Foul Smell in Cabin From Vents / AC

[peterk9]

FYI, I never had an issue with the A/C smell and it does tend to get humid at times in Summer.

Peter

 

[OSCAR WIYGUL]

2013 ford explorer cabin smell

after my 2013 ford explorer sits for a day or so...when I start it up there is a musty bad smell in the cabin....clogged ac drain? thanks, Oscar Wiygul

 

[R56 Ed]

It's most likely mildew in the condensation drip tray and/or on the a/c grill. I have it too. Quick (temporary) fix is to set the a/c to recirculate, fan on high, spray Lysol in the intake under the dash, and run for a minute or two. Another option is to get an ozone generator to run inside the cabin. There's also an ozone spray, Ozium, that will help when used like Lysol. Good luck!

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum OSCAR WIYGUL.:wavey:
As per my PM, I have merged your thread with this existing one on the same issue.

Peter

 

[croll326]

Just was reading through this again and it makes me so mad. BS!

 

[wardy]

Been expierencing the same issues...2013 XLT. Does it anytime climate control is set to 70° or above....stinks like crazy. 2 dealerships have looked at smell and haven't found anything. The wife bought this used and is just about at her wits end with it...

 

[FordService]

Been expierencing the same issues...2013 XLT. Does it anytime climate control is set to 70° or above....stinks like crazy. 2 dealerships have looked at smell and haven't found anything. The wife bought this used and is just about at her wits end with it...

Hi wardy,

Welcome to the forum! I'm Crystal, the Ford Service rep here. How many miles are on your Explorer? I want to see what I can do to help.

Crystal

 

[wardy]

Thanks Crystal, she's got ~46k miles on the Explorer...the cabin filter was pulled at my local dealer but it was clean.

 

[FordService]

Thanks Crystal, she's got ~46k miles on the Explorer...the cabin filter was pulled at my local dealer but it was clean.

Thanks for the quick reply, wardy. I'll escalate this to your regional customer service manager; they'll work with your dealership to get this resolved. To get things moving, send me a private message (PM) with your full name, best daytime phone number, current mileage, VIN, and preferred servicing dealership. Leave the rest to me.

Crystal

 

[Mikie1]

It's most likely mildew in the condensation drip tray and/or on the a/c grill. I have it too. Quick (temporary) fix is to set the a/c to recirculate, fan on high, spray Lysol in the intake under the dash, and run for a minute or two. Another option is to get an ozone generator to run inside the cabin. There's also an ozone spray, Ozium, that will help when used like Lysol. Good luck!

Have you actually done this "set the a/c to recirculate, fan on high, spray Lysol in the intake under the dash, and run for a minute or two."

I tried this last night and could not find the "air intake". It's pretty full down there.

I am soo ticked off. My wife and i HATE this explorer now. It's been a year since AC Collins replaced the evaporator core and the smell is now back worse than ever. Two days ago, when we started the car to take my 3 year old son to daycare, he said "Yucky smell mommy daddy" "why does mommy car smell?"

Really FORD????? You have no idea how to fix this or are you just avoiding the issue?" This is ridiculous.

 

[Black Bengal]

Have you actually done this "set the a/c to recirculate, fan on high, spray Lysol in the intake under the dash, and run for a minute or two."

I tried this last night and could not find the "air intake". It's pretty full down there.

I am soo ticked off. My wife and i HATE this explorer now. It's been a year since AC Collins replaced the evaporator core and the smell is now back worse than ever. Two days ago, when we started the car to take my 3 year old son to daycare, he said "Yucky smell mommy daddy" "why does mommy car smell?"

Really FORD????? You have no idea how to fix this or are you just avoiding the issue?" This is ridiculous.

Mikie1, I live in Pearland & had a 2005 Thunderbird that I bought used & it had the worst case of the "yucky smell" that I have ever experienced. I heard about the "Frigi-Clean/Frigi-Fresh" process & had it done at RMS Auto Care on Westheimer. The problem was totally gone from that day forward. The cost is about $100. Check out the following link to find someone in your area who provides that service.

http://www.bgfindashop.com/bgservices/climate.htm

 

[R56 Ed]

Have you actually done this "set the a/c to recirculate, fan on high, spray Lysol in the intake under the dash, and run for a minute or two."

I tried this last night and could not find the "air intake". It's pretty full down there.

I am soo ticked off. My wife and i HATE this explorer now. It's been a year since AC Collins replaced the evaporator core and the smell is now back worse than ever. Two days ago, when we started the car to take my 3 year old son to daycare, he said "Yucky smell mommy daddy" "why does mommy car smell?"

Really FORD????? You have no idea how to fix this or are you just avoiding the issue?" This is ridiculous.

Yes, I have. I don't know where the vent is either, so I just sprayed under the dash until I smelled it coming out of the vents. Seemed to work. Terrible solution for a systemic problem, for sure.

 

[Mikie1]

Thanks Black Bengal. Im going to look into that.

Thanks for your reply R56 Ed. Thats pretty much what i did lastnight.


Next i will remove the glove box, cabin filter and then spray directly into the system. It would be nice if we could get it directly on the evaporator.


HEY FORD, THIS IS CRAP!!!! Having to do this with a $45K vehicle within the first 1-2 years of ownership is just unbelievalbe. My neighbor two houses down is having the same problem. I think they are going to trade theirs in or sell it. I'm really considering the same. Thats how bad this is.

 

[peterk9]

Although I'm not sure, I would guess the air intake would be through the cowl that runs outside under the windshield. Mikie1, it may make you feel little better to vent here, but unfortunately Ford doesn't read these Forums. Sorry about the issue you and some others are experiencing.

Peter

 

[Mikie1]

Although I'm not sure, I would guess the air intake would be through the cowl that runs outside under the windshield. Mikie1, it may make you feel little better to vent here, but unfortunately Ford doesn't read these Forums. Sorry about the issue you and some others are experiencing.

Peter

YES, it does make me feel better.

 

[Rickd]

Still living with black mold growing in our 2014 Explorer, Ford Regional (very Nice girl) could not make the connections to do a "Good Faith Evaluation" to see if we qualified for help from Ford?? She had made several attempts and was turned away from dealers who were "too busy" for this work, finally the last dealer who took the bait and said "bring it in" did not know who I was when I got there, seems the Manager took the call and the next day off leaving the paperwork on his locked desk... the person writing work orders now has no loaner cars and the renal agent they use has no cars either.

I now know what a can being kicked down the road feels like, my wife feels ill from either the nerves or the mold so we are moving forward with BBB Arbitration and if no resolve next step is Lemon-aid.

 

[peterk9]

This all goes back to poor communications, which, on this Forum, seems to occur far to often. As for a loaner, if the dealer supplies one, it is at their expense. Your Warranty Guide specifically states that Ford is under no obligation to supply one for any work done on your vehicle. If you have the Ford ESP with first day rental, then that is another matter. Good luck.

Peter

 

[Rickd]

This all goes back to poor communications, which, on this Forum, seems to occur far to often. As for a loaner, if the dealer supplies one, it is at their expense. Your Warranty Guide specifically states that Ford is under no obligation to supply one for any work done on your vehicle. If you have the Ford ESP with first day rental, then that is another matter. Good luck.

Peter

This forum is a good place to third party document this manufacturer defect with dated updates that I have no control over, living in the corporate environment I knew exactly what I was doing and wanted to log this in an open forum. I don't do secret conversations with Ford reps, they record all of this stuff even these forum posts... don't kid yourself they hear my voice. My communication is spot on, as my signature says... "All they had to do is fix it the first time"

Happy Friday September 19/2014

 

[RCFlorida]

Mildew Smell from 2013 Ford Explorer

I bought a used 2013 Ford Explorer Limited four months ago with 19k miles and have only put 4300 miles on it since. I had planned on buying new, but since Ford had added pre-certified warranty to it thought it was a better deal. Added 2years and 40k miles to warranty bringing it to 7 yrs and 100k. My only issue so far is the AC, stinking during the first start after sitting for days or even only a few hours. I have had it back to the dealer three times. I tell them I don't think it is draining probably on grd. They say if it was stopped up it would leak to the inside on right floor board. My Ford F150 Lariat would piss a river on the grd. I use normal ac settings(auto) never recert, The smell is that of an old sour stinky sock. Anybody have the same and what was the fix??

I just found this thread and I also have a 2013 Ford Explorer with a mildew smelling ac. It is currently at the dealer being worked on for the second time. I really love this explorer but the mildew smell is terrible. I would rather have the windows down than turn the ac on. Is there really not a fix for this?

 

[wisconsinF]

AC Smells like Cat Pis*

Hello all...

2013 Explorer Base edition.

I really really like my Explorer that I bought in January 2015 here in Wisconsin but now that it's (finally) warmed up and we're using the AC my Explorer stinks....literally.

The AC smells like cat piss when we get in the car and start it up...also smells like that if we're just running fresh air through the dash without the AC on. Not so bad if it's not hot/warm outside. Going to take it in this week. Anything specific I should mention to the service writer?

Thanks,
Barry