GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

2010 Pontiac Vibe with 500 mile on it ! Many times when I start the car there is a sharp smell (like the one from battery, acid one) which keep like 10-30 seconds. What could be ?

New car smell? Catalytic Converter?

Yup, most likely new cat converter smell. Usually a sulphur dioxide (rotten eggs) kind of smell but slightly metallic.

I test drove a 2007 Vibe w/ 41k mi at the beginning of the week. When we first started driving I noticed a slight smell of rotten egg. The person I was with thought that I was nuts. We are planning on buying the car on Friday after we have it checked by a mechanic. Does that smell mean there is something wrong with the car? Is it something that the mechanic could check during the used car inspection? Thx!

Quote, originally posted by Didi »I test drove a 2007 Vibe w/ 41k mi at the beginning of the week. When we first started driving I noticed a slight smell of rotten egg. The person I was with thought that I was nuts. We are planning on buying the car on Friday after we have it checked by a mechanic. Does that smell mean there is something wrong with the car? Is it something that the mechanic could check during the used car inspection? Thx!http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=8344

Hmmm, I still get from time to time, last a few seconds, a sharp smell, like sulfur or something...I don't know what could cause that !?

Were you running the A/C just before shutting off the car? Keep in mind that although it isn't indicated, it always runs in Defog mode as well.I've noticed in mine that I'll get quite a stench out of the vents when first started if I had used the A/C just before shutting off the car. I'm not sure if it's something growing on the evaporator coil from the water left in there or what. I had a Neon I bought new back in 1994 that did the same thing. I found that as long as I shut the A/C off at least 3-5 minutes before turning the car off I usually wouldn't get the smell.If it's from the exhaust outside the car - then I've noticed that my '09 stinks a bit on startup as well. I'm sure that isn't much different for most cars though. We're just used to the newer cars running so much cleaner that it stands out more than it used to. Until the cat heats up, it's likely to smell a bit.In the summer I take my '65 Valiant to a large Mopar show here in Ontario (Moparfest) - which typically draws in more than 1,500 show cars. You should smell what it's like sitting in line trying to get out of there at the end of the day - with most of the vehicles being "pre-emission control" built. Mine only has 1 emissions related feature - a PCV valve. It's the ones that are heavily "modded" that are especially nasty to be following though...John

Well, the smell doesn't last too much so it is ok but I was woandering what would cause that. If it is from exhaust then for sure it is front exhaust