rotten egg smell

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k2hwy

New Member
Joined
May 20, 2011
Messages
9
Car
c220 cdi
can somebody tell me why i get a very very strong smell of rotten eggs inside of my 2002 c220 cdi. it is worse when the engine is cold. please help because it proper stinks. some say its the battery/ exhaust cats/bad fuel.:( ps the car runs fine. but the temp never goes over 75 to 80. is that normal . all my other cars ran at 90.
 
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friends car had that and the cat was on its way out, hi yourself to a decent indy, not knowing where you are and get it sorted. The forum lists a number of independent specialists.

Welcome to the forum as well!

Paul
 
Could it be the aircon needs servicing/cabin filters changed?
(complete guess)
 
Rotten egg smells are caused by Sulphur containing compounds such as Hydrogen Sulphide. These can come from sulphur in the fuel and is most noticeable when the car is cold. The catalytic convertor may be damaged or poisoned by poor fuel and gives rise to this. Batteries can give off fumes particularly if they have dried out or have been overcharged due to an alternator fault. On many cars they are located in the boot and should have a a small vent pipe attached to vent any gases to the exterior [ this might have come off?] but being in the boot would unlikely to reach the passenger compartment. BY far the most likely explanation is the one offered by jimbob35. The air conditioning system is a wonderful environment for bacteria to grow, particularly if the filters [ usually 2 one for particulates and one for smells ( charcoal type) ] have not been changed.The other problem is when the drainpipes are not cleared and stagnant water accumulates particularly in the tray assembly under the cooling matrix. This provides a nice moist place for bacteria to grow in large quantity causing bad smells.

Solution is to remove the old filters, clear the drainage channels and disinfect the aircon passages with proprietary fumigants to kill off the bacteria. You can buy the materials to do this yourself but if you have a good aircon shop locally they will do a more thorough job. Remember only once you are happy the system is clean should you put in the new filters unless the system flow needs filters in place to work of course.
 
Do you switch the air-conditioning off at any time, if so that is probably the cause of the smell. Set it then leave the A/C on all year round.
 
Smelly air conditioning is more reminiscent of wet dishcloths.

If the smell is sulphurous it's either catalytic convertor or (less likely but needs investigating) the battery. The cat doesn't work properly until it's up to temperature, and if high sulphur content fuel is used there will be the 'rotten egg' smell of hydrogen sulphide until it's nice and hot.

If the battery is being continuously overcharged it can give off the same gas.
 
thanx for answers people. think i need a garage to sort it..... when i do il post the outcome. cheers again
 
Could it be an old egg going rotten in your glove box? :)
 

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