Sg45

I definitely have a problem!

When I drive my SL in the rain (like real rain, not just a sprinkle) for an hour or two, something is getting wet up inside the car. Because about 48 hours later, my interior smells just like a cat crawled in the car and took a big ol' pee in there! In fact, it's so bad and so much like cat ****, my current wife thought that maybe my ex-wife came over and dumped cat pee in the car in the middle of the night. (My ex is kind of bat sh*t crazy, so it's not out of the realm of possibilities!) But it's not her, I'm sure.

Worse part is it takes like 30 days to dry out and go away. I immediately changed the cabin air filters (not it) and have been desperately trying to figure this out. I am assuming that it's either the spray under the car that is coming in through a broken cover/seal of some kind or one of the air intakes is pulling moisture in and it is creating mold. Given how overwhelming it is, I don't think it's just a few drops!

Any body have this problem!? (not with the ex, with the car - I know lots have the ex problem).

Any advice is very much appreciated. Damn cats...

alx

Did you buy the car new?

coldwell

first , what part is getting wet , inside carpet , trunk floor carpet??
You would first find that out , then we can walk you though diag.

EXECMALIBU

As I remember the Cat **** smell was when left in the sun...

JonMBZ

If it's wet rugs you should probably have it sterilized/detailed to kill the mold. If it's coming through the vents the dealer can spray the evaporator housing with a strong disinfectant called contracept. That is what I had done on my car. Stole this pics from another forum because I think we are not allowed to link from competitors. I would suggest getting the dealer to locate the leak as they may have more info on where it may be leaking from.

Benz-O-Rama

Wet trunk is the usual suspect.

Sg45

I have never been able to find any wet carpet anywhere! I have basically pulled the car apart (like a DEA agent searching for drugs) and I can't find any wet carpet (although I agree it sounds like a wet carpet kind of problem).

And to answer the other question, no I didn't buy it new. I bought it in '09 with 12,000 miles on it. However, this problem has only started in the last year or so.

alx

If it smells like cat **** it is usually just that...

jrgator

I've seen it when a cat climbs on it an pees in the vent area between the windshield and the hood. Is the car left outside?

Sg45

Ok, I can guarantee it's not cat pee. It just smells like cat pee.

Car is garaged every night. It's definitely something connected to rain and something getting wet.

coldwell

I think you should check heating and AC system like jonmbz suggested . See if you smell it coming out of the ducts After each rain.
Or try and duplicate it by spraying water on car with a hose.

mercedes4ever

Q: What is it like after you have washed it? Do you get the same smell? You said you changed the cabin filters, have you changed the a/c filter under the hood?
Leaf's & debris caught in drain holes on various parts of the vehicle can partially block & become rotten causing weird smells also.
Try Liqui Moly Klima Fresh also, refer vid....

sound 8

I bet it is the air con. You can get a air con cleaner, what you can smell
is old bacteria especially when you turn it off, and leave it parked for a few days.

amok55amg

I will bet on the aircon too ….. but when talking about smells ….. my car is from 2003 and it smells still like a new car … it actually smells so good that home girl have some of her friends sticking their heads in for a quick smell ….. …. makes me wonder if it’s possible to buy “Mercedes Benz New Car Odor” on a can …

Narwal

I'm still suspecting the ex-wife. Try making her cat "go away" and see if the problem persists. (-;

coldhammer

I had this problem for a while before i figured it out. In my case water was leaking into the trunk and the grey foam stuff under the carpet was getting wet. You couldn't really open the trunk and smell it but with the car closed up overnight the smell would permeate the cabin.

Until i got the trunk leak fixed i would leave the rear trunk open and pull out whatever foam pieces that could be removed and let it all air out overnight. after drying out the foam could be put back in and there would be no smell.

iownit

Car smells like cat ****? mine too, it's an e350. Its a leak in the trunk. Check the gasket on the trunk lid itself. Mine smelled like ****, couldn't figure out why. After every rain storm I would have water in my spare tire well. Got tired of looking 'til the other day after it rained. Opened the trunk, where the latch mechanism is, water came out. Didn't ever think much of it really. Took off the plastic cover on the base of the trunk lid, six or eight torx screws, and followed the leak up the side of the trunk. Come to find out, where the upper trunk panel connects to the lower trunk panel(on the underside of trunk) there is a 1" X 3" rubber gasket that prevents the water from running between the two panels, subsequently allowing water to penetrate into the trunk. I couldn't order the gasket, MB parts man tells me "it's made into the trunk", BS, because I can see where it tore off, or the adhesive let go. Going to use foam rubber gasket but would like to replace with original equipment. if I could figure out how to upload the photo, I could show you better. Good Luck

bzliteyear

Thx for video - it sounds pretty good.
Does this work for SMELLY air when I have regular vent AFTER turning off the AC? The air appears fine when AC is one, and only when I turn it off does it smell funky. Thx in advance from anyone who's used this product.
PL