Stinky Car A/C?

[Czech]

So my wife's Beetle's A/C smells like mildew when she runs it, I thought I recalled seeing a quick fix here? Thanks.

 

[d.n.f.]

I was told by a mechanic that you should run your ac once a month winter or summer. Since I have been doing that the weird ac smells are no more.

 

[Highbeam]

Run aerosol lysol room freshener through the system. Blower on high and spray into the vent intakes beneath the windshield. I would run it though the heater and the AC by switching the controls. Concentrate on the AC side though. What's happening is the condensation that forms on that cold evaporator grows some funk. It's a wet, dark environment that warms up when you shut the engine off. The fresh air from outside drops lots of organic food on the wet evaporator which feeds the bugs.

Pretty nasty environment.

Can we assume that the condensate drain is working? Does it drip water when using the A/C?

In the winter, your AC gets run by using the defrost control selection on your HVAC. Most every modern automobile cycles the AC compressor whenever the defrost setting is selected whether you like it or not. This has the benefit of keeping the compressor lubed and free. Not so much benefit for keeping the funk at bay.

 

[velvetfoot]

I did a search: http://www.billswebspace.com/vw.tb.87-06-01musty_odor_from_heating_and_vent_system.pdf

I had that on a BMW we used to have.
It was still under warranty, and they used some mango-smelling stuff in there and it worked and smelled good for years after that.

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Agree with the lysol in the intake vents....have the same problem on our 2005 Honda.
Also, you might check to see if their is a cabin air filter on the car..ours had one and it was downright nasty...was appx $15 to replace...smell is gone