adam2104

I bought a CPO 2013 IS 250 from the local Lexus dealer back in November. It had 11k miles on it at the time. Now fast forward 6 months and I've put another 3k miles on it for a total of 14k. In the last couple weeks (it's starting to get warm now here in NC) the AC has become very musty / mildew-y when it first turns on. This last for a minute or two and then goes away. Really? At 14k miles? I came from a Honda Accord that was 8 years old, had 107k miles, and lived outside every day of those 8 years and the AC never stunk, ever.

I've already replaced the cabin filter, did that about four days ago. Read around the boards here and tried running isopropyl alcohol through it via a spray bottle, with no improvement there either. I tried locating the AC drain tube to check if its blocked, but discovered its buried under the transmission and isn't easy to get to (I tried though, couldn't get at it). It drains readily enough after a short drive, so it doesn't appear to be blocked.

Surely this can't be normal. Does anyone know if this would be covered by the CPO warranty? I'm planning to call Lexus here shortly but thought I'd ask here for suggestions also.

sthakor92

I had that issue when i bought the car... I sprayed some lysol in the outer vent and it helped.. I don't notice the smell anymore and its been a couple of years since I've had it

jdiron29

Known issue, the best solution is to leave the a/c in refresh mode to vent moisture out of the a/c box. It also helps to use a charcoal cabin filter, it does a better job of trapping odors. Some dealerships offer a Toyota A/C foam cleaning service that helps for a while.

nosurprise

iTrader: (1)

Old cars won't have this issue, but it seems a lot of new cars do (I notice this in different car brands not just Lexus). It must be some change in AC design that all the manufacturers are using.

This has been discussed quite a lot on these forums. When you get the smell, you need to spray it. To prevent the smell, you need to turn off the AC with the fan still running for a few minutes before you shut down the car.

NickTee

You also need to check the drain tube and make sure it is draining properly, otherwise it will cause issues. An effective solution is a charcoal filter, but I also found this made a huge difference:
The smell was a bit strong at first, but it has now subsided to a faint yet refreshing smell of new car. It also eliminated the pesky smell and it's been over a month since I used it with no signs of it. It's not simply a mask, it did actually eliminate the musty smell I had in the vehicle.

darkdream

Change the air filter. It fixed my problem, but I do not drive my car much anyways.

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

Get some hanging DampRid product and keep them hung off of the pocket of the front seats AND put the vent setting to outdoor air before turning off the car at night. Has helped me with this same issue.

cotswold

Why does the A/C automatically switch to the recycle cabin air when it is turned on, That is the biggest problem with the A/C smell. Can this function be programed out or is this something we have to live with ?

cruzinZ

Eliminate the problem at the source. What you are smelling is mold growing in the air box from condensate and a moist environment. Your best solution is to dry it out to prevent it from happening. Now that you already have this there are products on the market that will eliminate the problem.

One product that will help is called 1Z Einszett Klima-Cleaner Air Conditioner Treatment.

I would suggest getting a product like this and using it twice a year. In the fall before the cold months and again in the spring before you start using the AC system on a daily basis. This way you attack the problem and are left with clean air.

hirsch2is

Toyota makes an a/c refresh kit now. I have used it on some cars that where pretty bad at the dealership I work at. Basically you pray some foam cleaner into the drain tube, let it drain and repeat until the candidate is gone. Then you spray a deodorizer through the fresh air intake with the cabin filter removed and the a/c off. Only thing is if you went this route I would suggest only using 1/4-1/3 of the can for each spray because I took out a Prius blower motor due to it getting to full and leaking onto it. The stuff is the truth though I have had a few cars that I thought were lost causes that I did it to. Came back 5k miles later still smelling awesome

RyanUppal

Had this problem with my 2010. If you open the glove compartment you can take out the little shelf and behind it is the air filter. All I did was take the filter out and blow the dust off and spray it with some antibacterial scented spray and it did the trick. No tools needed.

adam2104

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I had already tried changing the air filter, but it didn't help. I took it to the dealer about three weeks ago and they did some cleaning, which lasted about 2.5 weeks and now the smell is back again. I'm taking it back in again today and they're going to do some other type of cleaning that takes two days. Who knows how long that's going to be effective.

To say I'm disappointed would be an understatement. I don't really know what to do at this point. If the AC smells already at 15k miles, what's it going to be like at 150k? I can deal with a lot of things, but mold and mildew aren't one of them. Getting blasted in the face with smelly air every time I turn on the car has completely soured me on the entire vehicle. I may trade it, take a $4k hit on it, and get something else.

adam2104

Forgot to mention that I had this setting changed 3 weeks ago as well. The dealer can change it so the automatic climate control doesn't change the fresh/recirculate setting. I've been running it on nothing but fresh air for the last 3 weeks and the stink still came back.

20LS01

Where do you spray these odor killers?

my 2010 is250 has a horrible ac smell too after turning off the AC...it wreaks! I notice many new cars do this but older ones like my integra never has these smells.

jennie

I've never had smelly AC except when you turn off the AC and just have air blowing thru.

I did notice my SC had a weird odor so I bought a can of disinfecting spray. Where your wipers are you'll see vents that your car uses for the AC. To determine which vent is used, just spray a little in with recirculation off. Your interior will start to smell like Lysol if you found the right one. With the AC on high, windows down, recirculation off, spray into the vent for ~45 seconds or until your fingers get tired. Then turn the temperature to heat and repeat. I also cleaned my cabin filter. Now my SC is scent free.

I hope the dealer fixes the smell. Getting blasted with nasty smells would drive me insane.