That unique VW smell....?

[swat253]

Last November I bought my daughter an immaculate '02 Beetle with very low miles. I traced the owner history back to the mid-west. It was owned by an affluent "lady" who apparently only drove it to and from the golf course in the country club community she lives in. It still had that new car smell; but it was very similar to "CRAYONS". Daughter and all her friends thought it was cool that her new car smelled like crayons.

Well, now it's nearing the end of summer and that new car smell has gotten almost to the point of being unbearable. My wife walked past the car when my daughter came home from school the other day and she detected the "heavy aroma" of body spray emitting from the Beetle. (She immediately assumed our daughter was attempting to conceal something; cigarettes or worse!) Daughter claimed the "crayon" smell was getting too strong and she was only trying to mask it.

Last week I went by the school and switched cars with my daughter so I could get the annual inspection and oil changed on my day off. The crayon smell irritated my nostrils and eyes after driving it for less than 30 minutes.

Anyone else have similar experiences with a "crayon" smell?

[redbarronbug]

Hello:

Hope this helps. I also had that smell in my new Beetle. I had a similar smell when I owned a Honda years ago & was concerned because I had problems with the air conditioner & radiator in that vechicle. I brought it to the VW dealership where I bought it & asked them If I should be concerned. They said that the airconditioner in the New Beetles need to be broken in on the new cars. That the smell should go away the more I use it. They also recommended that I keep the defrost vent open & circulate the air when not using the AIR. Keeping the air flow fresh in the car. This helped tremondously. I have had my new Beetle for about 3 months now & the smell is almost gone. I only smell it occasionially when I run the AIR. I hope this helps. Good luck:-) RedbarronBug:-)

[marvins_dad]

Here is a thread from the Old Site that really looks at all the possibilities...

Old Crayon Thread

Here is the tidbit that I had to contribute...




Posted on my local boards by a VW Tech (AtticVIP)

the smell you are smelling is the fire wall in the car. if you look under the dash, you will see a padded material. thats the smell of the crayons. it only happens in some models, but i have smelled it in the cloth beetles as well. i know this because i changed out a whole fire wall with another tech when i first started working for service. the lady couldn't stand the smell and payed for it to be changed out. no, sadly this isn't a warranty item....

[callisto9]

it's a very common problems in NBs. i've had in my used 2001 ever since i bought it 6 months ago. unfortunately, i don't think it ever really goes away, unless you're prepared to some some serious cash and time finding out all where it comes from. fortunately, it doens't bother me. but people can smell it on me when i get out of my car. always seems to be worse on warmer days.

[mentalVdub]

i wish my car smelled like crayons.

[007]

Originally Posted by mentalVdub

i wish my car smelled like crayons.

no you don't. i am the tech that took out the wirewall padding. (atticvip). it stinks sooo bad. there is no fix for this except to replace the padding, and it was expensive. keep the windows down and turn off the a/c 2 blocks before you get home, but keep the fan running. thats all i can say.

jd

[callisto9]

Originally Posted by mentalVdub

i wish my car smelled like crayons.

trust me, no you don't! it gets annoying, but you manage to live with it!

[spdbump2001]

That stinkin' crayon smell is getting unbearable. I'm going to pull that firewall padding out one of these days. I'd do it sooner except I haven't driven the Sport much lately.

[007]

Originally Posted by spdbump2001

That stinkin' crayon smell is getting unbearable. I'm going to pull that firewall padding out one of these days. I'd do it sooner except I haven't driven the Sport much lately.

it's also a sound berrier so make sure you have a new one to put back in. also, the airbags have to be disabled. be carefull.

jd

[overheadcam]

I kinda like my crayon smell, though it's not strong enough to irritate me. Mine's a 2001 and it still has that distinctive aroma. My passengers seem to like it.

[spdbump2001]

Originally Posted by 007

it's also a sound berrier so make sure you have a new one to put back in. also, the airbags have to be disabled. be carefull.

jd

Thanks for the tip! I'm assuming disconnecting the battery is enough to disable the airbags?

[007]

yea, but make sure you have everything grounded when working near them.

jd

[NBTurboFreak]

The crayon smell is the glue used in the padding under the carpet. Only way to get rid of it is to pull the padding out and replace it. I thought 'no way' it would be the padding but I just changed out my whole interior and smelled the padding and i might as well of stuck my nose in a crayon box. One thing about the NB crayon smell is nomatter what you do it is always there.

[Herbie3Rivers]

I know the smell, Elwood doesn't have it, but I've noticed it in VWs with leather and leatherette interiors. I think it's something with the materials they use.

[VW 924 5]

My gf noticed the Crayon smell while test driving every VW (Jetta, Passat, NB) however I never smelt it, instead I noticed the smell of the leather interior. Maybe leave the windows open in the garage with your AC on and than get some air freshner.

[vanessa_m18]

What do you say or think when one's AC does not turn off?? Well you worry and call places to get it fixed. What happens the next day when your air turns off and on...then smoke comes out of the vents and the stereo...you pull over and hope to god you don't die!! Then...her come the flames and the fire department! This is a 1999 Volkwagon Beetle, automatic. The air was fine and happened in the course of less then two days. What could have caused the air to not turn off in the first place. I saw a post that there were fire hazards in beetles from 1999-2001, I never knew until I started researching today and it happened today. My life was in danger, it was the most frightening thing in my life and I believe it was Volkswagon's accidental doing. Just read this.

http://forums.newbeetle.org/showthre...threadid=26315

[crayon_smell]

Hi, I just got a 2001 Beetle and it has that crayon smell. I really don't know what to do about it. It gets in my clothing, my hair, I get headaches, my eyes run, and it smells so toxic.

I've contacted the manufacturer (Volkswagen USA) to get some help, but they said they won't look into "assisting" until I get the problem diagnosed through a dealer. The dealer said it would cost $800-900 to check out the carpet and $300 for the air conditioning. It's very expensive, particularly when I've just bought the car!!!!

I've contacted the better business bureau and filed a claim against VW USA at www.bbb.org. I have also written the New York Times. I am going to write a letter to the law firm that took care of the Firestone tire recall case and see if anything can be done.

I really just want my car to be fixed; I don't want to have to go through all this!

Anyone have any other recommendations as to what else to do!

[marvins_dad]

Did you read this thread?

Check out what I posted...007 is the tech that works for VW that says it is insulation....

[crayon_smell]

Hi, does anyone know how much it will be to replace the firewall and padding through a dealer? Thanks.

[GENETIX RACING]

my car smells like crayons too every since i got it ..... i i i kinda like it over powers the smell of potatos