Pee-U!! - Toyota Yaris Forums

captainm27 · 03-31-2009, 07:48 PM

So I turned the A/C on today, being months without use in the winter. Everything works out well, up until 10 minutes later, when the evil A/C stench decides to rear it's ugly stenchiness. Sheesh! What a treat I got for driving a nice spring day. I did the custom cabin air filter using BailOut's guide, thinking it might help. Alas, not even a strong NaturalAire home filter can withstand the might of the A/C stench.

mrbond · 03-31-2009, 07:57 PM

Yeah, I have the same problem, and I also tried replacing the cabin air filter. I think it might be mold growing in the cabin air box, but I don't know for sure.

YarisSedan · 03-31-2009, 08:21 PM

Quick and easy and cheap way to fix your problem.

Step 1 Let your car warm up to full operating temperature. Then roll down your windows and turn your heater on max hot for about 10 minutes full blast. Make sure its set to outside air. Once done go ahead and turn the heat down.

Step 2 Purchase a bottle of febreeze anti microbial spray. Spray as much as you can handle in the vent area which is located near the wiper blades. With the blower motor on it will suck down the febreeze through the vent system killing any remaining bacteria growing inside you ac duct system. Also giving you a nice fresh smell inside when you turn it on now =)

Step 3 enjoy your now nicely smelling car.

Explination: The high temperature heat kills most of the bacteria in the lower vent areas whiping out the nasty smell. The febreeze ani microbial does just like it says killing the upper bacteria of the vents while helping instantly removing odors.

b_hickman11 · 03-31-2009, 10:10 PM

poor some bleach in the vents on the outside of the car at the bottom of the windshield where the wiper blades arms attach to the car.

toast · 03-31-2009, 10:19 PM

I'm a newish 2007 Yaris LB owner, but your description sounds like a plugged condensate drain. My old ranger's a/c would start smelling like cat urine a couple of times a year. The fix was to ream out the drain with a coat hanger wire and a flood of water would splash out. My problem was spiders and dirt would accumulate in the drain tube and slow the condensate enough that bacteria built up.

captainm27 · 03-31-2009, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YarisSedan

Quick and easy and cheap way to fix your problem.

Step 1 Let your car warm up to full operating temperature. Then roll down your windows and turn your heater on max hot for about 10 minutes full blast. Make sure its set to outside air. Once done go ahead and turn the heat down.

Step 2 Purchase a bottle of febreeze anti microbial spray. Spray as much as you can handle in the vent area which is located near the wiper blades. With the blower motor on it will suck down the febreeze through the vent system killing any remaining bacteria growing inside you ac duct system. Also giving you a nice fresh smell inside when you turn it on now =)

Step 3 enjoy your now nicely smelling car.

Explination: The high temperature heat kills most of the bacteria in the lower vent areas whiping out the nasty smell. The febreeze ani microbial does just like it says killing the upper bacteria of the vents while helping instantly removing odors.

Sounds like a good idea! I'm going to try that for sure! So the vents by the windshield is where the outside air comes in from? I didn't know that. What a noob!

Quote:

Originally Posted by PK198105

i dipped my filter in lysol and then sprayed in all the vents, smells quite nice now

I was also thinking about something like that with the filter, but I didin't think about dipping it in something. The lysol doesn't damage or reduce the quality of the filter in any way?

tetzyamis · 03-31-2009, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YarisSedan

Quick and easy and cheap way to fix your problem.

Step 1 Let your car warm up to full operating temperature. Then roll down your windows and turn your heater on max hot for about 10 minutes full blast. Make sure its set to outside air. Once done go ahead and turn the heat down.

Step 2 Purchase a bottle of febreeze anti microbial spray. Spray as much as you can handle in the vent area which is located near the wiper blades. With the blower motor on it will suck down the febreeze through the vent system killing any remaining bacteria growing inside you ac duct system. Also giving you a nice fresh smell inside when you turn it on now =)

Step 3 enjoy your now nicely smelling car.

Explination: The high temperature heat kills most of the bacteria in the lower vent areas whiping out the nasty smell. The febreeze ani microbial does just like it says killing the upper bacteria of the vents while helping instantly removing odors.

Great idea!!!
Sounds like a good thing to do once in a while even if I use AC almost daily.

YarisSedan · 03-31-2009, 11:55 PM

Cost about 6 bucks and will last you years to come. And comes in many pleasant scents.

BTW they make a auto version for auto interior and fabrics. Used some on my acura thats been parked outside for months never driven. It smelled like...... well a old car that has never been driven. Now it smells like a new car =).

Yaris Hilton · 04-01-2009, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by b_hickman11

poor some bleach in the vents on the outside of the car at the bottom of the windshield where the wiper blades arms attach to the car.

Bleach is about the most corrosive substance there is for steel.

eTiMaGo · 04-01-2009, 11:56 AM

and'll probably, well, bleach the plastics too??

mrbond · 04-01-2009, 11:57 AM

Wow, the febreeze method works wonderfully. Omg.

marcus · 04-01-2009, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrbond

Wow, the febreeze method works wonderfully. Omg.

wait a bit..i did an a/c spray it worked out as well but stench came back after a week..

captainm27 · 04-01-2009, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marcus

wait a bit..i did an a/c spray it worked out as well but stench came back after a week..

Really?

marcus · 04-01-2009, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by captainm27

Really?

no joke..really..... i do hope it doesnt come back.."antibacteria may be the key.."

marcus · 04-01-2009, 08:10 PM

mold can only be killed by bleach mixed with water.. thats the only thing that worked for me at home..window molds..

captainm27 · 04-01-2009, 11:09 PM

Yuck! Hate the idea of mold growing inside my car. On another note, I've had previous cars before that never had any smells. My last two cars were a 1998 Camry and a 1996 Concorde. I've used the A/C on them all the time during the summer and never smelled what I do with my new Yaris. Must be a variant of the "new car smell".

Morgan · 04-01-2009, 11:11 PM

There is a TSB for the smelly a/c ... search function anyone?

captainm27 · 04-03-2009, 10:40 PM

Hi Morgan. Can you provide the link to the TSB?

03-31-2009, 07:48 PM	#1
captainm27 Drives: 2008 Sedan A/T Silver Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: New Jersey Posts: 202	Pee-U!! So I turned the A/C on today, being months without use in the winter. Everything works out well, up until 10 minutes later, when the evil A/C stench decides to rear it's ugly stenchiness. Sheesh! What a treat I got for driving a nice spring day. I did the custom cabin air filter using BailOut's guide, thinking it might help. Alas, not even a strong NaturalAire home filter can withstand the might of the A/C stench.

03-31-2009, 07:57 PM	#2
mrbond View User's Garage Drives: 2008 meteorite hatchback Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Illinois Posts: 960	Yeah, I have the same problem, and I also tried replacing the cabin air filter. I think it might be mold growing in the cabin air box, but I don't know for sure. __________________ - HOOOEY! That's one tahny little cawr! What the heck kinda toy is that? - A Toyota Yaris - A whut Yaris?

04-01-2009, 11:56 AM	#10
eTiMaGo vroom vroom View User's Garage Drives: lil red 5-door Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bangkok, Thailand Posts: 7,744	and'll probably, well, bleach the plastics too?? __________________ The price of freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish. - Robert Jackson Bye bye 1NZ...

04-01-2009, 11:57 AM	#11
mrbond View User's Garage Drives: 2008 meteorite hatchback Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Illinois Posts: 960	Wow, the febreeze method works wonderfully. Omg. __________________ - HOOOEY! That's one tahny little cawr! What the heck kinda toy is that? - A Toyota Yaris - A whut Yaris?

04-01-2009, 11:11 PM	#17
Morgan View User's Garage Drives: 07 MM LB Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: PCB, FL Posts: 504	There is a TSB for the smelly a/c ... search function anyone? __________________

03-31-2009, 08:21 PM	#3
YarisSedan Drives: 08 Yaris Sedan Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: California - Bay Area Posts: 2,773	Quick and easy and cheap way to fix your problem. Step 1 Let your car warm up to full operating temperature. Then roll down your windows and turn your heater on max hot for about 10 minutes full blast. Make sure its set to outside air. Once done go ahead and turn the heat down. Step 2 Purchase a bottle of febreeze anti microbial spray. Spray as much as you can handle in the vent area which is located near the wiper blades. With the blower motor on it will suck down the febreeze through the vent system killing any remaining bacteria growing inside you ac duct system. Also giving you a nice fresh smell inside when you turn it on now =) Step 3 enjoy your now nicely smelling car. Explination: The high temperature heat kills most of the bacteria in the lower vent areas whiping out the nasty smell. The febreeze ani microbial does just like it says killing the upper bacteria of the vents while helping instantly removing odors.

03-31-2009, 10:10 PM	#4
b_hickman11 Drives: 08 Sedan Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Tyler, TX Posts: 899	poor some bleach in the vents on the outside of the car at the bottom of the windshield where the wiper blades arms attach to the car.

03-31-2009, 10:19 PM	#5
toast Drives: 2007 LB Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Nappanee, IN Posts: 60	I'm a newish 2007 Yaris LB owner, but your description sounds like a plugged condensate drain. My old ranger's a/c would start smelling like cat urine a couple of times a year. The fix was to ream out the drain with a coat hanger wire and a flood of water would splash out. My problem was spiders and dirt would accumulate in the drain tube and slow the condensate enough that bacteria built up.

03-31-2009, 11:55 PM	#8
YarisSedan Drives: 08 Yaris Sedan Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: California - Bay Area Posts: 2,773	Cost about 6 bucks and will last you years to come. And comes in many pleasant scents. BTW they make a auto version for auto interior and fabrics. Used some on my acura thats been parked outside for months never driven. It smelled like...... well a old car that has never been driven. Now it smells like a new car =).

04-01-2009, 08:10 PM	#15
marcus toyota View User's Garage Drives: 2007 Yaris RS Blazed Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: toronto, canada Posts: 3,637	mold can only be killed by bleach mixed with water.. thats the only thing that worked for me at home..window molds..

04-01-2009, 11:09 PM	#16
captainm27 Drives: 2008 Sedan A/T Silver Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: New Jersey Posts: 202	Yuck! Hate the idea of mold growing inside my car. On another note, I've had previous cars before that never had any smells. My last two cars were a 1998 Camry and a 1996 Concorde. I've used the A/C on them all the time during the summer and never smelled what I do with my new Yaris. Must be a variant of the "new car smell".

04-03-2009, 10:40 PM	#18
captainm27 Drives: 2008 Sedan A/T Silver Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: New Jersey Posts: 202	Hi Morgan. Can you provide the link to the TSB?