air conditioner smell

[Robteesit]

Hey guys I have a 09 Rogue with 17000 mile on it and the New car smells gone and that foul odor is sitting in from a stinky air conditioner is bleeding through. It has been Hot and Humid down here, Virginia, this summer and I usually just use or circulate the inside air - my bad. Anyway when I first turn on the AC get that foul smell like pee - sure it is mold and mildew comes from the evaporator, -question is there a product that is simple to use that would help clear this up - or could this be under warranty? I appreciate your help.

[TaiLuu]

Just drill a hole on the evaporator and spray it with a/c evaporator cleaner. Then cover it up with jb weld.

[jdansmith]

My 08 Sentra had a funky smell after 20k miles and I replaced the in cabin air filter and it cleared up almost immediately. Pretty sure the Rogue has one also.

[philipa_240sx]

Just drill a hole on the evaporator and spray it with a/c evaporator cleaner. Then cover it up with jb weld.

Yeah, I would NOT recommend doing that. There is a good chance you could damage the evaporator coil if you drill in the wrong spot.

The smell you are getting is the result of stagnant water (condensate) in the evaporator coil. There are a couple of things you can do:

1) Take it to the dealer for A/C service. Check here to see if there are any offers/promotions.

2) Turn OFF the A/C and run the fan at HIGH speed for 1 min before shutting off the car. This will evaporate or clear any accumulated condensate and prevent the smell from re-occurring.

My 08 Sentra had a funky smell after 20k miles and I replaced the in cabin air filter and it cleared up almost immediately. Pretty sure the Rogue has one also.

The Rogue has a cabin air filter. See here: cabin-air-filter-t321326.html

[kerrton]

The first step is to replace the cabin air filter, this will likely solve the problem is a yearly maintenance item that needs to be performed anyway.

Luckily we have a step by step "How To" article complete with photos, I'd highly recommend saving yourself some cash and change the filter yourself. My dealer charges around $100 for this service, I get my filters online for less than $10 and do the work myself and it takes about 10 minutes. Here's the link:

cabin-air-filter-t321326.html

[jdansmith]

2) Turn OFF the A/C and run the fan at HIGH speed for 1 min before shutting off the car. This will evaporate or clear any accumulated condensate and prevent the smell from re-occurring.

I'm glad you mentioned this, I had to teach my Wife to cut the a/c off pulling into the subdivision. Good advice!

[philipa_240sx]

It's not just Nissan's that are affected. Many other cars I have driven are afflicted with the same issues. A little bit of care can avoid the problem altogether.

[Robteesit]

Thanks for all the advice guys - I had already changed the cabin filter before this started. I also recently been cutting the fan and heat on high for about 3 or 4 minutes before I shut it off ( I get out of the car first - alwful hot down here anyway) - still the smell is there. Haven crawled under the car but from the driveway see plenty of water dripping.....

[philipa_240sx]

Robteesit,

I would contact the dealer or local shop (perhaps one that specializes in A/C repairs) to get the evaporator coil cleaned. If any mildew has built up, the only way to get rid of it is to chemically clean it.

[epmeyer50]

It will help to dry off the AC evaporator coil if you run the fan with AC compressor turned off for a minute or so (3-4 minutes is overkill).

It won't accomplish anything except make you hot to put the heater all the way to hot as the heater core is downstream from the evaporator and therefor the heat does not go through the AC coil, it just blows out onto you.

[Qashqai]

2) Turn OFF the A/C and run the fan at HIGH speed for 1 min before shutting off the car. This will evaporate or clear any accumulated condensate and prevent the smell from re-occurring.

ahh Philipa just because of you now I am spending two minutes inside the car, run the fan at high speed, under the sun to prevent smell.

Sometimes knowing too much makes life difficult...but I love learning new stuff....what a dilemma!