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Feb 28, 2014

Whenever you notice an irregular smell coming from your car, its very important that you take notice. The best thing to do, especially if you’re not used to working on your own car, is to bring it to a mechanic immediately. However, it’s still important for each driver to have an understanding of what’s going on with your vehicle, so here are a few common warning smells to be aware of and what they could mean.

Burnt Rubber : The immediate thought may be your tires, but this smell could actually mean slipping drive belts or loose hoses that may be running against rotating drive pulleys.

Hot Oil : This smell could potentially mean that there is engine oil leaking into the exhaust system. This assumption can be verified by looking for oil on the pavement beneath the vehicle. Smoke coming from the engine could be another sign that there’s oil in the exhaust system.

Gasoline : The smell of gasoline could be a sign of a gas leak, possibly with the fuel injector or fuel tank. Any time you smell gas, it is a possible fire hazard and needs immediate attention.

Syrup : A sweet smell could be a sign that coolant is leaking from the engine’s cooling system.

Burning Carpet : A burning smell like this could be caused by brake trouble. Have brakes checked immediately, especially if this smell is happening during normal driving conditions.

Rotten Eggs : This smell could mean that there is an issue with the catalytic converter. The rotten egg smell may arise when the hydrogen sulfide in the exhaust is not properly converted to sulfur dioxide.