[V8] car smells bad when running

[Grant Lenahan]

That was my first thought.  But first describe the smell.  

Grant 

Sent from my phone -- please forgive my typos!

On Jan 21, 2013, at 11:37 PM, Fred Munro <munrof at sympatico.ca> wrote:

> Dee;
> 
> In addition to the items Kent mentioned, if the odour smells like rotten
> eggs it could be a problem with the catalytic converter. The sulphur in
> gasoline is normally oxidized to sulphur dioxide. If the catalytic converter
> is defective or raw fuel is bring burned in the CAT in an oxygen-lean
> environment, the sulphur can be emitted as hydrogen sulphide, which is the
> compound that gives rotten eggs that characteristic perfume. Sometimes
> switching to a different brand of gasoline with a lower sulphur content will
> reduce the odour, but if the CAT is bad you may have to replace it.
> 
> HTH
> 
> Fred Munro
> '97 S6
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: quattro-bounces at audifans.com [mailto:quattro-bounces at audifans.com] On
> Behalf Of Kent McLean
> Sent: Monday, January 21, 2013 5:09 PM
> To: quattro at audifans.com
> Cc: v8-list; doubldz at aol.com
> Subject: Re: car smells bad when running
> 
> EllenO wrote:
>> ... my car smells really bad when its running ...
>> Dee
>> 1990 Pearl V8q
> 
> It could be a few things:
> 
> 1) Oil dripping from the engine onto the hot exhaust.  It's probably an
>    old seal or maybe a sensor leaking.  When the car is parked, open the
>    hood and see if it smells worse in the engine bay. You might even see
>    smoke from where it's hitting the exhaust.
> 
> 2) Antifreeze. This wold be a sweeter smell. If it is stronger inside
>    the car than in the engine bay, it might be the heater core leaking.
>    Look for a wet, sticky spot in the front floor wells. The heater
>    core is up inside the dash and is 8+ hours of labor to get to and
>    replace.
> 
> 3) If the car has been parked for a while, don't discount a dead mouse
>    that made its home inside the ventilation system.  Stick you finger
>    in the coolant overflow tank and smell it. Pull the oil dipstick and
>    smell it.  If your bad smell isn't one of those, it might be a dead
>    critter.
> 
> I CC'd the V8 list as they may have more insight.
> 
> -- 
> Kent McLean
> Audi-less for the first time since Bad Puppy.
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