Odor problem?

[LS1notFOUND]

try some of the Meguiars or other interior wipes, give it a good bath in those, they usually destroy any odors that have made their way into the interior.

Where is the cabin air filter on these btw?

 

[opsethb]

try some of the Meguiars or other interior wipes, give it a good bath in those, they usually destroy any odors that have made their way into the interior.

Where is the cabin air filter on these btw?

Cabin air filter is behind the glove box.

 

[ypsi-sonic]

Normal new car smell here.

 

[Gee Whiz]

I have this odor that you speak of. It smells like my Accord's old cabin filter. I have yet to replace it but I think I might just do it just to see if that is the root of the problem. I don't get it all the time, it happens randomly throughout the week. Some days I smell it, some days I don't.

 

[Cinsue]

My LTZ has an odor, but not fishy, more chemical like everyone else is saying and has been there since I bought it. It's slowly going away, but it was parked in the sun the other day and the smell was pretty strong again when I got back into the car.

 

[Gman77]

Had an LT with cloth seats for 5 or 6 weeks and it had the new car smell, which I LOVE. Got my LTZ with the simulated leather seats and I definitely noticed the odor you spoke of, not always there, not always strong, and quickly gone upon start up with just a whiff of the new car smell underneath. I assumed it had something to do with the seat material and I am fairly certain it will be a diminishing problem since it doesn't last and isn't always present.

 

[TurboGrayLZ]

It is getting in to the mid 90s here and after work I haven't noticed any odd smells. I think my new car smell is going away already or I'm just not smelling it any more.

 

[KayRaz]

Hi all:

I'm an editor at Edmunds.com. We purchased 2012 LTZ 1.4T 6M for our long-term test fleet, and it has very strong "fishy" interior smell. It's not from leftover fast food, old clothes, wet dog, etc. We're pretty sure it's something in the interior materials. Now we're trying to find out whether it's an issue that's isolated or widespread. We did read a review (at Left Lane), mentioning "Heavy chemical smell from the vinyl seat covers," so we know we're not the only one.

A visit to the dealer did not resolve the problem. Nor have such things as baking soda or a shot of Ozium.

Is anyone else having off-gassing/odor issues in your cars? Thanks in advance for helping us better understand what's going on.

You can read more at this link: 2012 Chevrolet Sonic LTZ: Sniff and Chat

I just got my Sonic on 7/13/12 and *I* didn't notice any odor, but my brother, when driving in the car with me, commented that it had a bit of fishy odor.

 

[SSpeckerwood]

welcome to the forum

 

[J T]

Every know and then I get a strong odor, not a fishy smell but definitely not new car smell. Maybe as stated before strong chemicals. But as I said not all the time.

I noticed the odd odor after some rain fell in my car when I left the windows opened. Parts of the front and rear seats were wet along with the carpet. It was only briefly, but enough to get the interior surfaces just inside the windows wet. I wiped up as much as I could, but I can't help but wonder if leatherette or the carpet is emitting this foul smell after getting wet.

After three weeks of having the car, the first time I noticed it was after the rain yesterday, so I'm certain that has something to do with it.

 

[matt6249]

my old 09 cobalt had this smell. I took it into the local dealer and they put in some sort of fan ''mod" but it didnt work very well the smell was back a week later. I get it in the sonic every once in a while

 

[RoXXXanne13]

is the cabin air filter something we can do ourselves? or would it still be under my warrenty or something I wonder

 

[Chevrolet Customer Care]

matt6249,

I am sorry you are having this smell concern. I would like to look into this further for you. Can you please private message me your name, VIN, mileage, phone number, and address? I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Erica Tiffany
Chevrolet Customer Service

 

[ColonelPanic]

is the cabin air filter something we can do ourselves? or would it still be under my warrenty or something I wonder

GM won't replace your dirty filter under warranty, these sort of items are considered the owner's responsibility. The filter is not very expensive though.

There are instructions for replacement in your owner's manual, so I assume GM doesn't mind if you do this yourself. It looks quite easy! A dealer will happily change it out, but you will have to pay for it.

I'll be ordering some for my Sonic soon, I like to replace them well ahead of the manufacturer's intervals. I usually keep one of these in 6 months tops. Keeps the odors and allergies to a minimum.

 

[FloSonic]

I actually have smelled this odor before. It's kind of a cross between fishy and musty. Personally it has always been real faint and only noticed it when I first turned on the car. Oh btw I have a LTZ.

I never gave it much thought until my last oil change at the dealership. The lady at the desk remarked that my car smelled, "horrible, absolutly rank". Tell you the truth I was very embarrassed. The look she gave was of pure distain as if I had farted a whole mexican buffet in her face.

Even the porter driving my car stated it stank. After an embarrassing 2 hrs waiting on my car, I got in and proceeded to sniff around. Nothing, no smells.

When I got home I tore the car apart, under seats, in glovebox, mats, checked trunk and around spare tire. Even checked under the car and behind the wheels. Still nothing. To this day I still haven't found a cause for the faint start up smell. Maybe it is the leatherette baking in the FL sun. Who knows.

 

[otbiker]

We have this too! 2012 LTZ with Leatherette. Have tried everything to get rid of it...

 

[FloSonic]

Glad to know I wasn't the only one.

 

[Chevrolet Customer Care]

We have this too! 2012 LTZ with Leatherette. Have tried everything to get rid of it...

Glad to know I wasn't the only one.

Have you had the chance to have this concern diagnosed by your local GM dealership?

Erica Tiffany
Chevrolet Customer Service

 

[Chrish051873]

I have had this issue also. Now with me having over 36,000 miles, I still have it but now I have to live with it.

I think it's the leatherette myself.

Chris

 

[08Bluesky]

Just last night for the first time My wife & I began to notice an odd medicine / sweet / jucyfruit’ish smell when the Air Con was on recirculate. Comes and goes, perhaps after an acceleration? Not real sure just yet. Tried to run the air without recirculate and I did not (yet) notice the smell occurring.

Had it in to the dealer earlier this week because I noticed that the Compressor was cycling and was not appearing to cool the car completely. They were very nice and did an “evac and refill” adding a bit more Freon and testing for leaks.

I’m still noticing the cycling quite often but I’m not all concerned about that just yet for I was going to give it some time before mentioning it to the dealer again. However this odd smell brought the HVAC system back to my attention.

I plan to see how it works over the weekend and perhaps bring it to their attention and take it in next Monday.