[Bellaluna]

I have a 07 New Beetle, and the AC/fan stinks so much when I turn it on, especially when it's just turned on.
I live in bay area in California and My car has a sun roof, it's not a convertible.

VW dealer told me for sure my model doesn't come with a cabin filter. (he checked my VIN number) And when my mechanics opened the dash board, yeah, he found nothing, besides a big whole piece of cotton pad(called filter cover or something?)

dealer said I should do something with airsept(not sure about spelling), spray something to the evaporator to kill the bacteria there might help, but it's $290!!

I'm not sure about:
1. can the cabin filter be installed to my car at all since my car doesn't come with one?
2. Installing a cabin filter will help?
3. Is there any cheaper way to do the spray thing?
4. Is there any better ways to remove the stink?

Thanks. I'm desperate, please help me......
Feel free to email me if you can help, [email protected]
Thank you so much!

 

[jfoj]

Cabin filter or lack there of will not necessarily clean up any odors.

You did not state were you live and if your car has a sun roof or convertible and if the car smells like Crayons??

This is a start.

What the dealer is recommending is a fungicide foam for the AC evaporator coil inside the dash.

My experience is if you can turn your AC compressor off at least 1-2 minutes before you shut the car down and run the fan on high while the compressor is off this can help quite a bit.

But first you need to be 100% sure the smell is from the A/C system and not some other water leak which is VERY common on these cars!

 

[Bellaluna]

Cabin filter or lack there of will not necessarily clean up any odors.

You did not state were you live and if your car has a sun roof or convertible and if the car smells like Crayons??

This is a start.

What the dealer is recommending is a fungicide foam for the AC evaporator coil inside the dash.

My experience is if you can turn your AC compressor off at least 1-2 minutes before you shut the car down and run the fan on high while the compressor is off this can help quite a bit.

But first you need to be 100% sure the smell is from the A/C system and not some other water leak which is VERY common on these cars!

Thanks for the reply!
I live in bay area in California and My car has a sun roof, it's not a convertible. The smell is just very very bad...I don't know how to describe it.

The way you tell me to do, I saw somewhere on this forum and I followed it, I think it is helping. My concern is, if the evaporator is already full of mold, by turning on fan before stopping the car will kill those mold eventually and remove the smell eventually?

I believe the smell is from the fan, because the smell comes from the air from the fan. The smell is better when AC is on. and worst when only fan is on with circulation, and worst whenever the fan or AC just start working.

 

[VDubYah]

1. You can add a filter, you will need the parts from a donor car or order new(used is much cheaper). I beleive that any pre-05 should have the filter holder.
How clean is the area under the dash? These cars catch a lot of leaves etc in that area and it gets wet and stinks.

How are the evporator drains? they are on the firewall on the passenger side. If it's clogged it would leave water in the evaporator.

 

[janitz]

Thanks for the reply!
I live in bay area in California and My car has a sun roof, it's not a convertible. The smell is just very very bad...I don't know how to describe it.

The way you tell me to do, I saw somewhere on this forum and I followed it, I think it is helping. My concern is, if the evaporator is already full of mold, by turning on fan before stopping the car will kill those mold eventually and remove the smell eventually?

I believe the smell is from the fan, because the smell comes from the air from the fan. The smell is better when AC is on. and worst when only fan is on with circulation, and worst whenever the fan or AC just start working.

I'm going to reply in this thread since it is your specific question, and not more in the older thread you posted in earlier.

For your situation I would do the following:

- Inspect the air space in the dash for contaminants. VW didn't remove the filter because it wasn't needed, they removed it because doing so on thousands of cars profits them millions. So the leaves that used to sit on the air filter are now floating around in the dash. Find a DIY on the air filter to get instructions on opening the air spaces in the dash from above.

- Inspect the evaporator, catch tray and drains. This is more work, it's under the dash on the passenger side, not sure on exact steps to get in there.

- Check if your local Home Depot has a product named Moldex. This is a serious mold, mildew, bacteria killing product, used in hospitals even. Spray soak the evaporator and then use a shopvac to suck off the spray and any dirt/crud. I've done this for portable AC with smell and it takes care of things.