Strange smell inside vehicle

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Grego

Grego

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Hello everyone didn't want to put in title anything horrific but maybe someone can replicate it in their vehicle. Or maybe mine is simply a new vehicle hence the smell.

My vehicle is under 2weeks old( 2020 Kona) and if I set both seats warmed on max along with steering wheel warmer. Blast the heat at Max speed/temperature for about 10-15min. It get nice and toasty inside....

But then my kid did something 2 times now...kept the temperature at max 27celcius but put fan speed to minimum...(seat warmers and steering wheel heater mode still ON) we noticed a smell, I want to say a plastic smell being heated. Don't want to use word like burning...

Anyone can see if they get same results? Or is is simple me having new vehicle and the heater is still burning thru its "new" condition...
 
Grego said:
Hello everyone didn't want to put in title anything horrific but maybe someone can replicate it in their vehicle. Or maybe mine is simply a new vehicle hence the smell.

My vehicle is under 2weeks old( 2020 Kona) and if I set both seats warmed on max along with steering wheel warmer. Blast the heat at Max speed/temperature for about 10-15min. It get nice and toasty inside....

But then my kid did something 2 times now...kept the temperature at max 27celcius but put fan speed to minimum...(seat warmers and steering wheel heater mode still ON) we noticed a smell, I want to say a plastic smell being heated. Don't want to use word like burning...

Anyone can see if they get same results? Or is is simple me having new vehicle and the heater is still burning thru its "new" condition...
Click to expand...

I did turn the heat on [steering wheel,heated seat],actual heater recently 5C/41F . There was a "smell" that prompted me to open my window a bit.It was like something chemically, "burning" odor because it's used for the first time? As winter continues,I'll see if the odor just goes away,and hopefully nothing short circuits,or catches on fire .
 
Grego said:
But then my kid did something 2 times now...kept the temperature at max 27celcius but put fan speed to minimum...(seat warmers and steering wheel heater mode still ON) we noticed a smell, I want to say a plastic smell being heated. Don't want to use word like burning...

Anyone can see if they get same results? Or is is simple me having new vehicle and the heater is still burning thru its "new" condition...
Click to expand...

I have never tried to set the temperature over 22 Celsius because it would get way to stuffy in the car. Most of the time I keep it at around 20.5 Celsius.

This won't help you sort out the smell issue you are experiencing, and I hope you won't take what follows the wrong way as I am really trying to help with what comes next.

I've got to wonder why your son feels the need to put the temperature so high? Maybe it is because he thinks that cranking the temperature to the max will make the cabin reach a comfortable level than if it was set at 22? I believe the cabin would take exactly the same time to reach 22 degrees whether he set it at 22 directly from the start or if he set it at 27 and would then lower it once he feels warm.

That's assuming of course that he does not suffer from some medical condition such as poor blood circulation? Is your house always set to 27 degrees Celsius or do you typically keep it at some other level? Typically, your car should be set at the same temperature as your house to be comfortable, or even a little lower since we wear jackets while in the car and we do not within the home.

Hope this can help.
 
Francois said:
I have never tried to set the temperature over 22 Celsius because it would get way to stuffy in the car. Most of the time I keep it at around 20.5 Celsius.

This won't help you sort out the smell issue you are experiencing, and I hope you won't take what follows the wrong way as I am really trying to help with what comes next.

I've got to wonder why your son feels the need to put the temperature so high? Maybe it is because he thinks that cranking the temperature to the max will make the cabin reach a comfortable level than if it was set at 22? I believe the cabin would take exactly the same time to reach 22 degrees whether he set it at 22 directly from the start or if he set it at 27 and would then lower it once he feels warm.

That's assuming of course that he does not suffer from some medical condition such as poor blood circulation? Is your house always set to 27 degrees Celsius or do you typically keep it at some other level? Typically, your car should be set at the same temperature as your house to be comfortable, or even a little lower since we wear jackets while in the car and we do not within the home.

Hope this can help.
Click to expand...

Hi Francois no worries not taking it wrong way. So short story of the scenario was basically the 2 times it happened was after soccer practice. His age group finishes after 9pm so usually the car sits for 2hours in the lot and is definitely cold. Yes I could have it probably warmed up 5min before he finishes etc. I think he's more excited we got a new vehicle not a 2002 kia rio anymore hence he presses all buttons.....House is usually 20c and 18c at night, all good on that front(wife would crak it probably to 22-23 if she could lol).

But the fact that worries me is the smell, guess IMHO it shouldnt do that. Novelty of the car will wear off on my son but will the smell be gone as well?
 
Grego said:
Hello everyone didn't want to put in title anything horrific but maybe someone can replicate it in their vehicle. Or maybe mine is simply a new vehicle hence the smell.

My vehicle is under 2weeks old( 2020 Kona) and if I set both seats warmed on max along with steering wheel warmer. Blast the heat at Max speed/temperature for about 10-15min. It get nice and toasty inside....

But then my kid did something 2 times now...kept the temperature at max 27celcius but put fan speed to minimum...(seat warmers and steering wheel heater mode still ON) we noticed a smell, I want to say a plastic smell being heated. Don't want to use word like burning...

Anyone can see if they get same results? Or is is simple me having new vehicle and the heater is still burning thru its "new" condition...
Click to expand...
I have noticed that when reducing the fan speed at constant 22 degrees temperature setting, the heat pump consumption gets reduced, so there must be a sensor that does that. Maybe keep your eye on the climate consumption menu and verify that is what is happening or you may have a bad sensor.
 
Grego said:
Hi Francois no worries not taking it wrong way. So short story of the scenario was basically the 2 times it happened was after soccer practice. His age group finishes after 9pm so usually the car sits for 2hours in the lot and is definitely cold. Yes I could have it probably warmed up 5min before he finishes etc. I think he's more excited we got a new vehicle not a 2002 kia rio anymore hence he presses all buttons.....House is usually 20c and 18c at night, all good on that front(wife would crak it probably to 22-23 if she could lol).

But the fact that worries me is the smell, guess IMHO it shouldnt do that. Novelty of the car will wear off on my son but will the smell be gone as well?
Click to expand...

I sadly have no suggestion with regards to the smell but I am glad that your son is fine. :)

One nice thing about your new car, you can indeed warm it up a few minutes before the soccer practice ends without missing a minute of your son playing in the field. Just use the BlueLink app on your phone to remotely start the climate control. ;)
 
Grego said:
But then my kid did something 2 times now...kept the temperature at max 27celcius but put fan speed to minimum...(seat warmers and steering wheel heater mode still ON) we noticed a smell, I want to say a plastic smell being heated. Don't want to use word like burning...

Anyone can see if they get same results? Or is is simple me having new vehicle and the heater is still burning thru its "new" condition...
Click to expand...

Something similar happened here now that we are getting into some seriously cool weather. I can't say what it is, but you're not imagining it. Only seems to happen when it's cranked.

tai
 
East pole where do you live? I'm in the Lower Mainland and our weather isnt bad we hovering around 5-10celcius.
 
Grego said:
East pole where do you live? I'm in the Lower Mainland and our weather isnt bad we hovering around 5-10celcius.
Click to expand...

Grego, I'm in Toronto. Low tonight is -15 C, and we have 15 cm of snow on the ground! That sort of weather is fine with me; my family came from Finland. It's quite early in the winter, though. My kids were playing soccer in the rain and mud 2 weeks ago.

I've never had heated seats or steering wheel before. It's quite luxurious!
 
eastpole said:
Something similar happened here now that we are getting into some seriously cool weather. I can't say what it is, but you're not imagining it. Only seems to happen when it's cranked.

tai
Click to expand...
It's pretty clearly plastics off-gassing due to the heat. It'll fade over time.
 
Mine still has the smell, and I would describe it exactly as you have. I haven't used the heat too much either so it's taking a while to burn off. I'm at 4500 miles, but only a little in colder months.
 
drivingbythesun said:
Mine still has the smell, and I would describe it exactly as you have. I haven't used the heat too much either so it's taking a while to burn off. I'm at 4500 miles, but only a little in colder months.
Click to expand...
I used the heat all last winter and mine still stinks a bit this season too. It's persistent but I am still confident it's just glue and plastic toasting away. All part of that new car smell.
 
eastpole said:
Grego, I'm in Toronto. Low tonight is -15 C, and we have 15 cm of snow on the ground! That sort of weather is fine with me; my family came from Finland. It's quite early in the winter, though. My kids were playing soccer in the rain and mud 2 weeks ago.

I've never had heated seats or steering wheel before. It's quite luxurious!
Click to expand...
So you're the family wearing shorts in northeast Canada :p The weather is nothing compared to Finland
 
Toronto by no means represents Canada's coldest. The prairies will give Finland a run for its money.

"February is usually Finland's coldest month, with temperatures averaging from - 22 to -3°C. In northern Finland, winter temperatures often drop as low as -30°C or even down to -50°C, sometimes with strong, cold easterly or northeasterly winds. "
Climate of the World: Finland

Vs. Southern Manitoba (including Winnipeg)
Overnight lows as low as −40 °C (−40 °F) occur on several days each winter, and the temperature may remain below −18 °C (0 °F) for weeks, pretty much from Nov until March.
 
Francois said:
I believe the cabin would take exactly the same time to reach 22 degrees whether he set it at 22 directly from the start or if he set it at 27 and would then lower it once he feels warm.
Click to expand...

I wonder. I've been observing that with CC on auto and the temp set to 21C, the car is very slow to warm up from 10C or so. But if you crank the temp up, you get a blast of warm air. I'm not sure if it's just that the fan speed is increased or if more heat is produced.
 
SkookumPete said:
I wonder. I've been observing that with CC on auto and the temp set to 21C, the car is very slow to warm up from 10C or so. But if you crank the temp up, you get a blast of warm air. I'm not sure if it's just that the fan speed is increased or if more heat is produced.
Click to expand...
you are forcing the resistive heat to come on. It only comes on when high demand is requested, otherwise the heat pump handles it.
 
ehatch said:
So you're the family wearing shorts in northeast Canada :p The weather is nothing compared to Finland
Click to expand...

It's nothing compared to Finland, and the nights are much shorter! Toronto isn't northeast Canada though; in fact we're at the same latitude as Barcelona Spain or Eugene Oregon! Finns have mostly settled a bit further north where it rains less in December.

Apu, thanks for reminding me how cold Winnipeg gets!
 
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