Burning Rubber Smell in the Cabin...?

[VinnAY]

I was inside my car yesterday changing out my winter wheel and tire setup and gave it the visual inspection. No leaks, no tire rubs, nothing going on the L front to give any indication of cause of the smell.

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[foghat]

This happens to me from time to time as well. Not a consistent thing at all, I can go a month or more without the smell and then have it for a couple or more days in a row.

I only smell it when I am sitting at the light (idling) or I can also smell it under the hood if I get out of the car. I have no leaks that I can see.

I've been trying to narrow it down when this occurs and the only thing that seems relatively consistent is the ambient temp. While I can't be 100% certain, it only seems to happen when the temp is just above freezing - 2 to 10 C (35-50f) or so. And does not necessarily happen all the time at these temps.

 

[TheLion]

I still haven't found any source either. Doesn't seem to be any oil consumption all though I just started tracking it recently. I do hear more ticks and taps with Penzoil Ultra Platinum 5W-20 GTL oil, however I'm not really concerned about mechanical noise unless it's something very out of the ordinary.

Since switching over there are fewer occurrences where I can smell the burning oil smell, so I'm wondering if maybe it's vaporization burning in the cats? Possibly an exhaust leak or a very small and slow oil drip? That might explain why it's seemingly random and somewhat infrequent. Maybe it's normal, maybe now, but given I have a 100k power-train warranty I'll just keep a periodic eye on it like I do all my cars and enjoy driving it.

Definitely going to leave this engine stock until the warranty is up and it's paid off! Not worth the risk if you ask me when the car makes such great power as it comes from the factory. The Ecoboost was another story though, it just wasn't enjoyable to drive stock :(. But I love the GT :ford:

 

[offcamber]

A small exhaust leak could be the issue as you mentioned. If the outdoor temps are cold enough you can start the car and look underneath. It’s quite easy to see wisps of condensed exhaust. If the temps are warmer you can plug one side of your exhaust and run a shop-vac in reverse (blow) up the other tailpipe. You can see and feel for leaks in the exhaust connections which may have loosened up over time. Of course don’t run the GT while using the shop-vac!

 

[Hogie]

I just noticed this smell yesterday....no obvious leaking fluids and I just ran out of bumper to bumper warranty. It seems to happen when i have the heater on with the blower at low. It doesn't smell any stronger with blower on full. The belts don't seem to be getting toasty either.

 

[Ruiner46]

I have this same issue, but it only seems to happen when I drive in the rain.

 

[Count Drunkula]

Just read through this thread with interest. I have a RH drive 5.0 GT with manual shift and for the first time got the burning rubber smell the other day. Car has about 4k miles on it. I did a reasonably long trip of about 140miles doing about 70 miles an hour. Didn't notice it at all when driving, but when stopped it was there, very much a burning rubber smell. No odd sounds, no warning lights, no smoke, nothing other than the smell. Drove the car again today only about 20 miles, but fully up to temperature and no smell at all. Checked the engine bay and all round the car. Nothing.
Does anyone know what's going on here?
I'm doing a longer trip tomorrow, so will be interesting to see if the smell returns....

 

[The_Fireball]

Hi all;

Very much the same here. I drive a right hooker, and had the same smell the other day for the first time. Key similarities with what I've read here are:

• Just come off a long motorway journey (2h+)
• Most apparent when stopping at a set of lights having come off the motorway 10-15mins beforehand
• Smells of burning rubber
• Had been utterly tipping down with rain for the whole journey
• Completed around 3000 miles since new

Was probably the first time I'd driven it in such bad rain for so long, so I wonder if it's something stinking as the water quenches it. Brakes/Cat/usual suspects.

Very keen to find the culprit!

 

[Count Drunkula]

Hi all;

Very much the same here. I drive a right hooker, and had the same smell the other day for the first time. Key similarities with what I've read here are:

• Just come off a long motorway journey (2h+)
• Most apparent when stopping at a set of lights having come off the motorway 10-15mins beforehand
• Smells of burning rubber
• Had been utterly tipping down with rain for the whole journey
• Completed around 3000 miles since new

Was probably the first time I'd driven it in such bad rain for so long, so I wonder if it's something stinking as the water quenches it. Brakes/Cat/usual suspects.

Very keen to find the culprit!

Interesting...
Well, I made my exact same 140mile trip the other day and it rained hard for part of it and this time no smell at all.
Apart from the rain, everyting else was pretty much as before, route, speeds etc. So go figure...
I'm wondering if it's beacause I had the 1st service done the other day and maybe some oil was spilt on something that gets hot. Having said that, it didn't smell like oil, smelt like rubber.
Let's see if it does it again...

 

[rum_punch_ruby]

Mine just went away on its own. Never determined what it was really. Take a look around for any leaks as mentioned here and if you don't see anything and its running fine don't worry about it,

 

[import111]

I thought brake fluid flush would fix my issue. Did not. Still burning smell when I stop. If I downshift and dont use brakes the smell does not happen.

 

[Mavro]

I took the car to the dealer and they found a valve gasket leak. Now there is no smell and smoke. Luckily it was covered under warranty. Hope it doesn't happen again anytime soon.

I took my 2018 EcoBoost today to the dealer and they said it has the same issue. Car only has 20 000 miles. Has this issue come up again with your Mustang?

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