Bad or Burnt Exhaust smell in cabin during hard acceleration. | Page 111 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Has anyone heard of, found, or experienced a solution to the Ford Explorer exhaust issue?


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Wow! We know that Ford Customer Service reps follow the threads here (and elsewhere), so how can Ford use the word RARE in their response to this issue...especially when this particular thread is 89 pages long with over 2200 posts (granted not all of them are saying they have a CO leak).

I wonder what Ford's definition of RARE is - maybe Ford's legal team is just like Bill Clinton's legal team.


Another thing...and I'd put money on it - Ford's legal team is following this thread (or at least it is on their radar); they'd be stupid not to, as I'm also sure that the lawyers in some of these cases will use evidence from these public boards to indicate that customers have been reporting this issue to Ford for years!.

Under 1000 complaints with over 1.2 million 5th gen Explorers sold would make it pretty rare.
 






Threads like this won't hold up in court anyways. With no work orders and VIN to verify complaints of this issue, it will be played as "just people jumping on the band wagon with no way to verify it's accuracy".

Remember, everything you read on the net is true.
 






Under 1000 complaints with over 1.2 million 5th gen Explorers sold would make it pretty rare.

Exactly.. a 0.003% is rare.
 






What you need (and probably have) is a CO detector, not CO2. Some of us _are_ using CO meters to measure and report levels. If you bought the type of CO detector that's meant for use in a house, please note that sort of detector is not well-suited for use in this situation. Those sort of detectors are deliberately slow. There are other types of CO meters that respond much more quickly and are better suited for this purpose.

The problem has only been reported (to my knowledge) after full-throttle acceleration. If you aren't stomping the pedal to the floor then you are probably not going to experience this even if your Ex actually has the problem.

Your thought to measure CO in your car is a good one. Just be sure it's CO and not CO2, and it's the appropriate type of meter for this purpose. If you get one, take it around your gas water heaters and furnace in your house, to make sure none of those are leaking CO into your house. The house-type CO meter will alert you when the levels are high enough to require action, but I think it's good to check for trouble before the levels get that high.

Thanks for correcting my mix up and yes a CO detector that is used in my home, was plugged in my EX for two weeks.

http://bestforthehome.com/wp-conten...Alert-CO615-Carbon-Monoxide-Plug-In-Alarm.jpg
 






Most members here are talking about Carbon Monoxide and using a CO detector. In any case I guess both could be present. Just happy I've had 2 smell free Explorers.

Peter
Have you ever "floorboarded" an explorer and held it there until reaching 70-75 mph in order to "merge" with the traffic. ? I don't think I have ever done that because the stink got too bad before ever reaching that speed. We are "older" folks and seldom push the pedal enough to cause the stink, but it takes a mile or more to pass a slower moving vehicle.
I don't know anyone who has an explorer or a lincoln suv that doesn't have the "stinking problem ". Even the service writer, and at least one of the mechanics at the dealership we use have traded their exp's for something else because of this problem. I guess they were tired of trying to fix them, and could see the writing on the wall. I have no doubts that both the source of the problem, and the fix are known by ford, but it is too expensive to implement. Thanks to the renewed publicity, we have a vehicle that no one wants to take on trade,,,at any price, and will never be compensated for the time and trouble we have experienced. We really like the car,,,,aside from "the problem".
 






Have you ever "floorboarded" an explorer and held it there until reaching 70-75 mph in order to "merge" with the traffic. ? I don't think I have ever done that because the stink got too bad before ever reaching that speed. We are "older" folks and seldom push the pedal enough to cause the stink, but it takes a mile or more to pass a slower moving vehicle.
I don't know anyone who has an explorer or a lincoln suv that doesn't have the "stinking problem ". Even the service writer, and at least one of the mechanics at the dealership we use have traded their exp's for something else because of this problem. I guess they were tired of trying to fix them, and could see the writing on the wall. I have no doubts that both the source of the problem, and the fix are known by ford, but it is too expensive to implement. Thanks to the renewed publicity, we have a vehicle that no one wants to take on trade,,,at any price, and will never be compensated for the time and trouble we have experienced. We really like the car,,,,aside from "the problem".

Actually, I don't know of any vehicle that doesn't have a "stink" problem when going full WOT.
My 1992 240sx did it, my two summer vehicles, a 2000 Civic Si and a 2001 Integra TypeR, my 2015 RX350 and this 2016 Explorer all produce this stink.

I even smell it from other vehicles driving ahead of me, that is gunning it on the freeway.
 






I don't need to floor it to merge into traffic. Just having it kick down a notch is more than adequate to merge and the on ramps are long enough to get up to 60-70 before merging. Having said that, I have on a few occasions floored it (WOT) without any issues. I didn't even get that sulphur smell that is quite common and that I believe 613GT500 is referring to. Perhaps that is because the catalytic convertor is still fairly new and deposits haven't built up in it yet.
As for anyone taking it in on trade, that isn't a problem for me since I lease my vehicles.;)

Peter
 






Actually, I don't know of any vehicle that doesn't have a "stink" problem when going full WOT.
My 1992 240sx did it, my two summer vehicles, a 2000 Civic Si and a 2001 Integra TypeR, my 2015 RX350 and this 2016 Explorer all produce this stink.

I even smell it from other vehicles driving ahead of me, that is gunning it on the freeway.

Personally I'm not too concerned about the smell. I want to know if there's carbon monoxide getting into the passenger compartment along with the smell. There was a story this week about a policeman passing out in his Explorer and conjecture that it could have been CO and I think that stirred up interest.

I haven't done a proper test yet.
 






Actually, I don't know of any vehicle that doesn't have a "stink" problem when going full WOT.
My 1992 240sx did it, my two summer vehicles, a 2000 Civic Si and a 2001 Integra TypeR, my 2015 RX350 and this 2016 Explorer all produce this stink.

I even smell it from other vehicles driving ahead of me, that is gunning it on the freeway.
All create excess "smelly" components when under hard acceleration, but ALL do not suck it into the cabin.
 






Personally I'm not too concerned about the smell. I want to know if there's carbon monoxide getting into the passenger compartment along with the smell. There was a story this week about a policeman passing out in his Explorer and conjecture that it could have been CO and I think that stirred up interest.

I haven't done a proper test yet.
There IS CO in the exhaust. If the exhaust is coming in, then so is the CO. How much CO? How much is too much? What is the long term effect of very small amounts of CO over a period of several years? How often is it coming in? Does it affect the entire area of the cabin, or just certain areas according to how the HVAC is setup? Get a parakeet and keep it in the car 24/7. If it gets sick, or dies, get out of the car :)
 






There IS CO in the exhaust. If the exhaust is coming in, then so is the CO. How much CO? How much is too much? What is the long term effect of very small amounts of CO over a period of several years? How often is it coming in? Does it affect the entire area of the cabin, or just certain areas according to how the HVAC is setup? Get a parakeet and keep it in the car 24/7. If it gets sick, or dies, get out of the car :)

An odor inside the car doesn't mean exhaust got inside the car. There are many sources of odors which aren't from the exhaust. That's why I want to check whether there's CO when the odor occurs.
 






I did some measurements with CO meter. I tested my two cars. 2015 Mercedes CLA 250 4matic and 2016 Ford Explorer limited.
First Explorer... With Max/AC, air recirculation full throttle from 0 to 80mph with smell of fumes readings were 5 to 6 ppm. Mercedes same story Max AC, air recirculation, full throttle from 0 to 80mph NO SMELL of anything readings were 4 ppm. Both cars with normal traffic climate control set on auto 0 ppm. While standing for few minutes with climate control on auto both cars had 1 to 2 ppm.
 






has anyone had the issues I heard on the news about explorers with a strange smell that ended up being an exhaust leak? Looks like there is a class action suit that Ford agreed to. Don't think I have one a leak but also wondering if there is a recall for inspection in the works.
 






has anyone had the issues I heard on the news about explorers with a strange smell that ended up being an exhaust leak? Looks like there is a class action suit that Ford agreed to. Don't think I have one a leak but also wondering if there is a recall for inspection in the works.
I have merged your thread with this existing one which was on the same page. Also, the 'Search' feature (upper right) is a very handy tool for locating existing threads. There currently is no recall. I believe there is a TSB although it doesn't show in our TSB and Recall threads. Check for pictures posted here. The following link mentions TSB.
https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/ooh-that-smell-nhtsa-investigates-ford-explorer-exhaust-leaks/

Peter
 






I have merged your thread with this existing one which was on the same page. Also, the 'Search' feature (upper right) is a very handy tool for locating existing threads. There currently is no recall. I believe there is a TSB although it doesn't show in our TSB and Recall threads. Check for pictures posted here.

Peter
Thanks Peter!
 






Thanks Peter!
Tried this out on my explorer today after seeing the news footage and reading everything on the forum.
I got my Ex sport in the middle of December 2 months ago so haven't needed the AC on since I've had it. Did a freeway pull today hitting about 5k rpm @ 3/4 throttle with AC on, Max AC on, recycle on , and rear AC on, all blowing on low.
After letting off the throttle for a few seconds and just coasting it then hit me. Definitely a rotten egg smell, really rancid to the point I had to crack my window to get some fresh air. I'm pretty bummed out about it. I just bought the car for my wife and it's been great so far. Have an appointment set up with Ford on Monday. Hoping they can resolve the issue.
 






Tried this out on my explorer today after seeing the news footage and reading everything on the forum.
I got my Ex sport in the middle of December 2 months ago so haven't needed the AC on since I've had it. Did a freeway pull today hitting about 5k rpm @ 3/4 throttle with AC on, Max AC on, recycle on , and rear AC on, all blowing on low.
After letting off the throttle for a few seconds and just coasting it then hit me. Definitely a rotten egg smell, really rancid to the point I had to crack my window to get some fresh air. I'm pretty bummed out about it. I just bought the car for my wife and it's been great so far. Have an appointment set up with Ford on Monday. Hoping they can resolve the issue.
The rotten egg smell (sulphur) is not the same as the exhaust smell in the cabin. That sulphur smell is very common (there is a thread on it) in many vehicles under hard acceleration. It is usually cause by the catalytic converter when a sudden burst of exhaust is forced through it. It should dissipate within a minute. You will also notice it at times when you are behind a vehicle.

Peter
 






The rotten egg smell (sulphur) is not the same as the exhaust smell in the cabin. That sulphur smell is very common (there is a thread on it) in many vehicles under hard acceleration. It is usually cause by the catalytic converter when a sudden burst of exhaust is forced through it. It should dissipate within a minute. You will also notice it at times when you are behind a vehicle.

Peter
Never smelled that in a car before.
Is it worth taking into the dealer then?
 



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Never smelled that in a car before.
Is it worth taking into the dealer then?

If it were me, I wouldn't bother. As Peter said, the rotten egg smell is created by the catalytic convertor and can be common across all manufacturers.
 






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