I Smell The Smelly Smell Of Something That Smells… Smelly

Jul 12, 2017

Have you ever had the smell of something trigger a memory or a reminder of something? Well, during my high school days, scent-based association is what saved my butt. I went to an agricultural high school. As such, I knew how to drive a tractor before I knew how to drive a car. At my school the year was broken up into quarters so that we could rotate through the 4 main areas of agriculture. My first quarter I was in the Ag Mechanics unit where we learned how to drive a tractor, fix an engine, how to weld and various mechanical issues that could arise with your farm equipment and how to fix them.

We were about half way through the 2nd quarter, the plant science section, I was driving the gator transporting mulch to various garden beds around the school as part of the class. I was driving up the hill towards the school when the gator started to emit a strong smell of maple syrup. Thanks to the ag mechanics course I knew immediately that this meant the engine was starting to overheat, most likely because there was a coolant leak. So I pulled the gator over just as it was starting to smoke and grabbed my mechanics teacher. He was able to fix the issue before there was more serious damage to the engine. Had I not known what that smell meant the problem could have been much more difficult to fix.

There are several such smells that you should be aware of as a car owner. Always remember that if you do notice an odor, it is something that needs to be taken care of immediately; rolling the windows down is not the solution.

It smells like syrup:
This could mean several things. Most likely the engine is overheating due to a coolant leak. Coolant is one of the most important fluids you can put in your car. It contains ethylene glycol which can give off a sickly sweet scent. Other causes include a leaky radiator hose or a problem with the heater core. If this is the case, then it’s important to get your vehicle looked at as soon as possible, especially if it’s during winter time. If your heater core goes, you have no heat for your car which also means your defrosters won’t work.

It smells like rotten eggs:
This is caused by hydrogen sulfide in your exhaust that has not converted to sulfur dioxide in your catalytic converter (cat). This gas is TOXIC so it’s not safe for you to breathe and it likely means you need to replace your “cat”. And if you thought taking you cat to the vet was expensive, wait until you see that price tag on this fix. Fortunately, in newer cars, they are usually covered under warranty so check with your dealer!

It smells like hot oil:
This means oil is leaking onto your hot exhaust manifold, which collects the exhaust gases from multiple cylinders into one pipe. It doesn’t smell bad, per se, but it definitely doesn’t smell good. This could be because of a leaking crankshaft or a leaky valve cover. Either way, this is something you will want to get checked out!

It smells like burning carpet:
This is more than likely an issue with your brake pads. The smell is relatively normal if you just came down a long hill, but if this smell occurs under normal driving circumstances then you may have a dragging brake. This smell could also happen if you left your emergency brake (handbrake) on by mistake. If you check the brakes by hand you’ll notice the hottest one is the one giving off the smell. If there is a problem get that brake pad changed asap.

It smells like burnt rubber:
This could be an easy fix. Open your hood and make sure all hoses and belts are tight and not resting on the hot engine. But, this could also mean a belt has become loose or is about to break. If this is the case you should get it replaced as soon as you can.

Remember, if you find that your vehicle smells like any of these things, you can stop by Younger Mitsubishi and we will be happy to check out your vehicle out. Let your nose be your guide, friends.