My car smells!

[strepsil]

Hi

Have a C180 1997 which I have had for three years....serviced regularly. I have recently noticed that it has started to smell a lot more than it used to...I assumed it was exhaust fumes and there was a problem there but my mechanic has had it up in the air and appart from a very small hole which he has repaired, the exhaust system seems fine. It has got to the point when I can no longer garage it as the garage adjoins the house and the smell permeates the house. It is definitely a fume type smell .......anybody any ideas......could it be the catalytic converter?

 

[turnipsock]

Do you have air con?

 

[strepsil]

Yes.......could that be it?

 

[SL Boy]

My SL had a similar problem exactly a year ago and it was a naughty neighbour who had slipped an Indian takeaway under the bonnet.

 

[strepsil]

Thanks SLBoy........I'll check that out in the morning

 

[turnipsock]

Yes.......could that be it?

It's a possibility. If it was the exhast, I would think that the smell would only happen when the car was running.

If the air con is leaking then the air con will stop working and the smell would disappear when there is no pressure in the system. How long has the smell been around?

 

[strepsil]

The smell has been there for three or four weeks. Obviously, I am not using the air con at this time and it worked fine last summer. Even when the car is on the drive, when you get close to it, the smell is there.......not sure what to make of it really..........

 

[turnipsock]

I would run the air con more often as it will give problems if you don't use it.

If the aircon is leaking you can have it repressurised and they will put in a die that will show where the leak is.

It's difficult to convey a smell over the internet, it could be something completley different that is the problem.

 

[strepsil]

Agreed Turnipsock.......we need smellynet

Thanks for your input and will follow your advice about running the air con. Maybe that will either make the problem worse or make it disappear!

 

[Blobcat]

What type of smell is it?
If you do not use the air con apart from the seals drying out and the gas escaping you can get a build up of bacteria which smells v-bad.
You can get A/C cleaned you can also kill off the bacteria by running the A/C.

 

[television]

Agreed Turnipsock.......we need smellynet

Thanks for your input and will follow your advice about running the air con. Maybe that will either make the problem worse or make it disappear!

Don't forget when you run the air con, you will have to set the temp below the ambiant air temp.It should then feel icy cold

Malcolm

 

[strepsil]

The smell is difficult to describe........it smells to me like particularly strong exhaust smell......the reason I had the exhaust checked first...almost like strong carbon monoxide.....more a "fumes" smell rather than a bad smell.......if you know what I mean!!

Unless I am actually using the air con to cool the car, which, lets face it, is rare enough in this country, I usually have the setting on economy. I notice that every time I get it back from the independent MB servicer I use, the mechanic who takes it for a test drive always reverts to air con mode although the heater is on.....should I leave it set like this all year round....even when I'm only using heating, which is most of the time?

 

[television]

Climate control is the correct word, meaning that the interior stays at the same temperture, irrespective of the outside temp, many people just leave it set to that.
When the outside temperture is lower than the interior, it works as a heater, its only when the situation reverses that the Air con part comes into action.
The only snag here is that could mean that the air con part may not be turned on for 6 months of the year, this can cause the seals to leak, this is why it should be run every few weeks for 5 mins, but as I said earlier the temp must be turned down to below the outside temp, other wise the compressor will not come into play. Handbooks are not very good in this respect.

Re exhaust smells, most cats give a smell, something like rotten eggs.

Malcolm

 

[1993190E]

Smell remover

Once you identify the source - internal related to a compnent being operated
or external from running engine
try
http://www.oustodor.com/

 

[strepsil]

TV.....I have now changed the setting to "economy off" so that it is running climate control........the wife did a sixty mile round trip today and I still have the smell. I will try running the air con on cold from time to time, but I am beginning to think that it is still exhaust related....many thanks for your help

regards
Strepsil

 

[davebox]

My understanding of Air Con is that you use it all year round. It conditions the air within the car and you will notice that in poor weather conditions you do not get much condensation on the glass if used correctly. (well I don't). I've had my Vauxhall now for nearly five years and the AirCon has been run constant in that time - hot, cold, tepid whatever the weather. As my cars are both run on the heavy oil I notice no real fuel economy problems by doing this.
Hope you find the smell soon - OH, just a thought, Have you owned the car from new? have you ever spilled milk in the boot - or any dairy products? Or maybe that's just me barking up the wrong tree again.
DB

 

[television]

Hope you find the smell soon - OH, just a thought, Have you owned the car from new? have you ever spilled milk in the boot - or any dairy products? Or maybe that's just me barking up the wrong tree again.
DB

Who knows Dave, if ants hava a appitite for SAM unts, and we have had a mouse nest under the bonnet, what is lurking here !

Malcolm

 

[kamS430L]

If the smell is exterior then its ur cat, If its the interior then its ur pollen filters. Or have the car checked out you might have some dead animal or something stuck on the underneath of the car. Just a wild guess but I am sure your mechanic would have noticed anything unusual.

 

[davebox]

Who knows Dave, if ants hava a appitite for SAM unts, and we have had a mouse nest under the bonnet, what is lurking here !
Malcolm

I were only thinking (bad idea) or should say recalling a mates car. It stank all winter, when I asked him what he carried in the boot I got a laugh out of him. He explained that whilst shopping six months earlier the milk had spilled in the boot. He had left it for a day or so before removing the carpet and hosing it clean. Or so he thought. The smell just got so bad (even after cleaning numerous times) that he chucked the carpet and got a new one.
As I said earlier - Thinking and I do not get along :Oops: so take not much notice. :roll:

 

[davidsl500]

Could it be something like a small oil.fluid leak dripping onto the exhaust?