MK5 Golf GTI

All Things Mk5 => Mk5 General Area => Topic started by: allsop83 on January 21, 2013, 03:30:08 pm

Title: Why does our car stink??
Post by: allsop83 on January 21, 2013, 03:30:08 pm
Car seems to be a bit stinky when the AirCon goes on/off.....and particularly when you put the car into reverse and go backwards!

Big like a wet dog/ass smell.......any ideas guys before I start throwing things through the AC system?

Thanks,
Chris
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: markc on January 21, 2013, 03:33:14 pm
Probably need to change your pollen filter.
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: bacillus on January 21, 2013, 03:42:09 pm
Probably need to change your pollen filter.

+1
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Tortaruga on January 21, 2013, 04:03:26 pm
Catalyst?? Might be coming from exhaust as you say it's worse when you reverse.

Smells like rotten eggs.
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: GrayMK5GTI on January 21, 2013, 04:11:02 pm
If you don't use your A/C system often you can get some "damp" smells.

Your supposed to use it for 10mins a week apparently  :surprised:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: chrisr763 on January 21, 2013, 04:31:12 pm
Probably need to change your pollen filter.

+1

+2
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: 94Luke on January 21, 2013, 06:35:39 pm
Catalyst?? Might be coming from exhaust as you say it's worse when you reverse.

Smells like rotten eggs.

Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Moz on January 21, 2013, 06:53:46 pm
Have a spare Pollen Filter if you want one.

Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: SRC on January 21, 2013, 07:51:35 pm
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: ScrupesGTI on January 21, 2013, 07:53:51 pm
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...

+1 :grin: :grin: :grin:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: homesqueeze on January 21, 2013, 08:08:34 pm
Sounds like you have bacteria in the aircon system. Not uncommon if it's not been serviced for a while. Probably worse in reverse, because as said above it puts the car into recirculation mode and it will just be pumping smelly air round the cabin. Your best bet is to either get a garage to run an antibacterial cleaner through the system or buy one of the aerosol type cleaners that you leave spraying inside the car while you leave the aircon running. Pollen filter change wouldn't hurt either.
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: arthur on January 22, 2013, 01:28:19 pm
If you don't use your A/C system often you can get some "damp" smells.

Your supposed to use it for 10mins a week apparently  :surprised:

I agree with this.  I've never turned my A/C off in 6 years!! Never had any strange smells from it!!

If it smells now though, maybe running it every day for a while will fix it or you need to get rid of the bacteria in the A/C system as HOMESQUEEZE mentioned!
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: 94Luke on January 22, 2013, 02:16:01 pm
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...

Haha!  :signLOL: It won't come up on the panel but if you listen closely when you have the fans on and stick it in reverse the noise will change slightly when it goes into recirc  :happy2:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: homesqueeze on January 22, 2013, 06:16:20 pm
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...

Haha!  :signLOL: It won't come up on the panel but if you listen closely when you have the fans on and stick it in reverse the noise will change slightly when it goes into recirc  :happy2:

Goes into recirc when you use windscreen washer as well. If your interested  :laugh:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: andybon on January 22, 2013, 08:00:05 pm
I noticed that with reverse and the washers today, thought I was going mad when it did it!
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Kalpsn2000 on January 22, 2013, 08:12:57 pm
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...

Haha!  :signLOL: It won't come up on the panel but if you listen closely when you have the fans on and stick it in reverse the noise will change slightly when it goes into recirc  :happy2:

Goes into recirc when you use windscreen washer as well. If your interested  :laugh:

Didn't know that was case, how come I can still smell the washer fluid when I wash my windscreen?
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: MrDo on January 23, 2013, 12:42:43 am
Change your Pollen filter. When I bought my GTI the air con had a bad smell, a gentle vomit smell :sick:

My local Indy predicted it over the phone and they were correct. Changed pollen filter and it went. All smells of roses now :happy2:

Pollen filter change makes it all good :drinking:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Moz on January 23, 2013, 07:51:12 am
Maybe the OP forgot about his post?
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: SRC on January 23, 2013, 06:34:52 pm
Goes into recirc when you use windscreen washer as well. If your interested  :laugh:

Dammit.  Now I've got to prang the front of my car, too.
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Rachael on January 23, 2013, 07:19:50 pm
So glad this came up!

Turner my air con on this morning and it was not nice. Smelt like my bin the morning after a good night out  :signLOL:

Least I know what it is now  :smiley:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Tortaruga on January 23, 2013, 07:33:59 pm
Smelt like my bin the morning after a good night out

Does that mean you've puked in your bin?
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: Rachael on January 23, 2013, 07:36:11 pm
Yes, yes I have..
Was a heavy night and it was my bin or my bed.

Just for the record, I threw the bin away  :signLOL:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: trs888 on January 24, 2013, 02:35:29 am
Sounds like you have bacteria in the aircon system. Not uncommon if it's not been serviced for a while. Probably worse in reverse, because as said above it puts the car into recirculation mode and it will just be pumping smelly air round the cabin. Your best bet is to either get a garage to run an antibacterial cleaner through the system or buy one of the aerosol type cleaners that you leave spraying inside the car while you leave the aircon running. Pollen filter change wouldn't hurt either.

+1 

my dads bmw is really bad. needs doing every 6 months or so. it needs the air con "bomb"

VW did it in my GTI and the guy said it would smell a bit strong for a few days after but i thought it was fine, and i actually liked the smell! :surprised:
Title: Re: Why does our car stink??
Post by: homesqueeze on January 24, 2013, 09:20:02 am
Recirculation comes on automatically when you go into reverse, so not that. Seems like pollen filter and air con check would be the best bet.
Well, I never knew that.  Get ready for my next post reporting on the crash caused by looking at the climate control instead of looking behind me...

Haha!  :signLOL: It won't come up on the panel but if you listen closely when you have the fans on and stick it in reverse the noise will change slightly when it goes into recirc  :happy2:

Goes into recirc when you use windscreen washer as well. If your interested  :laugh:

Didn't know that was case, how come I can still smell the washer fluid when I wash my windscreen?

It does it to stop the smell coming in, but yeah I get a little whiff of fluid sometimes too. I think it's just because it takes a second for the recirc to kick in and in that time a little bit of the smell sneaks in.