2006 LS 430 240k - I have a burning plastic smell right around the brake fluid reservoir. It does not come in the car but you can smell it strong if standing outside the car on the drivers side. Thought it was a piece of plastic but nothing showed under the car up on a rack and nothing under the hood. We even pressure washed the entire engine.

Started about 2 weeks ago and has been there ever since. Car does not drive any different but does make a very faint sound like you can here the engine rev up and down through the speakers.

I was having sporadic issues with the starter making a noise like the car was already started but that was random and has not done it in a long time. Repair shop thought it maybe the ABS modulator but really have no idea so I thought I would try here before just replacing random parts.

thanks

 

Are your valve covers leaking and causing the smell? Did a plastic part fall onto the exhaust manifold heat shield and is slowly burning?

 

That's puzzling but sometimes what I do is to look up the 3UZ-FE online, for images, many of which lead to eBay. For example, I thought maybe I had oil on my pass side valve cover at what appears to be a tab. However, it seems that from online images, engines with a trans dipstick, are aluminum colored, and ones without, are black. Maybe you can focus on the left/driver side of engines without a dipstick to see what might be there (it's not like we all memorize every part right? so images help and are easy to find....good luck!)

edit p.s. what I have found from bleeding the brakes with the Motive, that cap for whatever reason can be removed without turning, as if it pops off when it shouldn't, and I took it to be design not that mine is defective. Maybe checking the reservoir is an idea, although I don't know what the fluid would hit if leaked/spilled. But DOT3 is corrosive. Doubt it's that but what the heck worth a look.

 

- just wild guessing - check the fuse block compartments and wire harness/connectors as well as the ECM module area on the driver side of the engine bay.

 

I do have a valve leaking on the other side of the engine not on the side that is producing the smell.

The burning smell is going on 2 weeks. I would think anything that has fallen on the manifold would have burned off by now. I did notice that one of my spark plug cables cover is falling apart due to dry rot. I thought it maybe that but when we put fire to a little piece of it is smelled more like rubber burning and this is a distinct plastic burning smell. Just like you would get from a circuit board shorting out.

We did notice something over the drivers rear well down from the fuse box that sort of looks like a heat sink that was really hot to the touch. Anyone know what this part could be?

Thanks

 

We did check these and really did not see anything. the car does not throw any codes and runs fine so if it was something with the connector or fuse you think it would throw up a message.

The smell as best we can tell appears to be right around the ABS Modulator.

 

from doing an ABS repair on another car, it is comprised of the module (electronic), and the pump. The pump itself was faulty, but not the module. Can either of these malfunction to the point of burning? Do you have an ABS reader just to see if there are any codes? Typically a different reader is needed for airbag and ABS, as opposed to OBD-II.

 

Sounds like a plastic bag is melting on the catalytic converter.

 

Good suggestion, I will ask. So there is a different ready on an 2006 LS for the ABS that would not throw a code on the main reader?