Musty or Mildew odor

[dgiff]

We've had the 2015 Genesis since June 2015. Toward the end of July we began to notice everyday a musty/mildew odor every time we turn on the AC.

We took it to the dealer for service (Sept 2015) and the advisor first said he did not notice the smell. My response was if you do nothing, it is coming back again for the same problem. I requested he let the car sit for a few hours and smell it again. Which he did and said this time he did smell a slight odor. He also said (new dealer > 6 months) that he had never had this issue before. His recommendation was a air freshener. I said not is not a solution.

The Service advisor said the mechanic did check for moisture under the passenger area and noticed nothing. They also checked the line, some water does puddle under the car. He changed the filter and said lets see if that works.

Changing the cabin filter did not fix the smell.

Last night, in a 30 minute ride running the AC, the smell never seemed to go away. Thing is, this has NEVER happened to any car I owned?? Same climate, same garage, same, same.. Indiana..Why one car and not the other?

I see this link..
http://genesisowners.com/hyundai-genesis-forum/showthread.php?t=16354

I tried this...
- I ran full blast the heater and let the car run for 15-30 minutes. Did not work.

Note.. we had the AC set mostly on Auto.. so I notice outdoor air is coming in.. going to start cracking the window in the garage too.. but why should I do this??

I am not excited about spraying "Lysol directly into the I take for 30 seconds."

Any ideas?

what about this? this is instructions.. Just not sure before I do this please comment if you have done this before.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0XCt50-V_Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzYlp9dm7AI

 

[OneFunGenesis]

Good Day,

I have done something very similar to this and it is the best way to go. When I worked for a dealership and we turned around smokers cars, we used the ultrashield ordor eliminator but the way we used it was by turning on the AC full blast, setting it to recirculate, spray the product liberally inside and let the car run, sealed up for about 30 mins. It almost always did the trick

 

[dirtyoldman]

Even if there is some water dripping from the drain lines it doesn't mean there isn't a partial clog. Water is pooling somewhere and causing the smell.

I'm assuming there isn't a design defect as not all owners complain about the smell and many here in hot/humid climates.

 

[lobsenza]

My car has not been exposed to sustained heavy rain before I got the cowl repaired. I did not have any issues, but had the repair done because Hyundai recommended it.

 

[Analog]

Lot of people are too busy, dirtyoldman! Usually myself included. Just happened to be catching up and found this thread and the linked one. I'm not at all in a hot+humid climate. When it's hot it's dry and when it's wet it's cold. I've had this problem for the last few months, purchased the car fall of 2014.

I'm not saying everyone has this issue, but A) I've never owned a car that had this smell and there have been quite a few subject to the exact same conditions, and B) Several others have noted the exact same smell.

So it's not like someone with a mild case of road rage took a realllly light revenge on me. On the other hand this is year 1 of a major redesign, exactly the time stuff like this shows up.

What's not clear is the exact conditions that lead to it. Even with apathy accounted for you'd think there'd be more of an uproar if every owner experienced it. So it's subset of owners (who knows how many) and to my knowledge no one has found a true fix, only a workaround that frankly, has me a little nervous to do too.

---

OK, I watched those youtube videos. While I still think it's weird that none of the rest of my vehicles have needed special care, apparently it's not all that strange. I do leave my Genesis with recirc on occasionally. I really try to use fresh air most of the time, but sure, it's sat with recirc on more than a couple times. Never knew I needed to pay attention to it.

Those mechanics seemed like this was an everyday kind of problem, and I'm not seeing any warnings of any kind. So I'll go ahead and give the lysol a try. If that doesn't work I'll try ultrashield, though Amazon doesn't seem to carry it directly so I'm open to other known-good sources.

 

[ksoze]

It may be helpful for those reporting the issue to also report if they have had the cowl replacement completed.

 

[mvpatten]

I'm having the same issue without success in getting it fixed. This seems to be an issue with the car, and not the user.

 

[dgiff]

The latest.. They kept the car for a week but gave me a loaner. They ordered some chemical from Hyundai parts.. sprayed it in and ran it over and over.. Attempted to kill all the odor.. So far, it is not bad. We'll see.

 

[Mark_888]

Even if there is some water dripping from the drain lines it doesn't mean there isn't a partial clog. Water is pooling somewhere and causing the smell.

I'm assuming there isn't a design defect as not all owners complain about the smell and many here in hot/humid climates.

There is obviously a design defect with the car. Way too many people have reported it.

Also, just because the smell "seems" to go away after a few minutes, it is still there, just in lower concentrations. The mildew or fungus is in there somewhere.

 

[Mark_888]

The latest.. They kept the car for a week but gave me a loaner. They ordered some chemical from Hyundai parts.. sprayed it in and ran it over and over.. Attempted to kill all the odor.. So far, it is not bad. We'll see.

It will eventually come back.

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[MoabGen]

http://genesisowners.com/hyundai-genesis-forum/showthread.php?t=17600&highlight=mildew&page=3

See 3:17pm post on 1/20/16

 

[Mark_888]

http://genesisowners.com/hyundai-genesis-forum/showthread.php?t=17600&highlight=mildew&page=3

See 3:17pm post on 1/20/16

I guess you mean this one:
http://genesisowners.com/hyundai-genesis-forum/showpost.php?p=204750&postcount=23

What degree of confidence do you have that the fix is permanent? Seems like a design defect to me.

 

[MoabGen]

Correct, same post I linked to in my last post, but 2 links are fool proof, I guess.

In any case, I was just referencing to another "fix." Can't attest as to whether this or any or method works since I have not experienced the problem yet.

 

[Mark_888]

In any case, I was just referencing to another "fix." Can't attest as to whether this or any or method works since I have not experienced the problem yet.

I doubt that the fix is permanent. The mold and/or mildew can be killed with the right disinfectants, but they will eventually grow back if water is not being drained from the system properly.

 

[T_E]

I had a similar issue and replaced the cabin filter and did the drain line foaming.

Dealer was stumped.

The cause: New wiper blades!

I had installed these and hadn't noticed they had a peculiar odor to them which was being sucked into the car by the intake. It smelled just like mildew.

As the wipers aged, the problem went away!

I hope this may be the source of your issue, but somehow, I doubt it!

Good luck!

 

[Mark_888]

I had a similar issue and replaced the cabin filter and did the drain line foaming.

Dealer was stumped.

The cause: New wiper blades!

I had installed these and hadn't noticed they had a peculiar odor to them which was being sucked into the car by the intake. It smelled just like mildew.

As the wipers aged, the problem went away!

I hope this may be the source of your issue, but somehow, I doubt it!

Good luck!

A lot of rubber products made in China are made from used motor oil, and have that terrible smell.

 

[Alwaysforward]

I had a similar issue and replaced the cabin filter and did the drain line foaming.

Dealer was stumped.

The cause: New wiper blades!

I had installed these and hadn't noticed they had a peculiar odor to them which was being sucked into the car by the intake. It smelled just like mildew.

As the wipers aged, the problem went away!

I hope this may be the source of your issue, but somehow, I doubt it!

Good luck!

You might have stumbled onto something here. We had a Cowl recall recently. I wonder if that was the fix to delect air into the system differently and away from the wipers. Just a thought...

 

[dadsturn]

PLEASE READ: information concerning the mildew smell from the ac

 

[westvibes]

The mildew smell most probably is coming from the mold formation in the a/c's evaporator coils.

 

[dgiff]

Dadsturn.. Did your smell go away? I still have this odor.