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Buick Enclave Smells

6 messages,  Last post on Jul 11, 2012 at 7:09 AM

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#1 of 6 Smell when stopped by tbgmon

Nov 28, 2007 (6:58 am)

Has anyone who owns an Enclave noticed a smell given off by the ventilation system when stopped? I took it to the dealer but they said it was 'normal' and would go away. Just wondering if anyone else had noticed this as I am not convinced it is 'normal'. Currently our Enclave only has 350 miles on it.

#2 of 6 Re: Smell when stopped [tbgmon] by steve_ HOST

Nov 28, 2007 (8:08 am)

Replying to: tbgmon (Nov 28, 2007 6:58 am)
Unless the smell is blowing out of the vents (i.e., you have the fan on), I suspect it could be protective coatings "burning" off underneath the vehicle. I think the manufacturers spray oil like material on the undercarriage to keep things from rusting while the car is in transit to the dealer and some of that stuff gets on the muffler or other hot parts and bakes off.
 
If that's what's happening here, the smell should fade away in a month or so.

#3 of 6 Re: Smell when stopped [steve_] by tbgmon

Nov 28, 2007 (8:22 am)

Replying to: steve_ (Nov 28, 2007 8:08 am)
Thanks for the response Steve. I thought that only cars shipped over from Europe or Asia had the undercoating spray? Anyhow, there is no smell outside of the vehicle the smell is only on the inside while stopped. There is no evidence on the underbody of any leaks or anything, also the airfilter is clean as new (I thought maybe if it was pulling in some the combustion from burning oil). From what I can find it seems the only other thing it could be is a leaky valve cover. I'm going to let it run and look at it while running to see if there is any smoke or anything visible. The oil level is fine though, but I'm going to monitor it.
I've owned a few new cars and never had one emit a smell before, so I'm just a little skeptical that it nothing. I'll give it a month and see.
 
Thanks again.

#4 of 6 Re: Smell when stopped [tbgmon] by steve_ HOST

Nov 28, 2007 (8:38 am)

Replying to: tbgmon (Nov 28, 2007 8:22 am)
I had the burning smell on my minivan back in '99. It was assembled in Ohio, but the drivetrain was shipped over from Japan, so who knows. The odor started fading immediately and wasn't noticeable after ~3 weeks.
 
Maybe you could describe the smell a bit more - from what I'm reading through the lines, it sounds more like an oil/fluid smell instead of the interior plastics outgassing or some electrical smell.
 
And is it stronger running the vent fan or A/C or defrost mode?

#5 of 6 Re: Smell when stopped [steve_] by tbgmon

Nov 28, 2007 (8:52 am)

Replying to: steve_ (Nov 28, 2007 8:38 am)
It doesn't smell like plastics to me, it smells more like an oily fluid like smell. I would think that if it was plastics (i.e. interior) it would smell all the time not just when stopped. Definitely not an electrical or burnt type smell. So I am conviniced it is coming from the outside of the vehicle (maybe not exposed, but not in the passenger compartment). It seems stronger when the heat is set at a higher temp, I actually have not tried it without the vent on at all. I was going to do that today as well as let it run, confirm I can smell it inside and then look around outside to see if I can find or smell anything.

#6 of 6 Re: Smell when stopped [tbgmon] by rjluke

Jul 11, 2012 (7:09 am)

Replying to: tbgmon (Nov 28, 2007 8:52 am)
I get a strange gear oil smell when the vehicle is first started up if the vent is blowing. My AC has been out of comission for a month and I've been forced to drive with the windows down, so I haven't noticed the smell recently. The smell started after the dealer replaced the power steering pump at 49,000 miles. It seemed to get worse after they recharged teh freon just after 51,000 miles. Vehicle is ~ 54,000 miles and the smell is still there. I mentioned it to the dealer during last service, but they couldn't replicate the problem and therefore couldn't fix it.

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