Hi guys! Has anyone had their heater core leak on their 2is? I picked up my car from the mechanic after getting my coolant changed and there is a strong smell in the cabin that won't seem to go away. It doesn't smell sweet but it's got some chemical smell that is hard to describe. When I picked up the car, the HVAC was set to the highest temperature, which is normal procedure when changing the coolant. The super long life Toyota fluid was used. The floorboards are not wet, but after a thorough vacuum of the interior and several days of leaving boxes of baking soda in the cabin, it hasn't fully gone away. It seems that the smell is most noticeable on the front passenger side floor area. There is no odd smell coming from the vents with the AC on. There are no obvious signs of coolant spilled under the hood. Not really sure what to do at this point. It is a 2010 IS350.

 

Take back for a pressure leak down test.
In short you pressurize the system and confirm it holds pressure. Mind you, if it leaks that does not mean it's the heater core so you may need to isolate it.

On the plus side if the system holds 18 psi for 30 min it's unlikely the core leaks.
Make sense?

 

Thanks for the advice! I am assuming you mean a leak down test of the cooling system via the radiator or coolant reservoir? I will get it looked at soon and report back.

In the meantime, is there an easy way to pull back the carpet in the front passenger area, or are you basically destroying the carpet when you do this? I am quite confident that this general area is the source of the smell.