Equivalent to rotten egg smell????

mittgore

Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2014
Location
Boston, MA
TDI
2013 Jetta TDI
Hello!

I bought my first TDI back in October 2013 brand new... I drive a lot.. 32,000 miles on it. I occasionally notice a smell in the car. It is sort of a sweet smell??? not overpowering but noticeable. I'm not sure what it is. My guess is that it's the diesel car version of rotten egg smell.... I just want to make sure that i am not putting an excessive amount of miles on it.
 
Last edited:

fowvey

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 11, 2014
Location
Phoenix
TDI
(2014 Jetta TDI DSG) -Gone, but not forgotten, 2014 Audi A6 TDI
I smell this too. Think it is the exhaust thats coming through the vents. If you're worried about the smell and your warranty is almost up, take it in. 32k in less than 1 year is quite a bit, but the TDI's like to drive.
 

mittgore

Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2014
Location
Boston, MA
TDI
2013 Jetta TDI
I smell this too. Think it is the exhaust thats coming through the vents. If you're worried about the smell and your warranty is almost up, take it in. 32k in less than 1 year is quite a bit, but the TDI's like to drive.
Okay, I will
 

patbob

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2013
Location
Beaverton, OR
TDI
was a 2013 Jetta TDI
Does it smell like coolant, that often smells sweet? I've yet to see the coolant temp on my '13 above the boiling point of water, so there shouldn't be any significant pressure on the system. Leaks on an unpressurized system can go undetected for a long time.

FYI, if you decide its coolant, and you smell it a lot in the cabin, get it fixed. From what I've read, coolant vapors are pretty harmful to breathe.
 

mittgore

Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2014
Location
Boston, MA
TDI
2013 Jetta TDI
Does it smell like coolant, that often smells sweet? I've yet to see the coolant temp on my '13 above the boiling point of water, so there shouldn't be any significant pressure on the system. Leaks on an unpressurized system can go undetected for a long time.

FYI, if you decide its coolant, and you smell it a lot in the cabin, get it fixed. From what I've read, coolant vapors are pretty harmful to breathe.
I'm not sure if the coolant is overheating.. my TDI doesn't have a temp gauge
 

joeelmex

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2012
Location
Atlanta GA
TDI
2012 Jetta Premium
I had that same issues on my car and it was the clutch. I don't know if you drive a standard or not. They had the replace the clutch on my car because they didn't align it correctly at the factory.
 

FVWVWF

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2011
Location
Canada
TDI
Sold - 2012 TDI Highline Manual
This egg like smell, more closer to rotten cardboard is what I smell when there are heavy rains and I turn on the AC. Just smells like there are some cardboard/paper parts on the car that are rotting. I've had a similar smell on previous VW's too.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
2018 Tesla Model 3: 217,000 miles
Clean diesel exhaust has a light chlorine smell. If there is an exhaust leak in the engine bay, it will smell like regular diesel exhaust because it has leaked out prior to the aftertreatment. DPF regens smell like a hot oven.

A sweet smell might be coolant. I noticed this on the 2012 Passat occasionally even though there wasn't any noticeable coolant loss. I chocked it up to being normal for the car and haven't had any issues with it.
 

RDC98tdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2009
Location
Louisville KY
TDI
'13 Jetta 6MT Prem / (RIP) '98 Jetta 5MT [280k+mi]
Does it smell like coolant, that often smells sweet? I've yet to see the coolant temp on my '13 above the boiling point of water, so there shouldn't be any significant pressure on the system. Leaks on an unpressurized system can go undetected for a long time.

FYI, if you decide its coolant, and you smell it a lot in the cabin, get it fixed. From what I've read, coolant vapors are pretty harmful to breathe.
With the Torque Pro app, I have seen coolant temps above boiling pretty often, and it's not uncommon or unsafe. During the summer driving 75-80, A/C on, or during a regen, 215-220 is acceptable. Or, A/C on, stop and go traffic, hot outside, regen occuring = 210-220. The high temps are OK because the system is under pressure, and higher engine temps are actually a bit more efficient.
 
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