Ever since I got my focus its had a smell that resembles a sewer gas smell, and I'm stumped. I don't keep a bunch of junk in the trunk or anywhere else in the car. It's really bad after the car sits in the sun for a while. It's not the a/c it has a bad chemical smell all its own. If anyone has had this problem and if so have you had any luck getting rid of it. I'm going to take it to the dealer soon to get some clutch work done so maybe they have a cure. Thanks for any replies you give.
4of4m
Cabin air filter due for replacement?
Mine was soooo dirty after only 20k ... you should have seen it... yuk!
Mine was soooo dirty after only 20k ... you should have seen it... yuk!
No, I took it out and smelled it and it was fine but I replaced it anyway, I've even taken half the car apart to see if it has any leaks but found nothing.
Have you tried turning on the fan with the air recirculating (so no outside smells come in) then you will have a better idea if its ventilation or another possibility.
My car smelled as well it was in the carpeting and seat and i could barley tell until i went crazy with Lysol and i guess it killed the smell no problems since.[thumb]
My car smelled as well it was in the carpeting and seat and i could barley tell until i went crazy with Lysol and i guess it killed the smell no problems since.[thumb]
2015 focus? From day one?
We onto something here..
Chemical smell, especially after car sat under the sun?
Well I have the same on my 2015
When I got my 2015 I had no smell -me that is, not the car- at the time I couldnt breathe or smell through nose at all.. Fixed that couple of months ago with sinus surgery.. After operation my smell came back and Ive been trying to figure out this nasty interior chemical odor.
I think it is the interior plastics. All of them! Especially when warm under the sun they emit the odor even more.
I have wiped scrubbed all interior plastics couple of times and although somewhat improved, its still there.
Check your interior plastics. Do they seem kinda glossy? Smelly? In my car every interior plastic panel was either 'treated' by dealer with some kind of nasty spray (armorall like?) or they were like that from the factory?
It would be odd for dealer though to apply this throughout all interior plastics.. I mean even in the hidden plastics in the hatch!
The odor is clearly chemical like and it is nasty.
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We onto something here..
Chemical smell, especially after car sat under the sun?
Well I have the same on my 2015
When I got my 2015 I had no smell -me that is, not the car- at the time I couldnt breathe or smell through nose at all.. Fixed that couple of months ago with sinus surgery.. After operation my smell came back and Ive been trying to figure out this nasty interior chemical odor.
I think it is the interior plastics. All of them! Especially when warm under the sun they emit the odor even more.
I have wiped scrubbed all interior plastics couple of times and although somewhat improved, its still there.
Check your interior plastics. Do they seem kinda glossy? Smelly? In my car every interior plastic panel was either 'treated' by dealer with some kind of nasty spray (armorall like?) or they were like that from the factory?
It would be odd for dealer though to apply this throughout all interior plastics.. I mean even in the hidden plastics in the hatch!
The odor is clearly chemical like and it is nasty.
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I have leather too, no smell there.. Trade value would be horrendous
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One point is the plastic all over the dash, and doors has a rather dull finish. If yours had a shiny finish, the dealer or some person definitely added a treatment to the surfaces. Plus the comment the car out in the sun makes it worse:
A silicone type product is pretty hard to fully remove. So I would say wash all the plastic down with a dish washing soap solution again, at least a few more times.
One thing about the stupid dash top plastic is the surface is not sealed. So any chemical put on it will be sucked into the surface. Washing it off will take some effort.
On my 2012 I used a Meguiars product as the dash top was flat (zero gloss) and felt odd. The liquid clearly soaked into the surface!
On my 2014 it was less so.
Anyway, if the problem car came with a shiny plastic dash top, that is NOT from the factory.
Maybe some idiot spilled a product on it during build.. And they decided best thing to just rub it all over until it looked ok?
Anyway, wash wash wash... Particularly the dash top and upper door plastic.
I would use a washcloth, a cotton one for hands.. Not a sponge... And wash it every week for a month.. Then if it still stinks? SOL. [mecry]
If it was an small mammal like a mouse or squirrel, the stink would be like severely rotted vegetables in an explosive stench when the gut explodes from rotting.. That would last a few days, as the animal dries out, the stink goes mostly away... So if it remains the same for weeks.. it is NOT a small dead animal. (sorry for the gross description, but hey, dead is dead.) A big animal takes lot longer.. but an animal the size of a dog or cat you will find it.
A silicone type product is pretty hard to fully remove. So I would say wash all the plastic down with a dish washing soap solution again, at least a few more times.
One thing about the stupid dash top plastic is the surface is not sealed. So any chemical put on it will be sucked into the surface. Washing it off will take some effort.
On my 2012 I used a Meguiars product as the dash top was flat (zero gloss) and felt odd. The liquid clearly soaked into the surface!
On my 2014 it was less so.
Anyway, if the problem car came with a shiny plastic dash top, that is NOT from the factory.
Maybe some idiot spilled a product on it during build.. And they decided best thing to just rub it all over until it looked ok?
Anyway, wash wash wash... Particularly the dash top and upper door plastic.
I would use a washcloth, a cotton one for hands.. Not a sponge... And wash it every week for a month.. Then if it still stinks? SOL. [mecry]
If it was an small mammal like a mouse or squirrel, the stink would be like severely rotted vegetables in an explosive stench when the gut explodes from rotting.. That would last a few days, as the animal dries out, the stink goes mostly away... So if it remains the same for weeks.. it is NOT a small dead animal. (sorry for the gross description, but hey, dead is dead.) A big animal takes lot longer.. but an animal the size of a dog or cat you will find it.
I have scrubbed the entire enterior, dash, doors, hidden plastics in hatch, everywhere. 4 times. I have used soap and water and new microfiber towels each time. It still smells.
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I'm actually not in a hurry to trade the car, I love this car I look forward to driving it every time, i guess I'm just venting about this problem. I have an appt with the dealer next week to fix a problem with the clutch so they can check this out but I would bet good money they will put some smelly stuff in it and call it a day.
Thinking of using this:
1Z Einszett Cockpit Premium Interior Plastic cleaner.
Maybe you could ask dealer if they would use something like that to clean?
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1Z Einszett Cockpit Premium Interior Plastic cleaner.
Maybe you could ask dealer if they would use something like that to clean?
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What about ozone treatment?
My friend use them all the time for smoke odor removal in the car in a bodyshop
My friend use them all the time for smoke odor removal in the car in a bodyshop
]
So I just ordered both 1z einszett deep plastic cleaner and cockpit premium (used up amazon credit) I'll give it a try in the next few days..
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When thinking about this.. Have you shampooed the carpeting? Even tough you think it is the plastic, it may actually be some chemical spilled in the carpeting. It may be under the capeting on the floorpan.
I would get the carpeting thoroughly cleaned as a precaution.
Even have someone lift the front carpeting to LOOK at the underside first. See if it is stained through.
If it is so bad you would sell the car!! spending a few buck to check under, then clean the carpeting is a worthwhile task.
PS: I am crazy for Febreze air freshener. I would also suggest a 'regular smell (not Downy or some other crap stink flavor) heavy duty trigger spray bottle in the car. It really does 'kill' smells, not masking them like all the other air fresheners.
I keep a bottle in the car so if I eat food in the car, I can kill the stink right off.
It may help.
I would spray the Febreze on a rag or paper towel and coat the plastic. And spray it generously into the carpet at least once. Then see if it helped next day or two, .. before getting the carpet shampooed..
I would get the carpeting thoroughly cleaned as a precaution.
Even have someone lift the front carpeting to LOOK at the underside first. See if it is stained through.
If it is so bad you would sell the car!! spending a few buck to check under, then clean the carpeting is a worthwhile task.
PS: I am crazy for Febreze air freshener. I would also suggest a 'regular smell (not Downy or some other crap stink flavor) heavy duty trigger spray bottle in the car. It really does 'kill' smells, not masking them like all the other air fresheners.
I keep a bottle in the car so if I eat food in the car, I can kill the stink right off.
It may help.
I would spray the Febreze on a rag or paper towel and coat the plastic. And spray it generously into the carpet at least once. Then see if it helped next day or two, .. before getting the carpet shampooed..
Febreze auto was my first step.. used up whole bottle, was good for few days as it masked the chemical odor.. For couple days only though
Carpets are clean no odors there or under..
Step 2 was steamer! Used it couple of times..
Step 3 was parking outside with all windows down for hours.
All these were temp solutions though, could still smell the chemical odor like a day later.
Then, I did this new car scent can from mguiars that basically bombs the interior for like 20 minutes, that masked it for few more days.
Then I started looking closely at the plastics. Thats when I realized dealer must have used some nasty silicone based product (nasty drenched dealer towel comes to mind) as the plastics have the smell and also felt kinda glossy.. all plastics everywhere.. even those very hidden plastics behind the rear seat belts and in the hatch..
Then started washing all interior, it has improved a lot as most glossy look is not there any more but still not completely odor free (esp when under the sun)
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Carpets are clean no odors there or under..
Step 2 was steamer! Used it couple of times..
Step 3 was parking outside with all windows down for hours.
All these were temp solutions though, could still smell the chemical odor like a day later.
Then, I did this new car scent can from mguiars that basically bombs the interior for like 20 minutes, that masked it for few more days.
Then I started looking closely at the plastics. Thats when I realized dealer must have used some nasty silicone based product (nasty drenched dealer towel comes to mind) as the plastics have the smell and also felt kinda glossy.. all plastics everywhere.. even those very hidden plastics behind the rear seat belts and in the hatch..
Then started washing all interior, it has improved a lot as most glossy look is not there any more but still not completely odor free (esp when under the sun)
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UPDATE, I took the car to my selling dealer today to leave it with them. They were to fix what I believe is a bad throw out bearing, I already had it checked at another dealer, It took them 4 days to tell me that it was a GEAR ROLLING SOUND WHEN IN NUTRAL, well I drive this car and this is a throw out bearing going bad. That said, today the service writer said I had to sign a service order stating that I would pay $250 diagnostic fee if they can't fix the problem under warranty specifically the smell or if it is related to my fswerks exhaust. He really said this. I wasn't about to agree to this, I've never been asked to do this before. I'm not one to go to a dealer and ask them to do something frivolous in fact I do everything I can to avoid them all together. I believe this fee is their way of avoiding issues with the lemon laws because no one will agree to pay it. So I'm on my own with this one, I'm working on getting rid of this smell and I have one more dealer to get this clutch fixed. By the way, this dealer charges $225 for fuel injector service and $250 for evaporator cleaning if this tells you anything.
dealer diagnostic fee for the smell? = Theft.
I actually just used the 1z einszett deep plastic cleaner (nuked all interior plastics)
first impression from my 7 year old son, he said car smells like soap (that;s a lot better than his prior description: 'car smelled like cheesy fart!')
I think I will need to apply it couple more times and then follow up with 1z einszett cockpit premium.
There are some spots where plastics are still a little glossy (like the plastics behind rear seat belts and inside hatch..) which to be honest makes so weird.. I mean who would apply something there? (lazy dealership? - even more so factory?)
makes me wonder if there was some bad batch of uncured plastics used from the factory?
Can you check your interior plastic panels do they feel little glossy? when was your car built? Mine was Jan 15
I actually just used the 1z einszett deep plastic cleaner (nuked all interior plastics)
first impression from my 7 year old son, he said car smells like soap (that;s a lot better than his prior description: 'car smelled like cheesy fart!')
I think I will need to apply it couple more times and then follow up with 1z einszett cockpit premium.
There are some spots where plastics are still a little glossy (like the plastics behind rear seat belts and inside hatch..) which to be honest makes so weird.. I mean who would apply something there? (lazy dealership? - even more so factory?)
makes me wonder if there was some bad batch of uncured plastics used from the factory?
Can you check your interior plastic panels do they feel little glossy? when was your car built? Mine was Jan 15
UPDATE, I took my focus to a closer dealer near my house, I described the smell and to leave it in the sun for a while and he would smell it. After a week he said he couldn't smell anything but the leather, this after he did the ozone treatment two times on different days, (he didn't charge for this) I must have the nose of a hound dog because the second I opened the car door to leave it was over whelming to me. I have asthma and by the time I got home I was unable to breath good, this is bad, but at least they got the clutch fixed.
What was overwhelming (the original smell, or the ozone)? I ozoned a smoked in car I bought once, I left the generator in there overnight and it worked, the smoke smell was gone. But if it's something like plastics or upholstery/stuffing offgasing I don't think it will be able to cure that. My 2016 I got a couple weeks ago has that kind of chemical smell that new products often have from offgasing. I just try to hold my breath when I get in and roll the windows down as fast as possible.
Yours is not a manual trans right? Was it ever valet parked?
Yours is not a manual trans right? Was it ever valet parked?
The smell is in the car, he did the ozone as a courtesy, he says he smells leather but I don't know what it could be. And yes it's a manual and only dealer has had the car other than me.
Ah ok got it. Not sure about the manual trans, I only asked because gear oil has a lot of sulfur and can smell sewage like. But I think that's usually only gl-5 gear oils for hypoid diffs that have that much sulfur which isn't what an FWD transverse mount would have.
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