babaijebu

That's what i got from it too, but again, i'm just making my coffee.

HOMER350

I use my AC all the time and have had this issue in multiple cars. Never found a need to do anything else.

I had a car I did clean the "something" cannister (don't recall the name) but the car had 220k miles at that point.

Flash5

Ah, my bad lol. Well probably because fresh air helps a little for the same reason. That’s my guess but I’m also curious why exactly running the AC on fresh mode vs recirculate would actually help since it’s cold air regardless.

CriMe

Had this issue on my '16 when the AC was off. While the fans were on maximum, recirc off, i sprayed an entire can of lysol into the fresh air intake by the windshield wipers / cowl. This took care of it. To prevent it from reoccurring, I do recommend shutting off the ac a few minutes before turning the car off to allow some of the moisture to dry up.

websurfer

Someone on the GS 350 forum shared the TSB on it.

Probably a good read.

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/20...72825-9999.pdf

zhifan1

Did the lysol thing on my car previously and it worked very well. Then i replaced the aftermarket cabin filter with the OEM filter and there has been no smell since. The OEM cabin filter for our car is charcoal-based filter, i suspect any suitable charcoal based filter will prevent and remove smell..

babaijebu

Funky smell came back already, again. I'm trying undiluted 70% Isopropyl Alcohol next. Got that idea from this thread https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...-use-it-2.html

HOMER350

I might try this next time actually too.
Same disinfecting benefits but the IPA may help to mix with some sitting stail water and help it to better evaporate and/or move through the system.

Let us know how it works!

Zoomzoom1

I bought the AC/Duct cleaner from autozone and it lasted maybe 2 weeks. Unfortunately the smell is back and Im going to need to try to something new.

ChineseKFC

my issues of this went away mostly after i changed the cabin filter with a charcoal activated one, also turning off AC about 3-5km away from destination and having fresh air mode on

AA81E

The fastest way to cool a space is to seal it so that no previously cooled air escapes and no new warm air enters. The concept is great for refrigerators, but questionable for cars. In a car, that means recirc mode. I discovered that "auto" in these Lexus cars triggers recirc mode for this cooling boost when overcoming thermostat differences with outside temp above 75F unless you manually select outdoor air. It's a little annoying, since I don't think it ever gets hot enough here to warrant cutting off the supply of fresh air but "auto" thinks it does.

Moisture and smells inside system would come from the environment, like swampy SE climate, and it condenses like a cold drink inside the system/ducts when surfaces are most cold, like when the AC is on full blast or right after, and especially with Eco mode off. The humidity and condensation would be compounded by cabin humidity from people's respiration and perspiration whenever recirc is on. Eco mode is less cold, so it might generate less condensation in the system on short drives, not to mention opening windows or roof. Driving in desert air with outside air selected would obviously keep the system drier, but that's not necessarily an option.

AC button toggles the system that includes dehumidification with and without cooling. In other words, you should run with AC perpetually on since it regulates moisture and prevents mold/bacteria smells, and it functions automatically to keep the environment dry and livable, especially if it's on recirc. Turning it off once the system has matched the thermostat might not be wise, because at that point, it might not be cooling or creating condensation anywhere and it might be mainly acting to dehumidify and gently maintain temps. If you are tempted to turn it off, just leave the AC light on and set the thermostat higher so that it doesn't need to cool. I guess it can be turned off when windows are open and outside air is selected, and it won't create any condensation to trap if it's never on to begin with, but you may feel hot.

Dry, hot, outdoor air may generate little or no duct condensation, so the issue may not apply in dry climates, or may only appear in conjunction with water spills, clogged drainage, leaks, or maybe even recirc mode recirculated cabin humidity in those climates, or maybe just if the AC dehumidifier isn't functioning or something.

I think the problem mainly lies with cars turning off at a moment when the system contains condensation that the AC dehumidification system doesn't detect or has not had a chance to dry yet. Particularly if the vents are in recirc mode. It can probably be avoided by selecting higher thermostat settings and avoiding recirculate mode to promote less humidity and condensation on short drives on hot days. The system probably keeps itself pretty dry once it's been at a steady temp that doesn't strain the AC and create ice-cold, dripping surfaces.

When taking short drives on hot days, we should make sure the car isn't shutting down to sit for 18 hours when it only drove 10 mins and the HVAC ducts are left dripping like soda bottles because they were just blasting ice-cold air to some luxury specification, almost successfully overcoming a 30F degree temp difference, but shutting down a moment too soon, in "auto," therefore, with all vents closed in recirc mode, resulting in a moist, sealed petri dish incubator condition within the ducts, and left with the time to grow something on a hot day. I bet if this happens a few times, or maybe once over a long weekend, inoculated with any normal airborne bacteria from breath and dust, it could runaway and grow something that smells.

Driving 5 to 10 mins longer than it takes for the AC system to stabilize at thermostat temp with AC on and recirc off is probably the best way to ensure that the system turns off with ventilation system open and dry. That means no short drives. Short drives on hot days may be the cause of the problem, but taking those with higher F thermostat selections and/or eco mode to reduce condensation, windows/vent open when needed to vent extreme heat, "recirc" off, (and that means manually selecting "outdoor" on "auto" when it autoselects "recirc,") one can probably reduce the likelihood of ever leaving their car damp on a hot day, even despite regular short drives. The amount of time sitting damp might be the biggest factor. Unfortunately, leaving the car sitting for 24-48+ hours when shutoff damp might be a big problem, whereas the same dampness might dry without consequence if the car was started and fully driven 8-12 hours later. It really seems like the AC system, vents, fans, and dehuey should automatically keep working after shutoff to prevent this whole possibility, imo, but apparently it doesn't!

Using disinfectants might make sense if your car is currently being spoiled by this, but also be wary of introducing water into the system, because moisture is most likely the ultimate cause, and it will need to be dried out. High strength alcohol sounds good because it vaporizes a little quicker than water, but it's also flammable because it vaporizes quickly and it's more flammable if you use the stronger stuff that dries out fast. If the gunk/film substrate is still in there, regardless of what you used to disinfect, most likely, after some time and some amount of new moisture, the problem will come back, so you'll need to disinfect it and keep it dry if it going to stay gone.

I have never experienced this smell issue, but it's worth noting that I don't live in a humid climate and I almost never use recirc mode outside of Tacoma because I associate it with humidity and discomfort.

babaijebu

So far, so good. Smell went away and i didn't have to deal with no chemical smell afterwards like i do when i use other stuff. Ordered OEM cabin filter and will be replacing that next.