lovepo9e

Has anyone had a problem with a foul odor creeping into the cab after a fast acceleration? I have an appt. on Friday to have it checked out. This will be the third time I have taking it in for this in the last 3 months. Every time I have taking it in, I can't duplicate it.

dips009

hi lovepo9e,
i have the same damn problem and it feels like sumthng is burning....can u post an update after your appointment with the dealer?
Thanks.

TLGator

I remember a few threads several months ago mentioning foul odors in the cabin, but none for a while now.

One smell was supposedly "antifreeze" whatever that smells like. People suspected it was a normal event for a new car that would stop on its own. Maybe it did.

Another smell was the "rotten eggs" you are describing. I don't remember what people said about it on this forum, but if I'm not mistaken that smell is generally associated with the cat converter. I think it can also be normal under certain circumstances.

I'm sure someone with more knowledge will chime in.

lovepo9e

I will. Do you have the same symptoms?

Novice

My 2003 Accord Ex smelled like rotten eggs and was a wide-spread problem (attributed to the fuel additives in winter). I do not have the same problem with my TL except after a hard acceleration. I think this is normal.

lovepo9e

I hope this isn't normal. I don't think I can get uset to this

oicu8sum

It goes away right around 1500 miles...at least it did for me...a sulfur smell that I believe came from the cat converter...

Dutchml

Guys, (and gals?) have you ever heard of a catalytic converter? I seem to remember smelling that sulfur odor when they first were used in cars in, oh say, 1973!!

Dutchml

:lol1: Man, am I the only one that's that freakin old??? :lol2:

ravi

correctme if imwrong but i think its completly normal on newer cars
after a certain amount of time it will go away and occur less..as stated above

Zeuser

So if it's the cat... does it go away once the cat is broken in a bit more? Or does it go away once the cat is up to operating temps?

I did notice the smell under hard acceleration but it only happens in the first few minutes of driving. After a 1/2 hour of driving the smell is no longer there under hard acceleration.

boltjames

Dude, admit you cut a fart. We know you are trying to deflect blame, but stop eating those Subway Atkins Wraps and you're TL will thank you.

TLGator

If it is the cat...tell the cat to stop pissing in the car. Or at least get the rubber mats to catch the cat piss.

NYTHAWK

Maybe the smell is coming from being to close to someone elses rear?

KJSmitty

I blamed it on the wife.....

My TL had the intermittent oder for several weeks from new, along with the sweet antifreeze oder when you first turned on the heater... At 4000 miles they are both gone, but my white BSM's are still looking good

Smitty

Radcliffe1

I've not smelled Sulfur but have noticed the smell of vinegar. Seems like it was coming from the air vents.

boltjames

:lol1: :lol1:

Lifter2012

i used to get that smell when i drove in trip for a few minutes, still happens actually

lovepo9e

I've had my TL since mid Oct.. I have 6500 mi. and it seems to be getting worse. Maybe 2-3 times a WEEK. I'll see what explanation the dealer gives me.

Ted Johnson

The smell you are smelling is hydrogen sulfide (H2S). It results from using fuel with high sulfur content. (Much of the fuel sold in the US contains a LOT of sulfur -- much more than is legal in Europe, for example, though the Govt. has mandated a reduction to Euro sulfur levels in Diesel fuel over the next several years). You can sometimes reduce or eliminate this problem by changing brands. That is often not a permanent cure since refineries usually buy from a variety of suppliers and the amount of sulfur in any one brand varies as a result.

FWIW, I am currently having that problem with Shell and Gulf locally, but changing to Sunoco seems to have solved the problem -- at least for today!

Regards,
<TED>

TLJohn

I actually used the Catalytic Converter as an excuse to cover a fart with my wife when we were dating.

"What is that smell?"
It's the catalytic converter.
"What?"
The catalytic converter, it heats up when your sitting in traffic and omits a nasty smell from the collection of exhaust gasses. It will go away as soon as we get moving.
"Oh, OK".

A few years later (after we were married) I let her in on the joke....

Try it for yourself, but make it sound as technical as you can.

dips009

Yes...I have the same exact symptoms. Accordign to others replies to your quest. some1 stated its b/c of high sulfur content in the gas but there are many other cars that use premium gasoline and have not smelled anythng like this in their cabins. If that is the case, i thnk acura should have done somthing to keep the smell out of the car.

Sherlock

When you go under hard acceleration to redline per se, then let off, there is a change in the charge mixture, an excess of gas and exhaust, which hits the 3 cats, they start doing their job of converting as much as they can, but they can get overwhelmed, and you smell the eggs. Mine did it a lot when new, now only does it if I really really really hammer on it then totally let off the gas, but it's still rare.

pbm317_RENAMED

This was a big "problem" with the new 4Runner's too. Sadly, after 22,000 miles, it is still there after hard acceleration. I don't think it'll be going away. Brands didn't really do anything to change it.

caball88

maybe its your upper lip? =) j/k it could be the battery, a friend of mine had the same problem in his civic and it turned out the battery was leaking and hte sulfur was coming out.

astudios

well, it seems that no one has posted on this thread for a few months. too bad. because i recently got my TL and have been experiencing this "rotten eggs" smell problem in the car after brief hard acceleration. very annoying and really quite a bad stink. i've been typically filling up with the highest octane gasoline but will try a lower octane in hopes that it will just "go away".. i have about 1500 miles on it so far. some have said that it's a phenomenon with new cars and the problem will disappear over time. i certainly hope so because it really is not something you could just get used to.

Road Rage

I would buy from another station - they may have cheaped out and bought some high-sulfur fuel.

Jss1

Did you have your car rustproofed? If so that might be the cause if they sprayed a part that gets really hot.

JohnDoe2

I've noticed the smell too...rotten eggs....farts...
It's the Catalytic Converter.

Didn't you get the Acura Nose Clip?
Its should be attached to the right upper side of the glove box.

lovepo9e

Since I have changed fuel product, Shell to Unical 76, the smell has not come back.

Black_Pride

I get a smell in my car maybe once a week it smells like a "wet dog" is the only way I can describe it. I dont know if its the same smell as you guys but I dont have any pets and I get it when I am sitting in a parking lot or not even driving over 30mph...it has been random...I cannot pin it down when it happens but it smells gross.

Spryster

Did you try opening the windows!!!! J/K, I had a 99 honda accord and for about the first 3000 miles after hard acceleration I could smeel the "egg" smell. I should go away after some breaking in. I have not had that smell in my TL yet (fingers crossed).

cliff

this might be wrong, but i think it might be coming from the vtec, since vtec is a rich mixture of air and fuel, after it is burned off, it will emit this odor, the cat also emits this odor too i believe.

gordon_gekko

i've noticed a funky smell only after hard acceleration as well and thought it was either normal....or at least normal during break-in.....but i'm up around 10k miles now so it's probably the cat? i guess i'll call my dealer.... :'(

Road Rage

All US fuels have fairly high sulfur amounts - this gets filtered by the cat, but when the cat is suffuently heated by high-perf driving, it will get hot enought to "burn-off" the sulfur. It is no big deal - as I said earlier, some gas stations buy "B-stock" fuel. Once I find a station that I trust, I stick with it.

Macrocosm

what it is....... Under WOT the Compressor on the AC will dis-engage... When this happens you will smell the condensation on the inside of the system. It smells like a damp old washcloth.... It is a feature so that A: you get more power under WOT and B: so that you dont over spin the compressor and possibly dammage it. The smell should go away after time as it has in many of my other cars...

need4spd

Acura is known for the rotten egg smell, some cars have it, some don't, as far as I have heard, no known reason for it, or cure (it is exhust/catalitic converter from what I have heard from several svc managers I have spoken to on this).

rets

I still have this smell... since last Oct., now is 11k... I could smell it at the moment A/C is turned on... but it's lighter than the first month...

dsc888

I got that exact same smell at WOT. I also smelled it when a slammed Civic and VW Jetta raced when the light went green right infront of me. I think the catalytic converter explanation makes a lot of sense.

dsc888

DC5_Integra

I had the rotten egg smell on the RSX. When i parked my car in the garage, close the garage door. God damn it, boy did it smell bad.. when i stepped out