Used Car Smell

[Hikarispeed]

I was wondering if you guys had bought your used car that had a bad odor in it. I didn't notice any smells until after I bought the car and left it in the sun. What are good products that removes the odor? I have tried washing all the seats and carpet, but no luck yet with that.

[thelinja]

Car fresheners! (http://www.yankeecandle.com/cgi-bin/ycbvp/searchResults.jsp?search=car)

[S13SilviaGirl]

mmmm car freshners! I like the one you can get a Mitsua. They come in a can....damn it I forgot their name. But they smell yummy! Also, try carpet fresh, the foam kind from like wal-mart or the grocery store(one that isn't on strike)...those work pretty good too!

[240Degrees]

it's good to steam vac first though. my car smelled like sweat when i got it and when i steam vaccumed it, a lot of brown yuckiness got sucked up. The odor went away and then i used an air freshener. it kinda irks me to just toss an air freshener in there. i think of someone else's 10 year old sweat all over my seats.

oh yea the mitsuwa ones are squash flavored. i love it when i get a brand new air freshener. especially when i go out with my friends or a date and i come out of my car smelling all JDM HAWTNESS! :yum:

[twitchy]

i bought this cool professional grade car freshener stuff, comes in a liter bottle and you mix it 10 percent with water. Its a clear oily substance and you mix it and put it in a spray bottle. They use it in detail shops. You spray it onto the carpets after you vacum and it smells exactly like when you get into a brand new car that has leather seats! Its wicked! (they have new car smell if you dont have leather.)

[240Degrees]

do you know what its called, twitchy? i wanna try it out :)

[tougebear]

The can air fresheners are called Shaldan. The squash ones smell good but doesn't last quite as long.

But anyways, I recommend taking the seats off and the center console off before vacuuming and then steam vacuuming the hell out of it.

[97DubTruck]

this is a little off topic but when i was looking at cars a few monthes ago most used nissans all smelled the same. the ones i looked at were all kept up very well so maybe that is what they should all smell like if kept clean. all my friends 240s and even my buddys dads 2001 xterra smell like mine. weird but i like it. :rawk:

[Dousan_PG]

mine was HORRIBLE
so i got s14 seats
bad smell...GONE 100%

[aznpoopy]

Originally posted by 97DubTruck
this is a little off topic but when i was looking at cars a few monthes ago most used nissans all smelled the same.

no way man! lol. there are three kinds of used car smell, at least in my experience. the first is the semi-ricer boy always had a car freshner in the car smell. usually this will cover up a minor smoker smell in the car. its kind of pleasant and nauseating at the same time. the second smell is the non-smoker normal used car smell. funky and fresh. the third smell is the no air freshner ever smoked all the time but tried to cover it up before i sold the car smell. like someone dumped a bottle of febreeze and perfume in the car. smells like cigarette smoke mixed with a perfume store.

btw my car used to smell like #3. i made it go away by using 3 products. the first was a typical mitsuwa 'jdm' air freshner, complete with packaging that i can't read. the second was the mitsuwa spray into your vents smell killer. it works GOOD for those smells that keep coming back. the third is a scented deodorizer spray you're supposed to use for houses and stuff (like febreeze but stronger). leave it in overnight with the windows a bit down. do not drive with it lingering in the air... u will get high or nauseous or both.

[240_keyy]

lol, when I bought my second one, I think a family of cats had been living in it for a few years, it smelled like pus... :D

j/k more like dog a55 :D

[TurDz]

A used car's smell usually has to do with how regularly it was cleaned. When I received a 96 Maxima (non-leather) back in 2002, it still really smelled like it was just driven off of the dealership lot.

The guy what religious when it came to interior cleaning and care. Every few months or so he'd simply use some carpet/uphostery cleaner or Woolite and scrub the seats, and occasionally clean the carpet. He was a non-smoking and I doubt he ever ate in the car.

Well, that type of care paid off. I continued that regimen and it smells great. Too bad my 240 didn't come with a very great smell though... so I also recommend as others have, that cleaning the carpet/upholstery can do a good job on removing lingering smells. Be sure to scrub well and use a strong wet/dry vac to suck up all of the dirty water.

[S13SilviaGirl]

ewwww or the other bad smell....someone that has only eaten fast food in their car and left the bags of crumbs in the back seat. When I worked for goodyear a while back, we had a few of these cars come in. Bad smell...no good!

[hondaguy]

when i bought mine it smelled like fried sh** or something,but i just spray hella air freshener in there and it kinda took the oder away but it should really be gone when i put my new seats in cuz thats where i think its coming from