Bad smell? (thermostat?) help!

ChrisTypeR408

New Member
So recently i've been having a very strong smell coming from my car. It happens most when my car isn't moving (at a stop light, parked, etc) and its been very annoying. The smells are very strong. I checked for any leaks but there are none at all that I could see and my car hasn't had a history of leaking at all.... And it doesn't release any smoke.
Today while in the drive thru at mcdonalds I noticed that the temp was all the way at H but then when I started driving again the temp went back to normal. I'm very sure that it has to do with the thermostat but my question is, is it related to all of these smells?

I was told that if the thermostat was left open or closed it could make my car inject more gas or something along the lines of that.. I looked around but I decided that the best way to get an answer was to ask.

What I noticed with my temperature is that sometimes it takes forever just to go up to the middle (which is normal temp)
 
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ChrisTypeR408

New Member
Not coolant, or any other fluid I know of... So i'm taking a wild guess that it's Gasoline because of the sharp smell...
 

jdmjim

nothing from nowhere
your fans arent coming on,could be related. is the smell from under the hood or the tailpipe
 


vonnyvegas

Finger Tapping With Fury!
jdmjim knows whats up listen to these guys they def help a lot. The fact you went all the way to Hot isn't good but doesn't mean disaster. How's the coolant level? when was the last bit of maintenence done on the coolings system? check fan operation, check fluid level, but keep in mind when a motor overheats things can warp things can be damaged and could eventually end up being the new problem. I agree with the others fan doesn't sound like its coming on so check the relays and fuses and wires if all those are good double check the fan motor itself hasn't gone out. and if you end up fixing/replacing anything to do with the coolant system why not throw a t-stat in as well, cheap easy and its supposed to be done somewhat of a regular basis along with hoses and coolant fluid. wierd question but does the smell seem slightly....electrical if you know what I mean? But if the motor stays cold your computer is in an open loop situation and will change the fuel delivery to try to get it up to temp so theres unfortunately a couple things we need to check here
 

ChrisTypeR408

New Member
Mm, thanks for the info guys. I haven't done any maintenance on the cooling system.

the smell seems to be coming from the engine.. Is my engine really overheating? because it goes all the way to hot and as soon as i start driving again it goes back down to normal... It also doesn't seem so because whenever it does that I park and pop the hood and the heat doesn't seem to be very high, I've seen/felt an over heated engine before. But I could be wrong.

All things aside I'll check it out tomorrow, gotta check all the possibilities :\ It's weird because my car doesn't seem to be performing any differently than it was before, its just the smell and the temperature going up once in a while when I'm not moving. Thanks again guys, I'll post up what i find..
 


thenoxus1

Quick-Spool Racing LLC
WHen it goes hot, does any steam come out of the hood etc? Def could be a thermostat. Make sure the coolant is filled and check that there is coolant in the radiator. After you let it run a little, pop the hood, check and see what the coolant is doing (Bubbling etc)
 

ChrisTypeR408

New Member
No steam comes out when it is hot. I just replaced the coolant, it was kind of low so we filled some up. Becasue the engine didnt go up to hot all the time were guessing its because not enough coolant was being distributed so were ruling out the fan as the problem... But I'm about to take it for a spin, so I'll see whats up.
 

thenoxus1

Quick-Spool Racing LLC
Turn on AC to see if fan comes on then at least. Any CEL's or anything also, if not just try replacing thermostat, see if that helps.
 

thenoxus1

Quick-Spool Racing LLC
Unrelated to the thermostat thing, but are you running rich/losing any oil? (thinking about the smells)
 

ChrisTypeR408

New Member
I'm not losing oil, I checked the filter and everything. My oil level is constant. I was gonna take it for a run but I didn't get the chance. The fan does work when I turn on the AC. I'll see how it runs and what it smells like when I go for a run. I'll keep you posted.
 

ChrisTypeR408

New Member
Actually I went driving last night and it seems fine.. for now. Whenever i get out of the car or while I'm driving I don't smell anything. I'll keep checking as I drive though to see.
 
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