Coconut

So I've been having a foul musky smell coming from my AC for the longest time. It's strongest when you first turn on the AC. The smell lingers when you turn off the AC and have fresh air coming in.

I had the dealership look at it a few months ago and they found mold growth all around the AC condenser. For a quick fix they sprayed some mold inhibitor on it which made my car have a pungent cinnamon smell. The inhibitor wore off after a few weeks and now my AC system smells funky again.

What are my chances of having them replace the entire AC Condenser? My warranty will expire soon and I want a permanent solution.

jns350

iTrader: (7)

Your A/C condenser is not the problem...in the blower box is your A/C evaporator which accumulates all the moisture. The condenser is in front of your radiator which cools the refrigerant changing it from liquid to gas. Sometimes the condensation will not drain out leaving some moisture in the blower area..which is under your dash. There is a way to sanitize the system and eliminate the mold. The dealer just sprayed some scent in your vents to pacify you. They will not replace your evaporator because there is nothing wrong with it. PM me and I can help you fix that moisture issue with a real cleaner that flushes the evaporator and clean it.
I have a shop in the bay area so I'm local...NorCal 2IS !!!!!

iSuxeL

iTrader: (21)

Or you can be helpful to many others and just post what to do

jns350

iTrader: (7)

^^^ha ha..you Florida guys must have it bad...
Step 1 buy this at your local O'Reillys / Kreagan auto parts.

Step Two: Turn your steering wheel all the way to your left so your passenger side tire is to the left. Locate facing inside the fender well toward the bottom of the inside fender a drain hose about 1/4 inch in diameter 1 1/2 inch in length. This hose will be more close by the door side area of the fender and not toward the front section.
Step three:
insert tube and empty all contents of the bottle till it runs out. remove the tube and let it drain out. Don't have to wait too long about half an hour or so.
Step Four: Enjoy no order....

IS350jet

This might work for other Lexus models, but the GS, and IS, both, don't use a drain hose. They use a "flapper" drain with no hose attached. It's located just above the transmission in the floor. I'm sure your system would still work but don't look for a drain hose because there isn't one.
Here's a PDF TSB of what it looks like.

benzo555

iTrader: (11)

great info!

Phil888

iTrader: (1)

I reasonly had this smelly problem cause i've been using my AC a lot cause its so freaking hot in Cali rite now. I was advice by the dealership to keep the vent on/open at all time even tho the AC isnt on. And guess what, IT WORKS!! The wet smell went away

Tchan1

iTrader: (1)

Have you done this yet? Cause my AC smells like nasty dirty socks!

blk250

iTrader: (3)

cool...if it happens to my AC...

Jenomic

anyone given this stuff a try on their 2IS?

http://www.detailersdomain.com/index...PROD&ProdID=41

SPS

I have used a similar odor eliminator. It works. It appears to be basically alcohol, with a scent mixed in to make it smell pleasant. And I do have a drain hose coming from my passenger front wheel-well. That TSB posted by IS350jet is very interesting. Can you elaborate on the location of this drain, please ? I can't find it. Has anybody out there had the smell issue resolved by having this service done ? I would like to get to the root problem. Spraying stuff into your HVAC every year or so is a band-aid, not a solution.

ba-b4

I have the same problem in my other car, a volvo, and the tech basically said most new cars are like this but you have to just have to leave the auto climate control ON all the time. Just because the AC is switched on doesn't mean the AC is always on and that once you do this the system has a built in dehumidifying action. Once you manually switch the AC on and off is when these odors happen. I still manually do the AC thing and I still have the smell.. oh well whatever.

darkdream

I have a musky smell at start up too.. my a/c is always on, but it goes away after a while. Do you think it is the same issue?

mvlbr

I've also started getting that funky smell recently and I always leave it on the fresh air option

PMok

I had the same problem with my AC and when I went to the dealership about it last year they said that changing the air cabin filter would probably solve it... I wasn't so sure about that but I changed my own air filter and sprayed the filter and the area around it with some Febreeze... then also turned on the AC system and sprayed some Febreeze right into the ventilation intake that's right at the base of your windshield, they helped for a while but the smell always comes back. I too usually run with the AC off and only turn it on when needed and I think that's usually the reason this happens. In some really old threads if you do a search, people discussed this and yeah it's the mold/mildew that develops when you let condensation gather inside.

Some other solutions that were previously posted. 1) run the heater really hot for a few minutes, that tends to kill the bacteria and the smell. I found this worked but it's not fun to drive around on a hot day with super hot air on, even with the windows down. 2) One member said what he always did was turn off AC a few minutes before the end of his trip, to allow the moisture to dry up instead of keeping it running up to the point you shut off the car, that is when the moisture gets trapped and starts getting all funky... yeah neither solution is very good but they did work to a certain point... and they're free.