stink comin out of the defrost vents

[Sol-Toy]

It smells like someone trying to light rubber on fire or someone did a wicked burn out. It's not exaust, at least not from the piping, and it's not visible. I finally narrowed it down after a month of the suspicious odor. In fact, I thought it was all in my head until it gradually got more noticeable. It's only when in idle. I really only notice it at red lights, and the colder the weather is, the more noticeable it is.

Any ideas? I've never dealt with this before.

2k mz auto w/ 110k mi

[BLACK V6]

Ive gotten that smell before too. Not recently, but it only happened after I got back from vacation and my solara had just sat for two weeks. Im not sure. I would also like to know.

[Solarizona]

I had the same thing about a year ago. For me, it was a bacteria build up in the vents. I think it's a pretty common thing. I used a spray from AutoZone (can't remember the name) that was specifically made for the vent odor, but I've read that a cleaning spray like Lysol will work too as long as its antibacterial.

[(K)]

You're talking about that burnt tire smell right? I have a good theory as to where and why. I was really worried at first because I thought it was my clutch (don't know what a burnt clutch smells like), but to be honest there was no real grounds for my clutch to be burning.

Somewhat relieved to hear about it coming from your car though (I mean that in the nicest possible way).

[Sol-Toy]

yes! burnt clutch smell! Thats really similar to how this smells but even more dirty and dull. I have an automatic so I'm worried that I need to change the oil and screens. I was hoping to ride it out another few thousand miles. But it's with out question the vents. I literally stuck my nose up and into them. There's just no possible way that anything transmission related would end up in the vents. If it was, there would be an odor all over the car.

[(K)]

Cool, then here's what I found out (earlier today actually). You're going to FLIP when you read this. I lmao when I thought about it.

Anywho, since you guys up in Chicago got hit hard with snow this season as well....
Check your front end, more specifically the grill area and the radiator cooling duct of the bumper. If there's black snow on it then there's the main culprit right there. All that black snow is actually dirt and pieces of tire from the cars in front of you. After a while it accumulates and freezes it just cakes onto the bumper. During stops your fans come on, drawing in outside air but also drawing in smelly air from that general area.

I think the best bet would be to wait until the spring time and give it a good going over at the wash and also spray some Lysol or something into the vents as well just to freshen it up.

[Sol-Toy]

haha that makes perfect sense. I've never had to deal with this before... crazy

thx

[(K)]

haha, yea...it was impossible to track it down when there was no visual evidence because the smell just lingers there but is barely noticeable. I tried literally sniffing around the engine bay but I couldn't track it. Then when the storm hit us today the idea hit me like a train. I couldn't believe how simple it was but at the same time it made perfect sense.

I guess for now some vent spray would do the trick until we can get the car really cleaned, I have a feeling that simply removing the black ice/snow from the front won't be enough..

[cityofglass]

Well, today I had the same thing happen to me. I just got my car back form the shop, it was only a day job to change the bad speed sensor, when I got to campus and I noticed the smell. I let it idle for a while; it is indeed coming from the vent with no signs of any smell in the engine compartment, HOWEVER, I live in southern Louisiana, just outside of New Orleans, far far away from any snow. Though, we did get four inches of snow about a month ago.

[Ilovemylara]

same thing hapened to me... Everyone who rode in my car said they smelled burning rubber.. well after a few weeks of it I looked under the hood and there was this black goopish/tar like crap on the corner of my front header... idk how it got there or what it was.. i scraped it off and the smell hasnt come back yet has this hapened to anyone else?

[gnegroni]

Hope you can fix that nasty smell out of your car; nothing like having your ride stink your driving pleasure.

For those wondering I purchased an anti-bacterial spray called OZIUM in PepBoys or Autozone. It worked wonders removing bacteria buildup caused odor from my car..

However, please follow directions carefully as this spray is pretty powerful and can knock you out. You are supposed to spray it onto the vents and maybe into the cabin filter (if you have one), turn the air conditioner on and let it rip while you sit outside an sip a bit of your favorite drink/beer.

Hope it helps.

[yaddadaimsayin]

close your legs or scrub your nuts a lil harder in the shower. bahahaha nah sucks for you.

[(K)]

Well if it's a burning rubber smell and it's not from the snow then I'd check the more likely spots where rubber and heat meet: wheel wells, hoses, belts, etc.

If anything just run through the car wash anyway, what's $7.00 haha.

[Ilovemylara]

pressure wash the undercarrige