Last week as I was returning home I had a strange event in my Prius. I was coasting at about 30 mph when I heard a very faint pop sound a bit like a balloon breaking. It sounded like it came from the right rear area of the car. Afterwards I thought I detected a very faint chemical smell. Could this have been something involving the HV battery?
View 10 RepliesThe only disappointment with the 2010 prius is the terrible chem smell inside the car,, after six months it hasn't changed... in fact it is B.S. and doesn't seem healthy even running with outside air.
View 6 RepliesWe just picked up our brand new Prius v and there is this distinct chemical smell. It's not like the typical, rather sweet "new car smell" - this one smells more chemical. Our previous car was a 2011 Prius and I think there was almost no smell, so it surprises me even more that the new Prius v would smell that much.
View 16 RepliesI have a 2009 model Toyota Prius. There is a smell of chemical or gas inside my vehicle when I first get in. By "gas" I mean "gas" and not "petrol". So if it is a chemical from the battery for example, it smells like natural gas. I have been delivering phone books from my car in acreage which caused me to start and stop the car every 200 meters for about an hour. I only noticed the smell after I delivered the phone books. I searched the Prius Chat forum last night and read that stopping and starting for a lengthy period is bad for the battery. Should I ignore the smell and wait for the battery warning light to show. And if the battery warning light does flash, which battery would it relate to and is there a different warning light for both batteries? I have booked my car into the Toyota service center tomorrow but think I might cancel. They will probably run a diagnostic and see nothing as they will just interpret a number from a computer. They will predictably sniff and smell nothing ... and then I will pay them the service fee for nothing.
View 2 RepliesNoticed the barely audible (with good ears) high-pitched sound that emanates from the car when you let off the throttle enough to prevent any charge or discharge bar from showing? It goes away if you completely release the throttle or if you press the throttle a tad bit more.
View 19 RepliesSo I started my car today and when I got back in it about 5 minutes later I could smell gas, faintly, but it was undeniable. I ran my vin through vw's recall system and came up empty. I'm going to get it checked out on Monday.
Also on my way home from dinner my radio stopped producing sound. When I tried turning the volume up the volume bar wouldn't move. I was on xm radio at the time and I switched to fm and am with no difference. Then I switched to my sd card. I was able to select a song but it wouldn't load on the main screen. I turned my car off and nothing changed. I tried using my phone and that worked, but after, the radio still wouldn't work. Then about 5 minutes later it started working again. So weird.
I saw that other people had problems with their stereo but it didn't seem the same.
When I first start the car recently there is a strong chemical smell, not gas, not antifreeze, and not the musty a/c smell. I just got the 30K service, and it seems stronger now. Maybe related???? 2008 V8 ....
View 3 RepliesI have a 2011 BMW 328i and I get this sort of burnt chemical smell through the vents when the heat is on. It doesn't happen until I have been driving for 10-15 minutes. After that you get the smell on some low level all the time, but it seems to be briefly exacerbated by making a hard turn (i.e. a U-turn). You get a stronger whiff coming out of the turn and then it returns to baseline. I also smell it stronger when setting off in low gear (1st or 2nd) like from a stop sign. It happens whether the car has the air re-circulation on or not. It has been in for service twice and they can't find the problem. The car is a RWD manual transmission and only has 20k miles on it. I checked the fluid levels and as far as I can tell they don't seem low. I looked in the service history and a coolant leak was fixed at one point, near the thermostat - yet the car still exhibits the smell. In addition to the smell, it kind of irritates the back of my throat after a while.
View 12 RepliesThis is my first car with leatherette, wondering if that is causing the smell? Its not the monster mats. I have had several new cars and this is different than the average new car smell. Looking to getting rid of it?
View 11 RepliesI've had my B6 with leatherette for just over two weeks now and I'm having trouble with a strong interior smell. It is a chemical/fishy smell that builds up when the car sits with the windows closed. I don't think it's coming from the vents because the smell goes away partially when the A/C is on. It is not related to outside temperature or direct sun. I didn't smell it during the test drive but I did right after I picked it up. I suspect the smell might be from the scotchguard treatment the dealer did during prep but I'm not sure. I've washed down the interior with Woolite a couple times and had the interior detailed professionally but the smell comes right back. Otherwise I love this car. I have an appointment at the dealer on Friday to see what they say.
View 2 RepliesI get more or less constant wine-like odor in the salon, as well as intermittent burning match (sulphur?) one. These seem to be seeping from the outside, through the ventilation system. The car has a new radiator, and the heater core, there are no apparent coolant leaks.
View 3 Replies98 Accord AC died and left burnt chemical smell in it's wake...
View 8 RepliesI have an '08 Grand Cherokee Laredo, 3.7L V6 with 74,000 miles on it. Recently the exhaust/muffler have been getting loud, and during my state inspection the guy said it would probably need a new muffler/pipe in the next few months. That was about a month ago. Since then there has been an on-and-off horrible plastic/chemical smell in the cabin some of the time. My wife drives it about an hour to work each way, and she says sometimes it gets so bad she has to open the windows (in 20 degree temps....) or she gets a headache. She describes it as a "formaldehyde smell" and says it tastes kind of sweet. To me it's more like a burnt plastic/chemical type odor. I checked all underneath but saw no plastic bags or anything else odd. Nothing unusual under the hood. No visible smoke. I have an appointment in two days to have the exhaust fixed. My question is - is there any way this weird smell could be exhaust related? I am hoping so, because otherwise it's a total mystery. It's definitely not an "exhaust" smell as I know it.
View 11 Replies 2005 F350 Lariat crew cab a few weeks back.
My question.... I noticed a strong ammonia/super glue like smell floating around in the cab about the 3rd time i drove the pickup. Since then, it seems to do it intermittently. My first assumption was it was coming through the vents. I have done a couple experiments, and I don't believe this is the case. My wife and I were driving yesterday and she thought she noticed the smell again. while I was driving she started checking all the vents, and nothing. But when she leaned clear down near the speaker hole in the door, she said she could really smell it.
What could be causing this? I'm assuming if it was the AC it would be coming though the vents. And at this time, I don't think it is.
There have been a couple of incidents where the key fob has not been detected by the car, even though it is in the car. When it did this, I also noted the unlock button on the fob didn't work. It only does it a couple of times then all of a sudden it seems to work. There is no message for a low battery (it's not that old).
View 9 RepliesOn our 2016, it's got this weird scratching sound.. It is so faint, but definitely noticeable. It SOUNDS like it's coming from the driver wheel area; or perhaps under driver dash/footwell. I've looked at the brake rotor/suspension and everything looks good.
It isn't solid either; it'll do it SOMETIMES with the brakes, on starts/stops, and SOMETIMES it does it going over a speed bump... It literally sounds like someone scratching their finger across the rough part of the dash...
Has rattle that sounds like it is coming from the centre of the dash? It sounds like a piece of tin sheet metal is rattling faintly. I wouldn't think a fuel line rattle would sounds like that, but maybe I am incorrect? Putting pressure on the dash with your hand doesn't seem to make it stop.
We also get the creek in the l/h side that I had assumed prior that it was from the door seal when the body flexes.
My key fob works at a distance to lock the car. Inside it is not recognized. Changed battery recently?
View 8 RepliesMy 2008 Prius had a front quarter panel replaced after my wife back in to a fire hydrant.The body work looks fine , no issue there, but now when the car is coasting with the gas engine off you can hear a humming sound that was not there before the repair.Also it does,nt seem to be recharging the hybrid battery at the same rate.My thought is maybe the body shop caused some damage to MG1 by spinning the front tires on a emision testing machine or rollers.Does special precautions would have to be used when testing wheel clearances after a quarter panel replacement on a hybrid? Would a body shop need to do this ?
View 2 RepliesYesterday when driving at high elevation and extremely cold temperature I heard and felt a pulsing from rear of my car when coasting or idling.
View 5 RepliesI have noticed something about my 2010 Prius. Lately when I am driving the car for about an hour, the engine slowly reduces RPMs (based on sound) when I take my foot off the gas. The MPG indicator slowly goes from near zero to 100. Like VERY slowly. And that is just street driving below 45 mph. The car has almost 60k miles. Tires are correct and in very good shape.
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