I have seemed to notice that my car interior has a strange "scent". After I drive in the car for maybe an hour or so.. my clothes seem to pickup a HORRIBLE roadkill/ ware-wolf smell. I have leather seats, is there anything I can do to get this smell out of my car? I have used Lexol on the seats... but that is more for preserving the leather. Any ideas?

Kevin

P.S. I swear it isn't my BO... I don't know if the previos owners let there dogs drive or something... only public restrooms can describe this smell.

--
1980 244DL, 1982 245GL, 1987 744GLE, 1991 245SE, 1996 855GLT, 2001 V70

Just a little thing, since some have asked... this car is my 1991 245se, and I JUST got done taking out ALL the carpet, pads, etc. I bleached the pads and used ivory liquid on the carpet. SOMEBODY spilled a half cup of cappacino on my e-brake thing....IT WAS EVERYWHERE!!!! But the car was smelling really good, and the smell issue is with the seat... not the carpet...

kevin
--
1980 244DL, 1982 245GL, 1987 744GLE, 1991 245SE, 1996 855GLT, 2001 V70

Sorry I thought the car reeked in general and was not your seat in particular...I guess I could have save a bunch of typing. The walrus not paul speaks big truth - milky sweet coffee drink spillage will go sweaty crotch ripe in a few hot day/weeks in your car....
--
www.fidalgo.net/~brook4

If it is REAL cappuccino and it is still in there it will develop a
sour milk odor that intensifies as it dries, at least for the first
few months. If you can clean it all out you will be doing yourself a
big favor!
--
George Downs, The "original" Walrus3, Bartlesville, Oklahoma

I don't want to drone on about it and I am not associated with them but use the leatherique products. They will float out all of the crap that has impregnated the leather plus moisturize it.
--
90 744ti, airbox, K/N, G-Valve, VDO, modified exhaust.

Definitely stop using lexol in the humid months. Also neatsfoot oil smells like crap and maybe someone used that at one time. You could even saddle soap the seats to really get the odor out, then treat it with a single part treatment like Meguiars or one of those. Usually those treatments do a decent job of putting moisture back into the leather.

If you're really stumped, yank the seat, pull the seat cover off (you have to undo all the hog rings) and see why it smells. Maybe someone spilled something on the seat. Most tanned leather smells pretty good when it is tanned, and takes on kind of a wet dog smell if it's too humid or has been treated with something that smells bad. Humidity makes it twice as bad. Consider driving with the A/C on more. It really helps.
--
1992 940 wagon, 77k
as well as others.

Well... I will try to get to super-cleaning the seats this weekend. At least it doesn't spell as bad as the covers on our 850. NEVER USE REAL SHEEP-SKIN!!!! We always used the 850 when we went biking, so when we finished we would sit down on the seats... well... Sweat from biking + SHEEPSKIN= ROADKILL PARTY ON BACK!!!!

kevin
--
1980 244DL, 1982 245GL, 1987 744GLE, 1991 245SE, 1996 855GLT, 2001 V70

The only leather care product I would recomend is made by leatherique.com. Most products (including Lexol) contain heavy oil fillers. Saddle soap can dry the leather.
Go to the site and check it out.
--
90 744ti, airbox, K/N, G-Valve, VDO, modified exhaust.

works great!

As for your car, I assume it's the 82??

OK I'm thinking it's festering carpet padding. That foam is like a sponge...well ok it is a sponge....but it comes complete preinocculated with mold spores. Vole rotting, wolf mating, "inconvienced" takwan girlfriend eating smells....require fast and thorough action. Send girlfriend my way.

Then take all your seats out.

Remove carpet.

Remove pads - this stuff will NEVER dry in the car - well maybe if you live in the Mojave desert...but then again it would get wet there either.

Stop whining, it's not that hard.

Vacuum carpet, treat with PetZyme (pet enzyme cleaner shit from PetCo/PetWorld/PetsRUs - works great), THEN Shampoo carpet allow to throughly dry and vacuum again.

While carpet is drying, find and fix leaks that allowed water in.

Scrape foam from thick sound deadening rubber like stuff. (good stuff) Wash that with simple green.

Buy some mold resistant aluminum mylar coated space age made from ground up rags insulation stuff from JC Whitney. Buy some sheets of sound deadening stuff or find the most dense/heavy FLAT rubber flool mats to use under the carpet.

Clean and treat seats which may require complete foam removal and cleaning/replacement.

When all bits are dry and clean - find and remove that pair of panties stuffed above the sunvisor. Then reinstall interior.


--
http://www.fidalgo.net/~brook4/oilslubesfilters.html

If the stink turns out to be in the carpet, trunk etc, there's some stuff called Odo-Ban sold at industrial supplies and Sams club. it will get rid of the funky stench (unless of course it really is your BO.... I wouldnt recomend this stuff as an underarm deodorant)

------Robert

Lexol smells like a manure pile anyway. I doubt that would help.

Go to that 24hr Mega Wally World and get some Tanner's Preserve leather treatment. Buy both parts and use them. It smells better. Go heavy on the cleaner with plenty of water and soap. Nice for your best leather outerwear as well (very subdued smell but very nice). Sometimes leather gets a weird smell and the worst part is that your own perspiration, however minor, draws the smell into your clothes from the seating surfaces.

If you can't find Tanner's Preserve, the shoe care dept. always has Kiwi saddle soap. Forget what the old curmudgeons will say in response to this, you CAN use it, just re-treat the leather with something that introduces more moisture at a later date. It works and it smells fantastic. I've used it on a whole heap of cars, Volvo, Lexus, Toyota, Ford, to name a few. Works nice on vinyl too and removes filth that you thought would never come out. Also 245 headliners. Then later you can pick up some better leather treatment for the long run that restores some of the moisture.

Next, find out if the carpets are wet anywhere. The floor pans can hold moisture and that utterly reeks. If so? Wet vac, then Blue Coral Dri-Clean (sp?), scrub, and wet vac again.

Last, use the A/C as much as possible at night before parking the car, until it is too cold for that. The dryness stays overnight and keeps the car smelling really fresh. Humid weather makes it worse. So do wet floormats.
--
1992 940 wagon, 77k
as well as others.

Bad metaphor - Wolves, like dogs, don't sweat. (They do have scent glands,
like dogs {and skunks and ferrets}though.) In other words they can stink
without sweating. A hormonal experience tends to further the process.
I'm sure this distinction is of tremendous importance to you at this point--
Sorry, couldn't resist. Looks like you have some good suggestions.
There are also pet scent removing air fresheners that might be worth a try.
Check your local place that deals in carpet cleaning materials or your local
veterinarian.
--
George Downs, The "original" Walrus3, Bartlesville, Oklahoma

I know your pain... you have my sympathy! Had two similar problems with our 240. The first was a spilled gallon of milk in the trunk, Fabreeze and a good vacuuming took care of the rotten milk stench. The second was a "dead wolf carcass" type smell. As it turns out, a rather large rodent, also known as a Vole (looks like a Hamster but is the size of a rat) had gotten into the car, climbed into the center console (Heater core/A/C /fan area) and croaked! It might be worth your time to pull the side panels off the center console and take a look in there. After removing the remains and impailing them on the antenna (just kidding), it took a full bottle of Fabreeze on all cloth surfaces and finally a wet-vac to clear the stench.

If all else fails, 465 air conditioning and a clothes pin on the nose works great!

Later,
John
1990 240DL Sedan Auto

Well if it works in the fridge, try sifting baking soda all over the carpet, then vacuum in a day or so. And since I think the stuff only reacts with vinegar youll probably be safe unless you drop your italian dressing.(hehe)

It sounds like, from what you said, that it is comming from the leather seats so you might want to get in the yellow pages and call a leather cleaning company. Like one that cleans leather coats.

good luck, lenny