the source of the leak. I actually think it was from the car wash or going through a puddle and water got in the rear vent. The battery fender vent vanes were flapping with gusts of wind today, but even after a heavy rainstorm no new water has gotten in.
The car was hit in the parking lot and the rear fender moved about an 1/8th of an inch from the bumper, but there are no obvious signs of water entry anywhere... in fact, I was even suspicious that it might have come from the battery itself, but I didn't touch it (used paper towels on a snake to dry it up under there). I didn't think to try baking soda to see if it was an acid, which makes bleach pretty stupid to use...but I didn't see any foaming.
TL;DR Found water in my 12V battery compartment. My car smells bad. Cleaning out water did not improve smell. Nothing in HVAC system, it is only clean air source in car. No signs of water ingress above 12v battery well. After rainstorm, no additional water found in battery well. Fender vent flaps in gusty wind, but still no new water.
I've just purchased a 2010 F-150 scab 4x4 with the 4.6 3v. When I have the air conditioning on drawing air from outside I get a strong gas odor in the cab. Originally I thought it was natural gas, but then my wife mentioned she too smelled gas, gasoline. If I use the recirculated air the smell goes away, almost instantly. Additionally, there is a faint odor of gasoline outside of the truck as well, but not nearly as strong as in the cab. There also is a ticking sound coming from the top of the engine, I believe the egr solenoid. Could these two issues be related? Either way, what are the possible causes of this smell? What are the fixes to these possible causes?
View 2 RepliesMy GX460 (2000 miles) has an odor after driving it from the rear. Smells like burnt rubber. Normal? I notice it mostly when I pull into the garage.
View 5 RepliesMy car is a 2003 Hyundai Elantra. When I turn on my air conditioner it does not turn on and the vents release a bad odor (not like the mildew smell that could come from there, I don't know how to describe it but it was making me sick). When I turn on my air conditioner I can hear a fan turn on but no air comes from the vents; but air does come out of the defrost vents only. The smell is not as strong as it was when this first started happening, but it is still there.
View 2 RepliesSo I recently swapped out my cabin air filter, no other major changes or issues... but ever since I noticed that when I'm in neutral or at a stop, I can start to smell the faint odor of exhaust fumes. No CELs and it's not coming from the gas tank area like I know some have experienced - only from the vents. It's noticeable to me, but nothing unbearable by any means. I definitely never had this before - and my old filter was really dirty so not sure why a new one would give me any issues of have anything but BETTER air quality. I notice that I can curb the smell by pushing the circulate air button, effectively shutting off any outside air from coming in.
View 4 RepliesI recently purchased a used 2006 Honda Pilot. I now notice a mildew/musty smell that appears to come from the ac vents. I only notice it when driving with the windows down, right after I turn the AC off, and sometimes when I first get into the car. I do NOT notice it when the AC is running or when the fan is blowing. I have had the car detailed twice (thinking the odor was coming from the upholstery) and have hired someone to spray an odor eliminator spray into the vents and air intake. I have also changed out the cabin air filter. None of these actions have worked and the smell remains. I love the car but this odor is really annoying me.
View 2 RepliesI was driving into work this morning. I initially had my windows down, vent on, blower on 1, fresh air. It started getting warm as I sat in traffic, so I hit the A/C button, then hit the recycled air button. White fog started coming out of the vents for about a minute. After that, it went away. I didn't smell any freon, but it's got me concerned. Do you think there could be an A/C issue? I just got the car last Saturday?
View 21 RepliesI was driving today with no music on and noticed something strange. I heard something "roasting" in the backseat...and looks like the noise comes from the battery vents. It sounds more like "roasting" noise than fan noise. Do you know if the battery was overheating?
View 7 RepliesI noticed a bit of funky smell coming from the vents when I first turn on the AC and after turning off the AC. So I am trying to locate the air conditioner evaporator drain hose and make sure it's not plugged.
View 5 RepliesMy 2010 Dodge Caliber has been leaking anti-freeze very slowly. I notice it when I start the car up and for the first minute I can actually smell the antifreeze coming through the vents when I have the air on. If I park the car and go in to the grocery store for a few minutes and start it up again the smell doesn't re-occur. I imagine I have a leak somewhere that is dripping onto the engine and when the car starts up from cold it burns it which is sending that smell through my vents.
I was told a while ago it could be the heater core, however I would assume that if it was the heater core I would have had a fog up on my window or a constant smell, not one that dissipates after a minute.
I had this problem last year except I was losing a lot of antifreeze (about a whole reservoir in 3 - 4 days. The problem was found to be a broken clamp on one of the hoses. This time however I cannot find any broken clamps or a source of the leak for that matter. I did notice that when I shut the car off the one time, and checked under the hood of the car I seen one air bubble spring up from the reservoir tank. I cannot see any signs of a leak from under the hood. However under the car I can see it is dripping from the frame, but not where it is coming from.
So I've been noticing this winter that pretty much after every cold start a weird smell comes through the vents. To me it smells like natural gas, like the type found in some gas heating systems. It tends to go away after about 10mins. It may have also faded in and out once or twice when the car was running for an extended period of time.
View 14 RepliesI have a Corolla XLi 2010 (1.6) which from the moment I bought the car it had this problem with the AC (I bought it used and was informed about the issue so I got it with a good price).
The AC sometimes starts and sometimes it doesn't I thought it was just lacking of freon gas but wasn't that, and except this problem the second one is that sometimes it smells like mold coming from the AC. May be are related or maybe not, but I really want to resolve these issues asap.
I'm adding some more info, when the AC isn't working I don't hear the AC sound, and of course when it's working I hear the classic AC sound, and another "thingy" is that when I push the car around 120km/h the AC keeps working more , and also some times if isn't working and I hit the turbo increasing the RPM and making the car scream like a sport car , suddenly the AC starts (but I don't do thsi all the time) and it's just my impression of daily-use.
I bought a new 2013 ES 300h. It only has 7K miles on it. When I first start it up for the day there is a moldy smell coming out of the vents for a few minutes. I've not taken it through any deep water.
Does it just need some new vent filters? What filters would be involved?
I've had the JoeZ axle back installed for about two months now. I noticed that the engine light came on initially when installing but it went away on its own. I got into an accident and after the repairs were done on my car the light was gone.
It soon came back on but i expected it was because my oil change was due
Got the oil change done and the light was off. Couple days ago the light came back on.
I called the Lexus Dealer and they told me that it might be due to the Gas cap not tight enough. Gave it a few twist but light still remained on.
For the past month, I also recently noticed a mildew smell coming from the vents when i start the car but goes away. Does the mildew smell + Check engine light mean that something is wrong with the exhaust?