A/C smells bad

I bought my leaf about a month ago and it only has 8000 miles on it. I have the SV 2013 model and I noticed that whenever I turn on the air conditioner the initial air that comes out of it smells really bad. It doesn't seem to have this problem with the vent and heater but only the air conditioner. Do you know anything that could cause the air conditioner to smell bad when first turned on? I don't know if an animal possibly got in there or not

I would take a look at the cabin air filter:

https://youtu.be/1poPD69xFY8

Thank you. Will do

Freon has an ether like odor
The newer refrigerants are odorless

Can you better define the smell ?

If it smells like "bad feet," it is because bacteria/mold has grown on the evaporator collector plates.

Try spraying 409 or a disinfectant into the air intake with the fan on high. You may need to do that several times. Once it has stopped smelling..assuming you have now killed the mold.. be sure to turn off the AC and just leave the blower on high for 2-3 minutes before you completely shut the system down.

If you can't de-smell it yourself, there are professionals who will do this..using more powerful disinfectants...and by all means, change the air filter.

There is also an attachment that will automatically keep the fan motor running after you shut the system down. I installed one on my '04 VW Jetta TDI for this very reason.

Good luck!!

IF you use Recirculate a lot, make sure that the air intake is set to Fresh and the A/C is off for the last minute of drives in Summer. Also use a higher fan speed for that minute. If you want a less toxic mold inhibitor, I've used vodka mixed with apple cider vinegar. Just avoid getting that on plastic trim, rubber pieces, and exterior paint, as it's acidic.

I would probably Define the smell as a dead animal or Roadkill

WigWoo1 said:

I would probably Define the smell as a dead animal or Roadkill

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Start with replacing the filter. When you pull out the old one, you may find some unwanted debris comes out with it.

I suggest you spray some cleaner/disinfectant into the housing with the fan on high while you have the filter out.

Is the smell mildewy or rotten animal?

Mildew is an issue where I live and the habit (started in my Prius days) was to blast the fan on high with AC off for last minute or so to prevent the condenser from being too cold in still air where condensation can collect.

Not sure how effective this is other than to say, I have not had an issue with mustiness in any car over the last 13 years.


Ok, saw your post. Sounds like you got mice. Changing filter can't hurt but you really need to do some body hunting. Its possible the animal degraded and dropped off which means this could be a pretty difficult task. The air filter I change every 6 months or so. they are durable so I just bought a spare and swap them back and forth. I just wash the dirty one and dry it really good so its ready the next time.

I hope it's not a dead animal. Though what I did once with another car is eventually I feel like the animal would rot so much that the smell completely goes away after running the vents for so long. That's what I did with an older car of mine

WigWoo1 said:

I hope it's not a dead animal. Though what I did once with another car is eventually I feel like the animal would rot so much that the smell completely goes away after running the vents for so long. That's what I did with an older car of mine

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That could take years. I had a Corolla that had mice and I eventually took apart the venting (nearly impossible with these cars nowadays) and found where the mouse was and was able to clean up the residue left behind and that greatly improved things. Before it was start the car, blast the fan and go get a cup of coffee or stay and puke!