[007]

Hello fellow BHPians,

I am (rather my wife and nieces) are facing a strange problem with Maruti. They get a strange smell in all Maruti cars (only), which make them very uncomfortable and vomiting sensations.

Read on and you can relate to it.

Occasion1 : Buying a new car for my brother in law and sister's family
Sis : "We are getting a new car soon"
Me : "Excellent . The 118NE is super outdated"
Sis : "So you are our Auto Expert - tell me your best recommendation"
Me : "Maruti anytime - Good on budget, mileage champion, good ownership experience"
Sis : "I thought you will say Skoda or VW, you were a long term TSC employee there and always brag how your 16 yr old Octavia still drives well with excellent mileage"
Me : "I still like them, but the thing is, I can fix them myself whenever needed, you guys are Doctors and need a hassle free vehicle.
You know why I shifted to Brezza 5 years back, and I like this one equally"
Sis : "Equally? Are you sure?"
Me : "Ok, my first love is and will be Skoda but I am happily married to Maruti Brezza now.............satisfied"
Sis : "That's an honest confession "
....
Sis : " I will speak to your Jijaji and we will decide. Your 2 nieces will also have their preference and influence on buying decision"
...............
FEW DAY's LATER
...............
Sis : "We got the new car, Your niece will send you pictures. It's the brand you have worked for before moving to IT field."
Me : "Wow, great news. And don't forget the party is due"
......I received the pics
Me : "You got Tata Tigor, great choice. Full respect for them. Still I am curious to know why my recommendation is ignored"
Sis : "Talk to your niece"
Niece1 : "Mama, listen - I get a very strange smell whenever I sit in a Maruti brand car, may it be your Brezza or Uncle's DZire. However I never get that smell in Tata or Hyundai car"
Me : "But...."
Niece2 : "Oh Mr. Expert your recommendations are best suited considering ideal conditions, but we are humans and we get that vomiting sensation the moment we step in Maruti. We do not want to travel always under fear so please stop your questions and tell when are you coming for celebrations."
Me : "Ok beta, now I get it. Hearty congratulations on purchase of a new car"
IME (Inner Mechanical Engineer) : How I can define and solve this problem technically

Occasion2:(X every time we are using car)
Wify : "Please take out the car and lower the windows immediately"
Me : "Why you say that every time?, never said that in Skoda"
Wify : "Dear your Brezza has this strange smell which makes me highly uncomfortable"
Me : "Ok."
Wify : "And I will be keeping the window little lowered during entire travel"
Me : "Not again, why don't you try doing this when you travel in your brother's car"
Wify : "He owns i20 dear"
Me : ""
IME (Inner Mechanical Engineer) : How I can define and solve this problem technically

Please help me guys, I don't want to change Brezza but want to solve this Maruti specific smell problem.

[siddhant]

I can't say if it is Maruti specific or not but I have heard similar complaints about our old Ritz from my mother and aunts. We also got a new Brezza in the family recently but no such complaints about it so far.

And, for the Ritz, I have tried to look for any subtle smell in all nooks and corners of the car but didn't find anything unusual. My father also doesn't smell anything. It's possible that the Ritz interiors develop a subtle smell since we have been parking it outside after getting the Brezza. And, my mother is a little bit prone to occassional travel sickness which may explain her sensitivity towards the smell. What has worked for the Ritz is getting in the car, opening the windows and running the AC for 1-2 minutes before my mother enters. On doing this, somehow the smell doesn't bother her anymore. I have also started keeping camphors in the car from time to time to give it a pleasant smell.

[DicKy]

Not sure of the interior plastic smell, but I definitely had a strange smell in my school van- a brand new Maruti Omni in the early 2000s. And had the same smell in most other Marutis which I deduced must be from the plastics/ somewhere around the door beadings.

At the same time, I had heard that the smell is coming from the catalytic convertor which can be a reason as the Marutis that had the odd smell were all built after the mid 2000s.

[GTO]

Going by your posts, yours is an old Brezza right? Weird because those OEM-specific smells go out after a few years of ownership. It could be due to the plastics that Maruti is using or something else.

What you can do:

- Get an air freshener. There are so many types in the market & a strong one will easily overpower the remnant cabin smell in your car.

- Get new mats. Could be that it is your mats that are smelling? Due to the quality, or how dirty they are?

- Get your carpeting cleaned professionally.

- New upholstery will drastically change the cabin smell of your car.

- Is there any stench or peculiar smell coming out of your HVAC? Get that checked. The HVAC system can be a breeding ground for many unwanted elements.

- Keep a sock with coffee beans in your door pocket or under your seat.

[adarsh.n]

Originally Posted by GTO

Keep a sock with coffee beans in your door pocket or under your seat.

A question here. Doesn't coffee beans attract rats? I've like the smell of fresh coffee beans (not freshly roasted, but the fresh beans) over any other air freshener. But, resisted myself from keeping it in the car out of fear of attracting rats.

[AutoNoob]

Originally Posted by GTO

Get new mats. Could be that it is your mats that are smelling? Due to the quality, or how dirty they are?

This could be one of the reasons. In my beater car I changed the mats as old one (driver side) had worn out. These were full rubber mats and new ones were translucent plastic ones. After the change, the car was driven only after a week. It was full of weird smell, and wifey felt nauseated. After some investigation, the new mats were found as culprit. Changed those with carpet type mats and car smelt normal again.

[deathwalkr]

My 6 year old son always complains my 9yr old t-jet smells bad for some reason and hates being driven in it.

Gave the car for a thorough interior cleaning but still he cribs.

@GTO: Some nice tips. Shall have the AC cleaned up as well and try out the coffee trick. Cheaper than getting a car air purifier

[tharian]

Similar situation and no resolution yet.

My toddler daughter has motion sickness. It wasn't there when she was few months old and it began later and got worse on one of our long trips in my Ford Aspire, when she threw up multiple times. Now she hates my car and whenever she gets in, whatever the smell, she protests. It is a mental block I figured. She was fine in my dad's Wagon-R until she threw up in that too. Now she agrees to travel in it with great reluctance with the windows down.
Surprisingly, she is fine when travelling in my sisters MG ZS, with or without AC. She is even fine when travelling in an old FIAT that I use for short distances.

This has become a difficult situation since I end up using my motorcycle to take her places which I am not very happy to, keeping in mind how unruly the roads are.
It can also be due to claustrophobia. Some cars feel more closed than others due to the glass area and window line.

[green_ninja]

I have the exact opposite problem. My daughter complains that our 2016 Innova 2.5ZX stinks and gives her a vomiting sensation. She has vomited a couple of times too unless she goes to sleep. She always wants to travel in our 2017 Alto K10. She has no problems in the K10. Go figure!!!

[bhphog]

Could it be due to Maruti's placement of AC components.
Could it be due to faulty, damaged cabin air filters? Maybe maruti is using bad designs or lower quality.

Could it be due to a leaky exhaust? Is your car a diesel or petrol?
Could EGR be playing a role in this? I doubt it but a tiny possibility.

On the off chance, I hope no one smokes inside your car.
Could it be a driver/cleaner who is spending time inside your car?

Last possibility would include water leaking into the cabin? My figo used to leak water into the spare tyre well through the rear hatch.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by adarsh.n

A question here. Doesn't coffee beans attract rats?

The smell of coffee is actually a rat deterrent . Related Google Search

Originally Posted by AutoNoob

This could be one of the reasons. In my beater car I changed the mats as old one (driver side) had worn out.

All the outside dirt, junk and garbage ends up in your car on one spot only = your mats and your carpets. This gets especially worse in the monsoon season when they get wet & start smelling.

[theabstractmind]

I can fully relate to this thread.

Initially, I thought it was just me. But then my wife and son joined the list. My son hates being driven in a Maruti. I think it has to do with the plastics and AC, beyond the carpets or roofliner not being cleaned. It also could be the rubber mats or leatherette seats. Once I remember I felt pukey when I smelt rubber mats in a Qualis from almost 30 feet away, and I finally puked after travelling around 250 kms.

My car purchasing decisions have always been influenced by the family's acceptance. They didn't complain in my Punto unless I failed to vacuum the mats. So also in the Ameo and my current Yaris. But they always complained in the Kwid. To avoid this, I clean the seats and mats at least once a month. And keep no perfumes - they seem to aggravate the nausea. And I prefer fabric seats or good quality leather / leatherette; not the ones in neighborhood shops or some OEM showrooms. Perforated leather or high quality leatherette like the ones from previous generation of VW are better than cheaper leatherette. Especially when parked under the sun, cheaper plastics, mats, and leatherette give out a nauseating smell


Finally, the soft sprung Marutis and Hyundais are very likely to cause travel sickness due to the vertical movement at high speeds and uneven roads. My family usually avoids travelling in a cab for the aforesaid reasons and prefer all other modes of transport when my car cannot be taken.

So, to the OP - see if any of the above factors are involved in your case - dirty mats and liners, leatherette seats, rubber mats, and finally AC or AC filter. Of course, you can't do much about the plastics.

[NagaBond]

It could be real issue, it could be perception or it could be that different noses are sensitive to different types of smells. I get headache if I travel for long in ANY diesel vehicle - howerer 'insulated' that vehicle may be against fumes or smell from entering cabin. But none of my family members feel anything. This is one reason I buy only Petrol cars and prefer to go in my car intsead of carpooling with others.

[dheerajjoshi]

I have first-hand experience with it. My dad's old Alto and his new Dzire both smelled strange and it had nauseating effects on me while I was in the passenger seat. The smell never bothered me while I was driving (Maybe because I was more involved mentally and my mind was preoccupied it didn't have time to react to smells ).

Initially, I attributed it to the complementary car freshener dealers provided during the delivery of the new vehicles and thought replacing it with more neutral-smelling car fresheners should solve it. But the original small is somehow lingering in the car and even now when AC is turned on I can feel a strange smell and I am now thinking it is related to AC or because of the upholstery.

The smell only bothers me and my wife, not my mom and dad

I heard others complain about strange smells inside Maruthi cars that nauseate people.

But I never had any issues while driving or being a passenger in other cars

[Games Goblin]

Try this product as per instructions in the video and report back

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XmgwL741IM

Regards