Hint of fumes in cabin

[nsxftw]

Anyone ever notice fumes of any sort in the passenger cabin? I can smell a bit when driving with the windows up and it then it gets even more noticeable when I turn off the car and just sit there. I haven't removed the engine cover or anything. Any ideas as to what may be wrong???:frown:

 

[EAC]

What sort of fumes? Unburnt Fuel? Burning Oil? Burning cleaning agent?

 

[nsxftw]

I don't really know what the different smells would be like, but If I were to guess, I would say exhaust... It just strikes me as strange though, since the engine compartment's behind the cabin, so fumes wouldn't naturally flow in, say for example, through the cabin air intake ports in front of the windshield (they are in front aren't they?). Pretty sure it's coming in through the ventilation system... could it be something to do with the cabin heater core? Like evaporating coolant fumes?

 

[EdinKali]

If it has a sweet smell to it, then it is likely coolant.

 

[shawn110975]

well the main engine harness pops thru the firewall into the cabin on the passenger side and middle, really hard to say. it might have poped uot and letting engien fumes into the cabin.

 

[anomaly]

damn...funny you mention that....was thinking just yesterday that i smelled a faint hint of (possibly) fuel in the car....had been driving for an hour and a half, came home and left the car parked (off) in the driveway for a little while...decided to go back out for a ride, opened the door and got a faint whiff of something...wtf

 

[nsxftw]

NOtE: I've just noticed that I've unwittingly copied someone else's username. Apologies to *NSXFTW*; I should've figured that would've been taken. I've submitted a request to have my username changed.

Aaaaanywho...

It's actually not the first vehicle I've noticed it in, but in the NSX it's particularly strange because the engine's behind the cabin and I've always attributed it to engine compartment fumes sneaking in through the cabin air intake vents below the windshield. I'm pretty much positive that it's coming in through the air ducts, since it's stronger right at the vents when they're blowing, so I'm suspecting again possibly heater core? Maybe some coolant is evaporating into the cabin airstream? Did a search and looks like no one else ever reported a similar issue. It's quite concerning, since I've noticed that when it's particularly heavy, I get really drowsy... which does not mix well with driving. I'll check the harness plug, etc, and report what I find...

 

[nsxftw]

Oh and the smell isn't sweet... in fact it smells like something burnt...

 

[anomaly]

if you're getting drowsy, it's your exhaust..carbon monoxide...

i'll have to pay more attention to what mine smells like...bah...

 

[ofdlt10]

i had the smallest leak in my evaporator so you couldn't see anything. had acura recharge the system and 2 hours later, it immediately dumped all the gases into the interior due to the higher pressure. although inert, it has a very distinct odor. this unit sits inside the vehicle directly behind the radio/console and as you stated, comes through the vents while activated.
pretty easy to repair, just takes time to disassemble the interior and under the hood for the hoses and cables.

good luck.