Does Your Car Smell Strange? 6 Common Car Smells Explained

Owning a vehicle goes with having to maintain it on a regular basis for many different reasons. It ensures safety and prevents unexpected malfunctioning of the vehicle too. Doing so will help improve car performance, fuel efficiency, and reduce the amount of pollution it is emitting. Regular car maintenance is essential to prolong the life of your vehicle and also help to lower the operating cost.

The added benefit of regular car maintenance is that it makes your vehicle more fit to travel in and eliminates the risk of it breaking down when you least expect it. This article goes on to help one detect the reason behind strange car smell.

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The Reasons Behind Strange Smells Emitting from your Vehicle

Spending some time inspecting your vehicle on a regular basis or visiting the service centre for Audi repairs in Sydney can help prevent a wide range of issues. Listed here various strange smells and what they mean: 

  • Burnt Rubber: Burnt rubber smell can mean many things however, the most obvious reason for the smell of burnt rubber is that rubber is in contact with hot material and is burning. The best method to detect the source of the smell is to inspect the rubber parts in the vehicle. The main cause is likely to be due to friction between a moving metal part and a rubber. It could also be a worn off or loose rubber part causing the problem.
  • Gasoline: The smell of gasoline might not raise an alert. However, if you do happen to detect the smell of gasoline while driving there is most likely to be a leak in one of the pipes. This could be a gas leak in the fuel injector or fuel tank. On the other hand, it can also mean that there is something wrong with the engine and that it requires a good inspection. 
  • Hot oil: You can expect the oil in your vehicle to heat up while you are driving it. But the fact that it is in an enclosed system, means there should be no burning smell. Thus, the smell of hot oil is a cause for concern since it might mean there is a leakage in the oil circulation system. If the issue is not addressed soon it might also result in the oil dripping on other parts of the vehicle like the exhaust system. This has the potential to cause a lot of damage, hence it is essential to take this issue at your service station as soon as possible.
  • Burning carpet: The smell of burning carpet is a very good indication that there is an issue with the brake pads or the rotors may be overheating. Since fully functioning brakes and rotors are vital for the proper running of any vehicle it is essential to have these inspected in the case where there is such a smell.
  • Rotten Eggs: This type of smell emitting from the vehicle might mean that the catalytic converter of the vehicle has a problem. The main role of this component is to convert the gasses from the engine to release them. However, in the case where there is a smell, it might mean that there is an issue with the engine which is causing the catalytic converter to malfunction. However, this is something that is easy to fix by visiting a service centre. 
  • Syrup: A sweet smell like that of syrup is likely to mean a leak in the engine coolant which could spell disaster for the engine. This is a major issue since it can lead to the overheating of the engine, however, it is nothing a quick trip to a service station won’t fix.

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