TheSamba.com :: View topic - weird sweet / chocolate smell in the cabin when cruising

Wed Jul 03, 2013 4:43 pm

Hi,

I have a 2000 Mexican Beetle. I have noticed that after the car warms up I sometimes get a strange sweet smell/chocolate smell in the cabin. It is not a really strong overbearing smell and it is not constant. It kind of comes and goes every 30 seconds or so. I live in Japan and the traffic is usually kind of busy, so not sure if it is something with that or not. I usually don't smell it when the windows are rolled down, only when I have the windows rolled up. I smell it usually when I cruising along in 3 or 4th gear. I have noticed this almost every time I driven the car, so I don't think it is coming from another car.

If this helps to know, my Beetle was changed from FI to a 34 PICT 3 Bocar carburetor. This car is kind of mixed up right now, but I'm getting it set straight. It has a Bosch 009 dizzy (getting ready to change to SVDA soon. oh and my 009 currently appears to be installed backwards but the timing is correct it seems ), the classic style fuel pump (not the new electric one), and I am missing the rear firewall seal and the rear engine tin piece that connects to the heat risers and goes under the alternator. Therefore, extra heat is coming into my engine bay I know. I am getting this fixed in a couple of weeks. Also, my carburetor is not hooked up to my heat risers because I have the stock FI muffler on my car that is not for heat risers. So, I am also getting ready to have a header and muffler put on to take care of that issue as well.

What could this smell be? My engine is running warmer than it should because of the missing seal and tin, but I do not think it running dangerously hot. I can leave my hands on the engine parts after driving it for a little bit without it being too hot to touch. Plus, I usually only drive my Beetle a maximum of 15 minutes at a time. Always a short drive, especially until I get my seal and tin installed.

Thank you!

Wed Jul 03, 2013 4:53 pm

I am pretty sure after I get the correct dizzy for my carb installed and timed correctly by a classic VW specialty shop I've found over here, get my heat risers hooked up, get my seal and tin put in I will be running at a better temp. but, I'm not sure if that smell will be gone or not? as I said it's not really strong, but I can smell it. I know these VWs have a lot of smells and they are not so airtight, so it may not be much to worry about. I hope.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:06 pm

hey,its better than horsehair and ass sweat..

Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:12 pm

yeah, haha. you have a point. I'm just worried it's something serious. my engine seems to be doing okay, as I keep a constant eye on it. No smoke, backfiring or misfires or anything of that nature. I do use the custom choke in the car to help it warm up since the heat risers are not hooked up now. But once it warms up it idles pretty nicely. It stalls a little bit right after I start driving it, but it soon stops after a few minutes once the carb warms up and its off the choke.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:21 pm

okay, to describe the smell more. it doesnt smell like an antifreeze or maple syrup smell. its more along the lines of a burnt chocolate smell, but there is not any type of smoky or charred smell. The smell is like if you took a Hershey's bar and microwaved it until it completely melted and then opened the microwave door. It is a faint smell of something like that, a melted / burnt chocolate smell, but it doesn't stink nor is it really strong. sorry if i sound like a complete idiot here...

Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:23 pm

not sure if I should mention this to the classic VW shop when I take it to get it worked on here soon, or just wait and see if it still does it after I get all that stuff fixed. not sure if they will charge me an arm and a leg to poke around and see what the problem is, or if there is even any problem at all.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:33 pm

Got kids? Maybe dropped a piece of candy in the vents , or under the seat....

Wed Jul 03, 2013 6:23 pm

I have a 5 month old baby, so I don't think its candy. but thank you. :D
I think the PO had twin girls, but I think they were still infants. it's not a spark plug problem do you think, is it? I'll have a look though, thanks. I hope its just something small like this, although I'm usually not that lucky.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 6:27 pm

Try to determine when you are getting the smell. ie: lights on, wipers on, etc. By chance something is actually burning slowly.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 6:43 pm

And just what is wrong with the smell of chocolate?

I need to figure out how to pump the smell of chocolate out as I drive.. LOL

Wed Jul 03, 2013 7:13 pm

scatpack wrote: And just what is wrong with the smell of chocolate?

I need to figure out how to pump the smell of chocolate out as I drive.. LOL I remember a while back , went to long beach car swap meet ,some guy had this stuff that you added to the gas , and the exhaust fumes would have a smell of candy , or fruit ,...im sure if you search you could probably find something that could make the car exhaust smell like chocolate .......

Wed Jul 03, 2013 7:27 pm

68IHscout~ That would be soooo cool! I will do some searching.. taking my advertising to a whole new level! Like smellevision! :lol:

Wed Jul 03, 2013 8:14 pm

I have used that exact same description, to try and describe a smell in one of my other cars.
It may not be the same thing, or related to engine temp. but here’s my chocolate smell story.

I made new kick panels to mount speakers in my ’55 Chevy, out of some masonite type pressed board, a bunch of years back.
I used brush-on carpet glue I got from Home Depot (forget the brand) to stick the carpet to the pressed board, it worked well.
At first there was a strong chemical smell but after a week or two it went away, then no smell for years.

About 5 or 6 years later I started catching a whiff, every once in a while, of a smell like you are describing, kind of like chocolate, but not exactly.
Maybe a slightly burnt chocolate smell, but not quite as sugary sweet smelling (not an unpleasant smell). Drove me crazy.
Turns out after the glue had set up for some years it started smelling like this slightly burned chocolate kind of stuff.
Stranger yet, I have a couple of guitar cases that had no smell when they were new, but after about 10 years now they are taking on that same smell.
The plush furry lining of the cases must have been glued in with something similar to the carpet glue I used.

Not saying it’s the same thing, but that is exactly how I described the carpet glue smell after a few years of curing.
Maybe sniff around some of the interior panels where carpet might be glued on, that’s how I accidentally found it in my Chevy, took a long time to pinpoint it.

I may be totally wrong, but that’s my story, maybe the extra heat in the back is affecting the carpet glue on the floors above the engine compartment.
Just something to check.
Good luck.

- Jay

Wed Jul 03, 2013 9:02 pm

My friend had a vw wagon in high school, everytime it got hot outside the inside smelled like chocolate. Forever I thought all vw's were suppose to smell like chocolate.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 9:04 pm

Jay,

Thank you so much for all of that info and your story. I will check to see if I can pinpoint it to the carpet glue. I am hoping that is what it is!! I would be so relieved if it was only something like that. Very interesting indeed.

It doesn't smell like an electrical burning smell, but hey what the heck do I know. I will try smelling under the front hood as well to since that is where the fuse box and wire nest is.

I bet your on to something though. I will especially sniff around the firewall area and where the carpet is back there. Thank you all so much!

Wed Jul 03, 2013 9:27 pm

Are your brakes dragging (emergency brake)? I've accidentally left the ebrake on before (on my old gmc truck) it seemed to have a weird chocolatey smell when that happened.

Wed Jul 03, 2013 10:44 pm

thanks jwold,

I'll make sure my emergency brake is fully disengaged, although I'm pretty sure it is. Sometimes I set my emergency brake while I'm on a hill at a traffic light when I'm adjusting the choke after it's warmed up. I'll also see if I notice that smell coming from the engine bay and down below where the muffler is, although I have not noticed the smell coming from there yet. I'm definitely going to try smelling the front trunk area after I drive home here in a couple of hours, especially where my nest of wires is.

again, thanks for all the ideas everyone on what this could be.

Thu Jul 04, 2013 4:00 am

okay, I'm pretty sure I figured out what that smell is. It's from the front hood. you can smell it when you put your face close to the wires were the fuse box is. i actually smelled the wires and fuse box directly and that was the smell i described earlier. however, nothing appears to be burning or extremely hot. it's just the smell of the wires. maybe it's the material, I don't know. the wires were not warm at all though, everything seems normal.

today I drove with my windows closed and did not smell anything. I opened the vent window, and there the smell was! it's actually a very faint smell. I guess the air was coming out of the front hood and was being vented into the cabin when I opened the vent window.

I want to ask though, there are two relays that are close to the center that are kind of hot. I inspected them and nothing was burnt nor burning, so I guess the're supposed to be kind of hot. I'll keep an eye on this area and make sure nothing is burning.

Thu Jul 04, 2013 4:33 am

Carpet get wet recently? Removed my carpet once and took it to the car wash and pressure washed it (lots of dirt hides in that stuff). Had a sweet smell ike what your describing once it was wet. Let it dry in the sun and no more smell.

Thu Jul 04, 2013 5:07 am

scatpack wrote: 68IHscout~ That would be soooo cool! I will do some searching.. taking my advertising to a whole new level! Like smellevision! :lol: Manhattan oil fuel fragrances ,...google that ...