Hot Antifreeze smell after drive

[b00001]

Hello all!

I have smelled this distinctive hot antifreeze odor many times since I have owned this new Outback. When I get to where ever I am going or backing into the garage and turn the car off, get out, I can smell it.

Wondering if anyone else has smelled this?

There is nothing leaking out and the levels are all within spec so I don't really know what is causing this smell.

20k miles on it now.

Thanks for any input!

[edawg]

FWIW, I drove 20 something year old wrecks my first 5 years or so driving and have had this anti-freeze smelle twice in older vehicles. Both times it's due to a leak (or bad thermostat) in the hoses that control the flow of hot water from the cooling system to the interior HVAC system. Have you had any sort of impact or service done that might have unexpectedly jarred the hoses in the engine compartment or aftermarket installs of stereo equipment or accessories behind the firewall?

The first time I had anti-freeze smell was the thermostat on the cooling system stuck wide open so that hot water kept coming in and eventually evaporated and came through the vents. This would explain why coolant level isn't dropping but you get the smell with small amounts escaping through the vents. I bet a looong road trip would show meaningful coolant loss.

The 2nd time was a VW Jetta that actually had a hose leak in the HVAC itself where fluid ran across the blower such that the coolant escaped into the vents when the heat was running. That car was a mess as the A/C condensor caused it to also "freeze up" when running the A/C due and also let ice literally form on the "plenum" that split air to the vents inside the cabin. Nothing like having 95 degrees outside, icebergs on the inside vents (with water draining down your leg) and 110 degrees inside because the A/C has frozen up and blows warm air!

Ah, memories...

[txcharlie66]

I'd take it to the dealer to check for a pinhole leak somewhere. We test drove one that had the same odor. It didn't have the options we wanted, but I would have insisted that it stop smelling that way before signing on the dotted line.

If it smells in the garage (exterior of the vehicle), and not in the vehicle, that probably means its not in the heater core, which his nice. Brother in law bought a new VW that had to have the heater core replaced due to a small leak...

[b00001]

The smell is definitely not on the inside of the vehicle. It is under the hood.

Thanks for the input!

[BillyBob]

Originally Posted by b00001

The smell is definitely not on the inside of the vehicle. It is under the hood.

Thanks for the input!

I have the same thing going on my 2010 OB 3.6. I smell it while at drive throughs and parking. I do mainly highway miles, and smell it when I'm getting off from a long run. I guess I need to take it in. I thought is was the other cars, but over the last couple of weeks, it has certainly been my car.

[b00001]

Originally Posted by BillyBob

I have the same thing going on my 2010 OB 3.6. I smell it while at drive throughs and parking. I do mainly highway miles, and smell it when I'm getting off from a long run. I guess I need to take it in. I thought is was the other cars, but over the last couple of weeks, it has certainly been my car.

Exactly!

I have not taken mine in but will have to soon on other issues. I did check the coolant level and it was just a little below the "low" line when cold. I added some distilled water (did not take much) and brought the level up to just a bit under full. I have checked a few times since and level seems to be holding. Maybe coolant is spilled upon initial fill up and like any other smell, becomes more potent with more heat?

Would be nice to have a temp gauge...........

Keep us posted if you get it to the dealer!

[jnj86]

I have a 2010 Forester and definitely have the antifreeze odor after most trips. It is coming from the engine compartment and is not in the cabin. This car only has about 6,000 miles on it and has had this problem for a while. I just had it in for my second oil change and my Subaru dealer found nothing wrong with it. I was told by one of the service writers that this is common in Subarus and is nothing to worry about and that hers does the same thing. Somethiing tells me that this isn't normal though.

[subiesailor]

Originally Posted by jnj86

I have a 2010 Forester and definitely have the antifreeze odor after most trips. It is coming from the engine compartment and is not in the cabin. This car only has about 6,000 miles on it and has had this problem for a while. I just had it in for my second oil change and my Subaru dealer found nothing wrong with it. I was told by one of the service writers that this is common in Subarus and is nothing to worry about and that hers does the same thing. Somethiing tells me that this isn't normal though.

It's not common and no its not correct!
Thats your dealer's way of saying they forgot to look for the leak. Take it back call SOA tell them you want the leak found! The one time I had this (Oh we can't find any leak its fine- turned out to be a bad gasket and I was lucky subaru stepped up and delt with it given it was out of warranty at that point.

No CAR of any type should have a coolant leak or consistantly smell of coolant. If you can smell it that strongly chances are its hitting something hot and evaporating leaving no trace which requires the shop guy to really open his eyes and ears and poke around a bit to find the source.

Leaky hoses - water pumps and bad caps are simple bad gaskets - not so much and can end up costing you big bucks at the wrong time.

The non subaru I had that ran for years with this issue also had a bad gasket - turned out the wrong gasket! For 6 yrs Ford kept telling me nothing wrong with it - then it nearly over heated for two reasons wrong exhaust header gasket blocking part of the exhaust exit and loss of coolant. Makes me wonder just how much life that gasket mistake took out of the car before they finally fixed it! At that point Ford only paid for the $15 part given it was out of warranty and basically told me to go screw my self. Funny I don't own a ford any more and non of my extended family does either.

[BillyBob]

Well, I went in for service last week. They are replacing my sunroof glass because the trim has bubbled up on the corners.

While I was there I had them look for the coolant smell problem.....no surprise, they 'could not duplicate'.

They did however 'retrain' my transmission in an attempt to get rid of the hard downshift. Now is has a hard upshift at slow speeds.....

ARGGGH.

[akarusso]

I have a 2010 3.6 with 2kmiles on it. Started to smell the coolant also. It started recently with a 90 degree day. I dont see any leaks, and dealer said its normal. Its pretty sad when a $35k has these problems. Should I be worried about driving on a long trip?