I bought a 2016 ES350 recently. There is a fairly strong odor in the car similar to a "new car" smell (e.g., leather). It has leather upholstery and I believe the odor comes from it. For most people the odor is not offensive but my wife, who is sensitive to certain smells, actually becomes ill when she sits in the car. She cannot tolerate it. Any suggestions as to a cleaning method that might remove the odor? Do you know if a vinegar solution might work? Would it harm the leather? Gratly appreciate and advice. Thanks.

 

AC Refresh Kit will solve your problem. I just bought myself a kit and will do this service myself.

PART NUMBER 00289-ACRKT

 

That's not the problem. The odor comes from the leather itself. Nothing to do with the ac system.

 

Well the thing is the refresh kit, or just any form of doing an A/C cleaning will give the car a different smell. Though I've yet to try it, but I have watched some videos on it. So maybe that's why IntrinoX suggested it.

 

Thanks. But I believe that I need something that can be applied to the leather surface and kill whatever chemical is ceating the odor.

 

Have a 2017 Lexus RX 450h and traded in last December wife's 2017 ESh. My interior/seats smell normal. Her 2017 defintely had a different smell to the seats. As you stated not offensive to us but definitely different. I kept them clean and conditioned and nothing took that odor away.

 

Thanks Fred430. A mechanic suggested using Upholstery Cleaner on the leather. Comes in an aerosol can. Supposed to remove all kinds of odors. I will try it.

 

You must be careful as some leather is more sensitive to certain products and application techniques. Depends on the age of the leather too. I have an 07 so I'm very gentle with cleaners and conditioning.

 

See if a local detail shop has an O3 (ozone) generator. These are used to remove smells like cigarette smoke. If they have one do at least one or two "treatments" (run the o3 inside the car for 25-ish minutes). When doing this make sure you remove the aircon filter because normally you run the car with the ac on recycle to maximize internal air flow. Of course follow the procedure to properly remove the air filter if you've never done it before. I bought an LS460 that had strong cigarette odor in it and after a full internal clean and two passes with 03 the smell is gone. If you plan to do this yourself be extremely careful and don't breath the air in the car after either during or immediately after treatment until it has fully aired out. O3 is not good for humans.

 

Thanks Protholl. That is my fallback position. But I will take it to a dealer for the job. I have to leave the car overnight.

 

Take the Cabin Air filter out and smell it.

Sometimes it from air filter itself. It's happened to me because when parked, I only smell it when my ac on, hard to believe it, I replaced with a same brand air filter and smell came back after a year, of course I switched to different brand and everything good since then.

 

Be aware ozone can destroy materials inside a car, so you should have someone who knows what they're doing do it.

 

Like what? I've been using my ozone generator for 4 years and have had zero issues with multiple cars. Maybe if you turn the timer **** to 11 and go to sleep with it running? Yes you need to limit the exposure thus I said 25 mins max per session and two sessions max.

Be safe,
Jeffrey

 

I also bought a 2016 ES350 recently and I have the same smell. The thing is, I love it!! Does anyone know what Lexus uses to clean the interior or is that dealer specific?

 

That smell, if there since 2016, will remain with the vehicle. No amount of product, or services (ozone etc) are going to fix it. The car is the smell.

It's baked into the seats, insulation, interior plastics/rubbers etc. likely just a slow releasing gassing off of chemicals. BMWs even 25 years later still retain a super strong chemical smell from its insulation. This is why certain cars just have a smell to them--brand association due to the parts/suppliers used. BMWs and MBZs tend to have a unique odor to its interior parts.