Lately, we have noticed a sweat like smell in the car, we dont keep any dirty clothes or shoes in the car, I am pretty sure its coming out of the air con vents. Has anyone else got this or does anyone know what may cause this? Thanks

 

it's mold inside the vents, quite common among cars with A/C. you need to crank up the heat and let it run for awhile to get rid of any moisture inside the vents.

 

in general, there are only two ways you can prevent this from happening:

1) leave the air con on all the time
2) use the aircon (cold) when necessary and then about 8 minutes before you destination, switch off the AC compressor but leave the fan going.

 

You could also try one of the duct cleaning products:

http://www.autogeek.net/clean-air-fogger.html

http://www.autogeek.net/megcarodel.html

http://www.scoe10x.com/

I'm sure there are others...

 

Thanks everyone, I guess it must be because I have the A/C on the front window all the time as its winter, mould must be building up in the pipes of the face facing vents.

 

correct me if i'm wrong on this...these products do work, but they only mask the problem rather than treating the problem. i recall reading somewhere that the smell does come back after treatment?

 

Tried doing this, ran the AC on full fan and HI temp but it doesnt seem to have worked. I wonder if there is any point in asking Lexus to look into it?

 

next step would be to try the sprays sophos recommended and see what happens. if it comes back, take your car back to the dealer for a more thorough examination

 

what the dealer will do is spray some of that odor maskers into the vents. They wont actually remove the mold

 

They generally spray with a disinfectant (lysol) which does kill mold then follows up with a deoderant spray which masks the smell of lysol or they just use a specialized product that does both.

The spray goes in the cabin intakes in the footwell and the AC is put on recirculate... problem is it needs to circulate through and treat the entire system which is why it typically takes more than one shot.

They could spray more, but folks would be driving around in hazmat suits.

 

It can happen on any car if the A/C hasn't operated for an extended period and then is cut on. If you use it in the default setting and 'AUTO' then the A/C will cycle on and off as needed and help control the defroster as well. A side benefit will be better humidity control in the cabin. It's the way it's designed to operate.

 

That smell is mold! Mold is only common in an automobile air-conditioner when the air-conditioner is designed incorrectly. Mold is bad for your health. Take your car back to the dealer and demand that they replace all parts need in order for the condensation to drain properly. Do not let them spray anything in it the system must be replaced. They know what parts are needed.