My wife just called and said that there is an oil/rubber smell in the car when she turns the air on. When she turns the air off, the smell goes away.

I couldn't find much when searching but from the little that I've read it says that when the air is pulled from the engine compartment that it can pull in some of the oil fumes that might be in there. We changed the oil back in Jan.

I'm going to check it when I get home and see if there is an residue left from spilt oil and degrease the engine real good. Or maybe the cabin filter is bad/clogged.

Any other suggestions on what might be causing the smell?

Thanks!

 

leaky gasket maybe?

 

I had a leak and had to replace gaskets to have the leak stop and the smell go away.

 

What gasket would it be?

Would that be something that I can change or is it pretty tough to do?

If it is in fact a gasket, where would it be leaking?

 

so then ur problem is already solved? or is the smell still there?

 

Already solved? No. I haven't been able to look at the car since I'm still at work.

If there is a gasket leaking, what gasket would be leaking and where is the most likely place that oil would be leaking from (side of block, back, etc.)?

 

Had Same issue, I put new cam cover gasket and It still did not fix so I was told by the dealer if I have upgrade plugs to the new Irdium plugs that they can cause a bad burn and you could then get that smell so I put in new nkg
gold and the smell is gone so try that first it is only a $15 try

 

The valve cover gasket (easy to change) and the cam adjuster seal on the back of the head (not so easy without the proper tools) Do not have the dealer replace the cam adjuster seal as they will over charge you a huge amount.

You basically need the little tool that compresses the tensioner so you can fish out the seal under it with a 90* angle pick. The tensioner tool and all gaskets can be found at www.ecstuning.com for a grand total of about $100.

 

Im wanting to say u can even rent that tool from certian auto stores. Might check with them also. I think the store near me had one. but not all of them will carry it.

 

From what I've been reading I think I'm just going to change the valve cover gasket in the next few weeks. Anything special that I need to know before doing this? It looks like a pretty simpe and straight-forward job. Just remove some hoses and remove the valve cover and replace gasket. No worrying about TDC or anything like that, correct?

Any suggestions on the gasket? I can pick up either Felpro or Beck/Arnley at any of the local autoparts stores.