Bad smell in the car - how to get rid?

Every motorist in his life has encountered such a problem as an unpleasant smell in the passenger compartment. The reasons for it can be different - from tobacco smoke to malfunctions in the technology itself. Whatever the nature of the problem, it needs to be eliminated, and in this article we will discuss how to get rid of the smell in the car quickly and without much effort, as well as methods to prevent this problem in the future.

to contents ↑

We determine the causes

The causes of such a problem as an unpleasant odor in a car can be several:

1. The most common are tobacco smoke, gasoline and odors arising from the transport of pets.
2. No less frequent factor is spoiled food, which sometimes remains in the car in hard-to-reach places. Most often, this problem occurs for drivers who use their vehicle little.

Be that as it may - if you notice an unusual smell in the passenger compartment, immediately find out its cause and eliminate it.

to contents ↑

Smells clearly indicating a malfunction

It happens that unpleasant or unusual smelling air in the car may appear due to a breakdown. In this case, it is very important to determine what kind of failure, because ignoring such things can end very badly.

So:

1. If a sweet smell appears in your vehicle when you turn on the heating, this is a sure sign that your coolant is leaking.
2. If unpleasant musty air comes from the ducts, then it is time to check the air filter and clean it, since the reason is most likely in the clogging of the latter.
3. Especially important if your car has a persistent aroma of gasoline. This is an alarming bell that you have a fuel system breakdown and you must immediately send the car to a repair shop.

Important! In any case, if you notice that the smell in the car's interior has changed, this is a sure sign to check the car for serviceability, such an event will definitely not be superfluous.

to contents ↑

Get rid of the smell - tips and tricks

After you have checked the car and found out that it’s not a problem, you need to decide whether you will do it in person or with the help of specialists. In the case when they set themselves the task of correcting the situation with their own hands, this should be done gradually. We offer you step-by-step instructions on how to remove an unpleasant odor in a car.

Step 1

In order to remove the smell in the car, start with the basics - cleaning the car. To get started, throw away all the debris that may be in the car. For this:

1. Check under the seats and remove all rubbish and lost objects from there.
2. Clean the pockets, there you can find a lot of interesting things, especially if you have children. Be careful - you can come across melted sweets and other goodies that can pollute the interior even more.
3. Is the car interior equipped with child seats? Check all retractable containers and pockets. The cause of the problem may lie here.
4. The trunk. Check it out too. Bad smell can come from anywhere in the car.

Step 2

Wipe all surfaces in the machine. For this:

1. Take a lint-free cloth, water, a mild detergent, and glass cleaner.
2. Wipe the glove compartment, front panel. Wash the glass.
3. Ventilate the interior.

Step 3

Before vacuuming carpets, clean them by hand with a brush. This will help to get inaccessible dirt from them. Use a soft but durable brush.

Important! Change water as needed to keep it fresh and clean.

Step 4

Now you can start vacuuming. For this:

1. Remove the carpets from the passenger compartment.
2. Vacuum the seats and the carpet.
3. Walk in hard to reach places as far as possible. Clean as much dust as possible.
4. Sprinkle carpets with a special deodorant, after - walk through them with a vacuum cleaner.
5. Do not forget about the trunk - it is also part of the car.

Step 5

If the unpleasant odor has not disappeared before that, clean the car interior with steam. Use a special device that will provide you with maximum cleaning.

Important! Do not use a lot of water, not dried up moisture can leave its unpleasant musty air.

Step 6

If the problem still remains after steam cleaning, the cause of its occurrence should be investigated more thoroughly. There may be several:

1. Bacteria - they occur most often due to the transport of spoiled or stale products. The best way to get rid of this smell is to throw away the spoiled product and clean the place on which it was lying.
   Prevention can be called a more thorough packaging of products during transportation.
2. Tobacco smoke is the most common unpleasant odor in a car. If you smoke, it was obvious from the beginning. But if someone smoked in your cabin without your knowledge, the following recommendation will help you get rid of the smell of tobacco in the car. Put 2 towels in 2 different plastic bowls and pour distilled vinegar. Put the bowls in the interior of the car. The smell should absorb the towels. For prevention, you can do only one thing - do not smoke in the car.
3. If the car suffered as a result of a fire, then the aroma of burning can be eliminated only with the help of professionals. It will be faster and more reliable.
4. If your car is damp and it does not dry out completely, then an unpleasant odor can cause mold that has appeared in favorable conditions. To get rid of him, respectively, you need to get rid of his cause. Treat the carpet with an anti-mildew agent, and then wash and clean the car.

Important! There are no less common life situations that can cause an unpleasant smell in a car, so you need to act in an appropriate way:

• Very often, when transporting children or animals, they can get sick. It is necessary to remove vomit immediately, since stomach acid is retained on the tissue and can easily damage it.
• The smell of urine. Again, children and animals are unpredictable, anything happens. With such an incident, cleaning should be done the faster, the better. Take a gentle stain remover and treat the area of ​​contamination.
• Young children often spill all the liquid from their bottles. It is especially important to remove such impurities immediately and not give them time to dry, since any other stain is very difficult to remove in a neglected form. It is best to milk the milk with a damp cloth, until completely removed from the carpet.

Step 7

Following this step-by-step instruction, you probably already removed all the possible causes of damaged air. It remains only to consolidate the result and get rid of the residual smell. For this:

1. Take the spray gun and open the machine — preferably on the street or in a very well-ventilated area.
2. Put the car in neutral and drive it in. Turn on the air conditioner and fan at full power.
3. Go to the front wing of the car and determine the location of the air intake air conditioning.
4. Spray odor remover directly into this hole.
5. Switch the air conditioner to maximum heating and repeat the procedure.

Important! If all else fails and the smell remains, ring the car - this will kill bacteria and mold.

to contents ↑

Useful Tips:

1. If all the procedures carried out do not give a result, still contact a specialist, clearly a problem inside the machine.
2. Do preventative cleaning of the car - do not start it up to unpleasant odors.
3. Do not use a lot of cleaning agent for the machine - this may have the opposite effect.
4. Use special car fresheners - so you not only get rid of an unpleasant aroma - but also get a pleasant aroma in the cabin.

to contents ↑

Stock footage

Now you know how to eliminate an unpleasant odor in the case of almost any reason for its occurrence. Follow our tips, keep your car clean and tidy, then you do not have to spend a lot of time caring for it, and trips will always be comfortable and quick.