Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner

RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By carfaxfun (1) Contact found a solution...from another forum toyotanation. They suggested Frigi-Clean and Frigi-Fresh. found it at www.ac-evaporator-cleaner.com Posted on 08/19/2009 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By 7Jim7 (2) Contact Oh, I forgot to mention that in addition to the dirty filter smell, I also experienced what seemed like dust in my mouth. Tomorrow, the dealership is going to do some things presumably in an attempt to correct the problem, but based on what I've been reading here, it either won't work or it won't work for long. If I could redo these last two days, I would run from the car the moment I smelled anything. Posted on 03/05/2009 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By 7Jim7 (2) Contact Today is 03/05/09. On 03/03/09, I put a deposit on a 5-year-old car that I wanted to buy from a car dealership, and drove it home, so that I could take it to my mechanic for a prepurchase inspection the next morning. As I neared my home (about 30 miles from the dealership), I began to notice a dirty filter smell. The next morning, I smelled it again as I took the car to my mechanic. He mentioned that there was some mold on the bottom of the car, but he said that it did not have any water damage. He also said that changing the dirty pollen filter might fix the smell. That afternoon, I took the car back to the dealership and told them that I would buy the car if they could get rid of that dirty filter smell. They worked on the car for about an hour, and they showed me the filthy pollen filter that they removed, and then I took the car for another test drive (about 2 hours). The smell appeared to be gone. So I bought the car. I didn't notice the smell the rest of the day. But the next morning, the dirty filter smell was back, and it's been back (sometimes stronger and sometimes weaker) ever since (which is about 36 hours now). The smell occurs whether the AC is used or not. It only occurs when the car is running, not when the car is off. It does not smell like urine, but like a dirty filter, the same smell that occurs when a vacuum cleaner bag needs changed or when the filter of a home climate control system needs changed. Based on what I'm reading here, I may have made a HUGE mistake in buying this car. Everything else about the car is great. But what good is that if I can't breath? Posted on 03/05/2009 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Jeff (Guest Post) All of you are smelling the same thing - mold. The automotive suppliers are still using foam based insulation in their evaporators, an ideal food source for fungi. Mold needs 3 things to grow: moisture, a food source, and little or no air flow. The auto's evaporator becomes a fungus breeding ground the moment the AC is turned off. The new Honda Civic is the most notorious vehicle on the market today for thriving mold. What's needed are class action law suits to force the auto giants to clean up their act. Mold is very dangerous in large concentrations and causes the lungs to bleed internally when exposed. If you can smell the musty vinegar odor, then the mold mycotoxin concentration is alarmingly high. And the mold spores eminating from the HVAC system cling to clothing causing cross contamination in the home, potentially seeding the entire house! Ultimately the entire HVAC system should be replaced at the manufacture's expense. Ozone may work if the concentration is high enough for a long period of time. A unit producing 3600 mg/hr of ozone might be effective if allowed to penetrate the evaporator for a minimum of 5 days continuously. But the evaporator will have to be completely dry, and the ozone forced through the system. Posted on 03/02/2009 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By yasirusa (1) Contact Thanks KFL for the article. I will try this for sure. here in case, http://autorepair.about.com/cs/heatingac/a/aa071601a.htm guys i am also going through the same problem since i came back from a Chicago trip from Houston. I drive Toyota Sienna 03 and had no problem until this trip. i beleive as stated by other users also that it is due to fungus and bacterias in evaporator. I don't know if it is the correct logic but cars are exposed to these bugs and other insects during any long out of town trips. i beleive it might have created that pungent smell. I first thought that kids have probably spill something on the carpet but even after have my van professionaly cleaned, smell is still there.... i think it is the evaporator which needs to be cleaned...Thanks for all the advises guys Posted on 01/13/2009 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Gustavo (Guest Post) I believe many of you might have what happened to my minivan a few years ago and it is the a/c evaporator which is usually behind the dashboard; it accumulates bacteria and mold till it gets strong enough to smell like piss, fish, rotten smell, etc. To replace evaporator is a very time consuming and costly job; I did it in my newer minivan this year after getting one year subscription with alldatadiy.com following detailed manual; it save me a $1500 job but it took me 2 long days. I worked! hope yours could be different but this is the usual reason for this ugly fishy smell. Posted on 11/16/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By alex (Guest Post) I have a 07 toyota that smells like cat urine, when I start the a/c. Near the wipers Ican smell nasty odor like urine. I wonder if a cat peed on my car because when its cold and I just come home from work I noticed that cats would sleep on hood where its warm. I tried to chase them away bu they come back.I poured strawberry smelling shampoo in the vents below the wipers and sprayed water with hose around top and smell went away for lot of months, but now that weather getting cool again.. Cats making my car a bed already again. I'm going to put more shampoo on again before I get smell back. It worked for me but everyone's problem might be different. Posted on 11/14/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By BBowman (Guest Post) I just used clorox bleach clean-up and sprayed it into the vents under the windshield wipers where the air intake goes in and the TERRIBLE smell that has been there for months is almost gone. I used a lot and ran the air and heat alternately while I sprayed it in the intake. My husband had a fit and sprayed off my car with the garden hose. I didn't care as the car was undrivable as it was. I immediately drove it down the road to "VENT" it . I think I will probably repeat it tomorrow. Posted on 09/02/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By KFL (Guest Post) I just found this website that has great advice: http://autorepair.about.com/cs/heatingac/a/aa071601a.htm Posted on 07/30/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By KFL (Guest Post) I have a 2001 Buick Regal that runs great and gets great mileage. Unfortunately, it also has this smell from the A/C. The smell is only present when I start up the A/C and then it goes away. No smell with heater. I assume bacteria. I've replaced the air filter twice, and I sprayed an entire can of Lysol into the intake w/out the air filter in place with car and A/C running. Smell remains. As I pull into the garage in the summer I switch to vent on high and it helps a tiny bit. Lysol doesn't do it. Posted on 07/30/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Gina (Guest Post) Thanks everyone. I was driving my friends to a restaurant and had the urine-fish smell. I decided to write into this website. I felt better when so many others were having the same problems. I hope I can remedy the situation. Hope all our smelly cars get back to smelling normal again! Posted on 07/29/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Lace (Guest Post) I have the same problem with my '04 civic. The weird thing is, is it only smells when the air is on low. When it's on high or max it doesnt smell at all. I'm going to try to change the filter and clean it with antibacteria and pray it takes care of it. Posted on 07/25/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By nick m. (Guest Post) I have a 2007 Pontiac g 6. never had urine smell from a c until I visited Caesars casino in Atlantic City. parking garage has a strong urine smell throughout. Since then, I have urine smell from a c. I blame Caesars. Am going to try a can of foaming bacteria destroyer, deodorizer that has a hose that you insert up the drain tube into the evaporator area. Hope it works. Posted on 07/16/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By (Guest Post) I RECENTLY BOUGHT A BUICK, 2005 AND IT SMELLS BAD. DEALERSHIP TRIED FEW METHODS, BUT IT KEEPS COMING BACK. TODAY I WAS TOLD, THAT HYNDAI HAS THIS NEW CLEANING MACHINE, THEY SPRAY THE CAR, AND IT'S 100% GUARANTEE IT WILL ELIMINATE ANY ODOR SMELL. MY DEALERSHIP TOOK CARE OF IT, THEY TOLD ME NOT TO CLOSE THE WINDOWS FOR 4 HOURS. LET SEE WHAT HAPPENS! Posted on 04/21/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Keith (Guest Post) I'm having this problem on my new Chrysler Sebring. The dealer has been trying to fix it. They have already "flushed" the whole system and when that didn't work they changed the evaporator. It still has an extremely strong vinegar smell that actually burns your eyes and nose. They can't figure it out and the car is going back to the dealership tomorrow for them to try something else. Posted on 12/20/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By angelo (Guest Post) The last 2 cars I have owned over the past 5 years have had this problem. I discovered it could be fixed by the local mechanic, a couple of days ago. Something about a bacterial disinfection thing they do. It can be costly depending on what type of car you drive. Remember (for those in dire straits) an air conditioner is a luxury not a necessity. Posted on 11/07/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By FMG (Guest Post) It is funny I came across this site. I just changed the hepa filter in my 2006 Jetta. Car still smells though. I actually expected that. The filter is for particulate matter, dust, dirt, pollen. It does have charcoal in it, however, that will not stop the problems we have. I am in the refrigeration business and I do believe that the tighter coils have to play some part in this. They hold moisture. Where there is moisture there is bacteria. I did manage to spray some cleaner right into the squirrel cage, that freshened it up for the moment but I bet it will be back tomorrow. In my opinion I would have to be able to get at the evap to spray some cleaner on it. I think the ultimate would be a UV retrofit to kill off the bacteria on the evap. We use these on our units in the field and they work great. I think Lexus actually uses this system now. It would be a nice aftermarket mod for those of us who are sick of this stupid problem. Furthermore, sometimes having a filter is worse than not having one. At some point it is just a trap for all of the garbage. If you don't swap it out your problems will be compounded. Basically, cleaniless is the key. Now, if we could only get in there easy to do it life wouldn't be so hard. Posted on 09/20/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Richard Miller (Guest Post) My 97 acura CL has a disgusting smell coming from the vents! It smells like urine from the moment i start driving, but goes away only when i turn ON the AC! I tried disassembling my entire ductwork and cleaning it, smell came back the next day! Lysol made it smell like urine mixed with perfume, If anyone has any idea of what to do, please save me from this disgusting odor! Thanks Ricky Posted on 09/07/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Linda Edwards (Guest Post) I have a new Ford Fusion-2007. I got it May 31st 2007. By June 2007 it was smelling and by July it smelled like urine. I will do as above said and use the outside air first and see if this helps. Will also do the Lysol. Thanks! Posted on 08/28/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By (Guest Post) I have this problem in my Buick Century 2000. Tried several things, the smell always came back. I am going to try to tear all the vent system apart and clean it manually. Hope it will help. Posted on 08/09/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Robert Durie (Guest Post) 2005 ford escape...have had this smell for the past two years...have had the service centre treat it two times...couple hundred dollars which included a pollen filter...still stunk...Lysol times 2 cans...still stinks....smells acrid and strong.... Posted on 08/04/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By liNDSEY (Guest Post) another thing that gets this smell started is going through drive through car washes with you air on "intake from the outside" mode. if you go through a drive through car wash, shut of your air or at least turn it to "recirculate" so the water does not get taken in through the vent by the windshield wipers Posted on 07/12/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By (Guest Post) i AM EXPERIENCING A SEWER SMELL FROM MY a/c IN MY dODGE sTRATUS Posted on 07/01/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Casey (Guest Post) Had same problem in every Toyota I've owned for 24 yrs. Cashier in dealership sd to use HEATER for one to two minutes after using AC and before turning off the car. This works for a whiile but, boy, does it get hot with that heater on in So. Cal.! Posted on 06/19/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By ZoneIII (1) Contact The guy who is laughing at the advice given is simply wrong. While it may be possible for the smell to come from the cabin filter, this problem has been around since long before cabin filters were invented. In fact, the problem has been known since auto A/C first came on the market. It is caused by mold and mildew on the evaporator. This is a well-known and documented problem. Posted on 06/17/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Nina (Guest Post) My SUV is a year old and I've had 3 old changes and my air and heat smells like an old towel or rag that was wet and then dried. I was told to get a new filter the next time I get an oil change. Also I rarely use my air and I have this issue. Posted on 06/13/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Leslie (Guest Post) Yes, yes, yes. I once had that problem. When I would turn on my a/c it smelled kind of like BO and bad breath. I would have paid anything to get rid of the smell. Luckily, I received some good, low-cost advice. First, spray Lysol directly into the vent area outside your car where the windshield wiper is. This will help to kill the bacteria that is causeing this smell. I was also told to make sure to run the a/c using OUTSIDE air first, for the first 2 miles. Then, you can revert to the INSIDE circulation which provides a stronger rush of air. Do these 2 things and hopefully that will be the end of "the dreaded smell". Posted on 08/04/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By william cresswell (Guest Post) I am laughing at all the above advice. Reason?? Most cars and trucks now a days have a filter....YES a filter that filters the incoming air. This filter will eventually get full of dust and debris since it is a filter. And over time it can even plug. As it gets wet and dry it will breed bacteria, fungus, etc. This is what causes the problem smell. Dig it out and clean it every other year, or buy a new one from the dealer and you will end your stinky ride. Most are located in the cowling in front of the fan. Not always easy to get at, but worth the effort to replace or fix. And now you know!!! Posted on 10/22/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Dory (Guest Post) I have a 2005 Mustang and recently when I have used the air conditioner I also think it smells unpleasant. After reading the feedback from Katie about running it on max, it does kinda make sense and I am thinking that is what my odor could be caused from. I always run my A/C on max--but, I am going try her suggestion and see what happens. Posted on 09/17/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Peter Breet (Guest Post) Good luck, see my same issue at http://www.BadNissanInfinitiCars.com Posted on 09/14/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By meoowmom (1743) Profile Contact also this may have happened. I once parked outside a sunny spot for 6 hours only to find out the reason NO ONE else had parked there, I was late to work and found the best spot; a cat had sprayed the parking spot and with the hot sunshine... well it never did leave my new car, I sprayed Lysol, kept damp vinegar rags in the car, and baking soda in a flat dish under seats... good luck let us know what you find works... Posted on 09/02/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Joanne (Guest Post) Don't use powder, use Lysol Spray in the vents. It kills the bacteria that is causing the order. Posted on 09/01/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By Katie A. (202) Blog! Contact I don't know if this is your problem or not, but I have heard that if you always run your A/C on "max" it leaves moisture in the A/C system. The article I read said to be sure to run it on regular for most of the time, and definitely for the last little while before you turn it off. That dries out the system, apparently. Leaving the system wet lets mildew grow in it because of course . . . the car is warm in the summer . . . when you use the A/C. Kind of a viscious cycle, huh? Posted on 08/31/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By peaches (Guest Post) Are you sure it isn't your catalytic converter?it smells like ROTTEN eggs when it goes out.we had the same smell one time and it would almost gag you but our son is a mechanic and as soon as I described the odor to him he said I needed a new one, so we had it fixed and the smell went away instantly.check with a different mechanic and mention the converter to him. Posted on 08/31/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse RE: Smell Coming From a Car Air Conditioner By KLS8800 (Guest Post) I'd get a CARFAX on it, see if the car has been flooded or damaged. I saw an expose on Dateline a few yrs back how that can happen and one of the signs that something had happened was a smell from heating/air conditioning. Hopefully, this isn't you, but hey, just a thought. Also, check to see if there is anything in the lines or under the hood. Check to see if it needs freeon (sp?) I think the CARFAX at that time was under $20. Cheaper than a mechanic. Posted on 08/31/2005 | Report Spam or Abuse

Post Feedback: Login using the form on the top of the page to post feedback (if you are a registered user). If you have not yet registered, click here to do so. It's FREE!.