Just purchased 2004 RX330 with 162k miles.
After driving for a few miles, when I come to a complete stop,
I smell something sweet (coolant?) inside the cabin.
I believe it's from the vent duct.
I don't see coolant loss on the reservoir.
I suspect it might be a minor leak in the heater core?
Anyone has a better idea of what it is?
If it is true, minor leak in the heater core, how difficult/how much to fix it?
Thanks

 

You are correct that antifreeze has a sweet smell. The only thing inside the car that has antifreeze in it is the heater core, so it becomes the leading suspect. The heater core is inside the air duct system, so the smell would come out the air vents. Depending on the exact spot where the heater is leaking from, antifreeze could drip on the carpet. Also factoring into this is how bad the leak is. A slow leak allows the antifreeze to dry up before it can drip on the carpet.

The level in the reservoir doesn't necessarily mean the radiator is full. The radiator can loose some antifreeze before it sucks the antifreeze out of the reservoir. Translation - check the radiator, not the reservoir.

 

Thanks for your reply,
I forgot to mention that previous owner replaced the radiator recently
but it doesn't seem to solve the problem.

 

It doesn't matter if the radiator is new or old, we are discussing the heater core. Did you check the coolant level in the radiator?

 

I haven't but I will. Thanks Dennis.