Truck smells like a catbox on hot and humid days

[RLXXI]

What ever the source or past vehicles, some are just smellier than others. The worse was my Yukon Denali and had to clean both the front and cargo evaporators, at least twice a year. It was really bad when it was brand new and the dealer programed the blower to run to help dry the HVAC system after the vehicle was off. That helped a tiny bit... Still had to clean the system twice a year.

I noticed the lightning will get smelly if I don't run the AC regularly and as others noticed the AC resets back to on with a key cycle. I will say that is on purpose by ford. Otherwise there will be a ton more complaints. Freeze over the evaporator fins and defrost regularly and let drain is a strategy to keep the system clean... That's how the Samsung mini split I have is designed for its cleaning cyle.

Our kia ev6 has an automatic AC evaporator drying cycle, (has a heat pump as well), and it cranks that fan full force and it's for a bit of time. This is the only vehicle that I never had an issue with a smelly HVAC system. But the interesting part of the design is the filter is high up in the the middle of dash and accessed inside the tiny frunk. Any smelly HVAC system has always been with the cabin air filter in the passenger foot well behind the glove box.

So years ago I use to use something similar to this...

https://www.autozone.com/cooling-he...cleaner&cmpid=SPL:US:EN:AD:NL:1000000:GEN:pdp

The amount they give you is not enough for bigger vehicles. So for a couple dollars more I discovered and switched to this... I was glad I kept some of the past hoses...

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Frost-Ki...7?classType=REGULAR&athbdg=L1600&from=/search

The Lysol trick works on all of them. The smell is caused by bacteria etc, they love fresh water just like everything on this rock. We got complaints about it my dealer all the time and that's the only thing that lasted any decent amount of time. They have different fragrances to choose from.

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[2wheeltraveler]

The Lysol trick works on all of them. The smell is caused by bacteria etc, they love fresh water just like everything on this rock. We got complaints about it my dealer all the time and that's the only thing that lasted any decent amount of time. They have different fragrances to choose from.

Thanks for the feedback. With more than a dozen vehicles in my lifetime (Chevy, Pontiac, BMW, VW, Jeep, Honda…), this is a first, and it’s my first Ford so it’s given me pause as my wife is looking for a new vehicle and the explorer platinum V6 is on our shortlist, but I’m concerned about this being a Ford thing as it comes up a lot in the forums for them. Good to hear the other perspectives.

 

[CD4TNF]

I poured about half a spray bottle worth of this non-toxic cleaner into the exterior air vents. Then ran the climate fan with windows open for about half an hour to an hour.

Fixed the musty smell coming out of my truck's air vents. That was my solution.

3 months so far so good. Hope this can help you.

https://cleansmarthome.com/collections/household-disinfecting/products/23-oz-daily-surface-cleaner

 

[Robocop]

Hello OP,

I have a Canadian 2022 Platinum with the moonroof and I agree the passenger cabin smells like cats after it rains. I run my AC all the time so I don't think the AC is the issue as others suspect. I believe this is a common minor problem but I am hoping there is a solution.

In my case I've noticed the cats smell to varying degrees usually after it has rained and after the truck has been sitting outside overnight getting rained on. The smell does go away after I get the truck moving.

I believe the problem lies with water collecting and sitting and going foul somewhere along in the drainage system meant to get water off the roof. Somewhere likely inaccessible but somewhere that really ought to be cleaned regularly by hand especially for trucks that live outside.

thoughts?

 

[RLXXI]

Hello OP,

I have a Canadian 2022 Platinum with the moonroof and I agree the passenger cabin smells like cats after it rains. I run my AC all the time so I don't think the AC is the issue as others suspect. I believe this is a common minor problem but I am hoping there is a solution.

In my case I've noticed the cats smell to varying degrees usually after it has rained and after the truck has been sitting outside overnight getting rained on. The smell does go away after I get the truck moving.

I believe the problem lies with water collecting and sitting and going foul somewhere along in the drainage system meant to get water off the roof. Somewhere likely inaccessible but somewhere that really ought to be cleaned regularly by hand especially for trucks that live outside.

thoughts?

Hadn't thought of the moon roof, I avoid them from past experiences. There is a tool for cleaning the drain tubes if they're clogged causing water to stand and go sour which is a very good possibility. I have no personal experience but it looks like this might work.

https://www.amazon.com/ecocstm-Clea...8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1

 

[FlippyFlash]

Hadn't thought of the moon roof, I avoid them from past experiences. There is a tool for cleaning the drain tubes if they're clogged causing water to stand and go sour which is a very good possibility. I have no personal experience but it looks like this might work.

https://www.amazon.com/ecocstm-Cleaning-Flexible-Cleaners-Windshields/dp/B0DFPRVBN9/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VUvxyetBdJDPoDQa29xCHJx4hVpukUis9WbMBP6xD9oW2ir_bpRlI_VDnApSoM5CWvpATPZaemTcAknfxWQFfwlSqbb433ea-HZ1X3cWfzGaCz9KdNwuepU2pwWh6WURzjpmkCuqNecDCsdkaa4444szE_QP16CuUIvJdvdei4D06eXfRHMEkdqj1GHMk9ONVRmp8OXqCQQoB5GQfS9VUXNz_0is-p-9uer-nHAIMQQD7JYxUo9WxrD6RH_mCsmIr7yzSi7h-IGVL3Ztmhxv4jloYtqNrsDnUD78I-ljfLU.769LQfs0GtuBsCrs4Prgu7B8WvdJ4VKrH3Ib9sJv1xs&dib_tag=se&hvadid=677313769439&hvdev=c&hvexpln=0&hvlocphy=9025120&hvnetw=g&hvocijid=7822314639851731170--&hvqmt=b&hvrand=7822314639851731170&hvtargid=kwd-2454164006074&hydadcr=28361_14735863&keywords=unclog+sunroof+drain+tool&mcid=9d0596b302183282a9df3183c579b189&qid=1760133194&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1

I clean and lubricate my sun roof components every 4-6 months to make sure everything is working properly and also have the same issue. I also notice it even if parked inside of a garage for an extended period of time, like airport garages. I’ll give this a try!

 

[FlippyFlash]

Take out the cabin air filter and close the panel, with the ac on high, system on recirculation, spray Lysol disinfectant into the air intake under the dash near the blower fan.

Put a towel on the floor as it will drip while spraying.

Leave the cabin filter out, put the system on fresh air and spray the cowl between the frunk and the windshield on the passenger side, don't be stingy, soak it good.

Leave the system running for about 5 mins then put the cabin filter back in.

I‘m also going to be trying this next!

 

[ElectrifyingMe25]

I've read dozens of posts about musty and other smells and all were fixed by cleaning the condenser coils, and when they did come back (nearly everyone said it did), it was after 6 months or longer.

My situation seems to be different. I first paid to have the truck fully detailed by a 3rd party ($400 it was due for a good cleaning) and that didn't fix it, then the dealer performed an HVAC clean ($200) that resulted in some foaming in the vents and such. It smelled nice for a day and the smell returned.

Now they have a technician looking at it and they can smell it (they described it as musty, but you have to trust me when I say there is a distance difference between a musty/moldy/mildewy smell)

This has been getting worse for over a year, only to subside during the colder months.

Anyone else have a similar situation and can offer guidance? I'd hate to keep paying to investigate things without formal resolution... this could get expensive but it's embarrassing to have people get into your vehicle and ask what the smell is.

PS. I did notice that a neighbor a block away leaves their garage door open and they have a couple cats that come and go. I'm wondering if they may be going up under the truck and leaving scents that are somehow coming in through the vents.

Here is a YouTube video that shows 3
ways to clean a HVAC system in an automobile and eliminate the typical bad odors. I hope this helps you.

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