Aircon Smell

[Eire Lexus]

Hi all,

New to the forum

I have an IS300H for the past 7 months and must say I'm loving it so far.

However since around May I've noticed a smell from the aircon. The car 15,000 miles on it now.

I've had it back to dealer 3 times and on third visit they said they can't fix as it is a design issue with the aircon condenser. Having looked on line it seems to be a common problem on other Lexus models.

Lexus say they can't fix yet but I'm left with a horrible mildew type smell on every start up. It goes away but not acceptable in my opinion for such a nice car.

Has anyone got the same issue and has it been resolved?

Thanks

[The-Acre]

Hi Billy, welcome to the LOC.

I'm not familiar with your model, but I know that every car I've had with air con smells when its first put on, which is apparently due to bacteria. I'm sure someone will come along with some info for you.

[tinka]

I've had the same, but it goes away fairly quickly, so I'm not too concerned.

[gtb5]

I had burnt smell from brakes for the first month and now it's all gone.

[scudney]

Could be pollen/cabin filter clogged up

[Bratman91]

Smells from the aircon (a bit like wet nappies) is very common, and not just in Lexus's (Lexi ?). It is caused, as Phil (The-Acre) says, by bacteria or mold and tends to be more common in hot, humid weather. There are all sorts of cures, typically involving aerosol sprays, but these are seldom very lasting and the smell usually returns fairly soon. Turning the heater up to maximum for a few minutes will usually get rid of the smell although it will often go away on its own after driving a short distance. I honestly do not think that this is a design fault or, if it is, it is one that is shared by many other makes of car.

[ColinBarber]

I think most people would be aware of the normal smells you can receive from an aircon system in a car but these are reports of something more abnormal from a relatively new vehicle, both in terms of design and actual age of the specific vehicle.

[Bratman91]

I think most people would be aware of the normal smells you can receive from an aircon system in a car but these are reports of something more abnormal from a relatively new vehicle, both in terms of design and actual age of the specific vehicle.

The OP says the smell is like mildew, which is nothing abnormal. The only report in this thread of anything abnormal is the one about a brake smell, which disappeared after a month. The OP did not notice the smell until after he had the car for 7 months and had driven 15,000 miles, which is quite a lot of use. In much of the UK, we have had a lot of hot and humid weather recently, and this is likely to exacerbate the tendency for bacteria to grow. Given these conditions and the relatively heavy use of the car, I don't think that the smell is anything untoward.

[Eire Lexus]

Hi all thanks for the replys

I've had many other car brands in similar conditions and mileage use and not had this issue.

As I said Lexus dealer had acknowledged it was an issue with condenser design. Having spoken to them it could be that the water does not fully drain out when parked like other cars as the drain hole position is not situated in the best place.

I then went on line and saw many other lexus models have the same problem. I appreciate the system will need servicing but this is more than a servicing issue in my opinion.

I got the impression I was not the only IS300h customer with the same issue as I was told Lexus are looking for a fix.

Love the car but just wish I could get smell to go as it's starting to linger a little longer.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[DJP]

It is strange. I'm up to 12k and not a problem. You'd think if it was design flaw this forum would be much more aware of it than we seem to be.

Sent from my Iphone using Lexus OC

[Martin F]

Mine is suffering from this too and done about 2.2k miles. As per Tinka's post the smell goes away quite quickly so i'm not too fussed.

[Silver Arrow]

Comma do an aircon refresher - it's a can that you "let off" in the car. eBay it, you can normally get one for just a few £, and it really works. You might have to do 2 treatments if it's really bad

Like this one

[Bratman91]

Here's a thread from the IS250 forum - you are not alone!

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic/77457-interior-smell/

[ColinBarber]

For people with this issue how are your vehicles normally parked; level, up hill or down hill?

[Martin F]

Always level, can't remember the last time I parked on a hill.

[Silver Arrow]

The smell is caused by bacteria, usually...

[zin]

Hi,

I have IS 300h, bought brand new in 2016 March. Recently I noticed a very bad pungent smell  at the start of the engine when the fan is on but disappears if I keep on running the air conditioning. As soon as I turn the a/c off but leave the fan on, the smell is so bad. Worse particularly in warm weather and when the heater is on. Lexus initially run the cleaning liquid  free of charge but within 2 days the smell return. I had to ask and agreed to Lexus service in Nottingham to run the diagnostic which is charged per hour. They said they found yellow patch of mould on top of the radiator and the whole radiator needs replacing. I was told they haven't come across this problem before.

I have agreed for the new radiator to be fitted regardless of the cost for 2 reasons (it is not cheap, nearly 3000 GBP !!!).

1. Health and safety reason: I am very concerned as  I am not sure how long I have been inhaling it before realising the smell which could affect the lungs in the long term.

2. How to resolve  if it occur again if we do not get to the bottom of the problem? Replacing the radiator itself + workmanship charged per hour is very costly. I can't keep on changing it every time it happens.

My question is  how do other people resolve this problem? I have started losing faith in the quality of Lexus now.

If anybody can share their experience and suggest anything, I would be much appreciate your help.

Thank you.

Zin

 

 

 

 

[wharfhouse]

5 hours ago, zin said:

Hi,

I have IS 300h, bought brand new in 2016 March. Recently I noticed a very bad pungent smell  at the start of the engine when the fan is on but disappears if I keep on running the air conditioning. As soon as I turn the a/c off but leave the fan on, the smell is so bad. Worse particularly in warm weather and when the heater is on. Lexus initially run the cleaning liquid  free of charge but within 2 days the smell return. I had to ask and agreed to Lexus service in Nottingham to run the diagnostic which is charged per hour. They said they found yellow patch of mould on top of the radiator and the whole radiator needs replacing. I was told they haven't come across this problem before.

I have agreed for the new radiator to be fitted regardless of the cost for 2 reasons (it is not cheap, nearly 3000 GBP !!!).

1. Health and safety reason: I am very concerned as  I am not sure how long I have been inhaling it before realising the smell which could affect the lungs in the long term.

2. How to resolve  if it occur again if we do not get to the bottom of the problem? Replacing the radiator itself + workmanship charged per hour is very costly. I can't keep on changing it every time it happens.

My question is  how do other people resolve this problem? I have started losing faith in the quality of Lexus now.

If anybody can share their experience and suggest anything, I would be much appreciate your help.

Thank you.

Zin

 

 

 

 

The fix is the same for all cars especially those with automatic air con like yours. Do not switch the air con off!!! - just leave it on auto all the time and set the desired temperature for the system to maintain. This way condensate does not settle in the system where bacteria can grow and produce the smell and also it prevents any seals from drying out and causing leaks. Regards the mould on the radiator i am assuming you mean mould in the condenser - if it was just on the outside of the radiator just clean it off. My plan of action would be to get the system cleaned again (maybe by a 3rd party air con specialist - also running the heating on max while driving around with the air con on for an hour or so on auto can help kill the bacteria though it might smell for a while but you can leave the windows open) and then leave the air con set on full time - you said yourself the smell only came back after switching it off. I have never had the problem with smells others often report on any of my cars but have always left air con on auto all of the time on all of them. With modern cars the impact on fuel consumption is negligible and the additional cost is certainly far, far less than any problems caused such as you appear to be experiencing. 

[reeac]

Never switching the system off could well be the solution. I never switch off and  I've never had any problem with smelly aircon systems in 27 years of having cars with such systems and the first car was 12 years old and the second was 20 years old  when sold whilst a current Honda is 14 years old. My IS 300 h will be 4 in December. 

[chris1601]

1 hour ago, wharfhouse said:

The fix is the same for all cars especially those with automatic air con like yours. Do not switch the air con off!!! - just leave it on auto all the time and set the desired temperature for the system to maintain. This way condensate does not settle in the system where bacteria can grow and produce the smell and also it prevents any seals from drying out and causing leaks. Regards the mould on the radiator i am assuming you mean mould in the condenser - if it was just on the outside of the radiator just clean it off. My plan of action would be to get the system cleaned again (maybe by a 3rd party air con specialist - also running the heating on max while driving around with the air con on for an hour or so on auto can help kill the bacteria though it might smell for a while but you can leave the windows open) and then leave the air con set on full time - you said yourself the smell only came back after switching it off. I have never had the problem with smells others often report on any of my cars but have always left air con on auto all of the time on all of them. With modern cars the impact on fuel consumption is negligible and the additional cost is certainly far, far less than any problems caused such as you appear to be experiencing. 

Common wisdom seems to be to run AC all year round, but the problems with that, for me at least, are:
a) that the evaporator is always moist because it is a cold surface which will cause moisture to condense
b) come winter time below 3-4c the compressor will stop running anyway leading to window misting

That constant moisture is why it eventually starts to smell as it becomes a breeding ground for bacteria. The reason why the smell comes back once the AC is switched off is because the evaporator is no longer cold, it warms up releasing moisture it accumulated into the cabin (the reason why the air also starts to smell damp as well as smelly).
Provided it has been dried out by letting the fan run without the compressor, not using AC will NOT cause it to create bacteria and the musty smells associated with it. It's the same with home AC as well. Annual maintenance of home AC indoor units at the end of the warmer months is needed to keep things healthy because it isn't practical to dry out the indoor unit every day. Whereas in a car, you can use the AC, then turn it off a mile or two from home and dry it out. I don't typically do that in summer because it's often too warm, but in the milder months either side, its perfectly practical.

After a few decades on the road and not using AC full time (but still using it every few weeks to maintain the seals), I've never had AC fail due to perished seals, never had to "bomb" clean it because of mildew/mould smells and my windows rarely mist up during wet weather. Use a moderate fan speed and air movement alone prevents misting.

Using AC full time is precisely the reason why they start to smell because the evaporator is permanently wet. Choose to run AC as little as possible will help to keep the evaporator dry and bacteria then cannot form.

[ikeja]

I never switch the AC off and have not experienced any problems

[wharfhouse]

4 minutes ago, chris1601 said:

Common wisdom seems to be to run AC all year round, but the problems with that, for me at least, are:
a) that the evaporator is always moist because it is a cold surface which will cause moisture to condense
b) come winter time below 3-4c the compressor will stop running anyway leading to window misting

That constant moisture is why it eventually starts to smell as it becomes a breeding ground for bacteria. The reason why the smell comes back once the AC is switched off is because the evaporator is no longer cold, it warms up releasing moisture it accumulated into the cabin (the reason why the air also starts to smell damp as well as smelly).
Provided it has been dried out by letting the fan run without the compressor, not using AC will NOT cause it to create bacteria and the musty smells associated with it. It's the same with home AC as well. Annual maintenance of home AC indoor units at the end of the warmer months is needed to keep things healthy because it isn't practical to dry out the indoor unit every day. Whereas in a car, you can use the AC, then turn it off a mile or two from home and dry it out. I don't typically do that in summer because it's often too warm, but in the milder months either side, its perfectly practical.

After a few decades on the road and not using AC full time (but still using it every few weeks to maintain the seals), I've never had AC fail due to perished seals, never had to "bomb" clean it because of mildew/mould smells and my windows rarely mist up during wet weather. Use a moderate fan speed and air movement alone prevents misting.

Using AC full time is precisely the reason why they start to smell because the evaporator is permanently wet. Choose to run AC as little as possible will help to keep the evaporator dry and bacteria then cannot form.

I think we will have to agree to disagree since for decades I have run cars with AC always on (some to high mileage) and never had a problem with smells, leaks, misting up windows or any of the problems others often report. Making sure the AC is dry as you suggest would also work too but not always easy to remember - leaving it on all the time is certainly easier and I can assure everyone from my experience leaving it on 365 days a year prevents the old socks smell! 

[chris1601]

It might "prevent" the smell but it doesn't change the science of bacteria loving moist environments 🙂

I use inverted commas since the smell is masked by the coldness of the evaporator when in operation, but doesn't prevent the bacteria from forming, living and thriving when you're parked up in summer.

I can also assure everyone from my decades experience of not using AC full time that leaving if off prevents the nasty smell as well, and prevents the bacteria from forming and thriving.

The issue really comes in winter time when the compressor won't run due to low temperatures. Now you have no control over your cabin humidity because your evaporator starts to release all that trapped moisture and also the smells from the bacteria within that moisture. Although with global warming and winters getting warmer, perhaps compressors stopping in winter will be a thing of the past soon enough.

[wharfhouse]

5 minutes ago, chris1601 said:

It might "prevent" the smell but it doesn't change the science of bacteria loving moist environments 🙂

I use inverted commas since the smell is masked by the coldness of the evaporator when in operation, but doesn't prevent the bacteria from forming, living and thriving when you're parked up in summer.

I can also assure everyone from my decades experience of not using AC full time that leaving if off prevents the nasty smell as well, and prevents the bacteria from forming and thriving.

The issue really comes in winter time when the compressor won't run due to low temperatures. Now you have no control over your cabin humidity because your evaporator starts to release all that trapped moisture and also the smells from the bacteria within that moisture. Although with global warming and winters getting warmer, perhaps compressors stopping in winter will be a thing of the past soon enough.

You obviously take care to make sure the system is dry in your car which is great. However, the propensity of issues (on all car forums) from people with smelly or leaking air con means that others don't appear to take that care. Although nothing scientific, the vast majority of these problems are from people who switch air con off and only have it on when they want cold air from time to time whereas those who leave it on all the time rarely report any problems. In addition, automatic air con, IMHO, is designed to be on full-time and I would have thought be engineered to maintain itself as much as possible in this mode - but I may be too trusting of designers...! Anyway, I'm happy doing what I have for decades - never had an issue with the systems or been ill.

[ikeja]

Another benefit of AC always on is that any misting of the windows clears a lot quicker