Antifreeze Smell Thread

[steve333]

GM is basically selling cars with engines with known flaws in them. This should be illegal and there should be a class action lawsuit, IMO. GM has done this many times in the recent past selling Cobalts with known front end and steering issues. The one part of the Cobalt, the engine, that was fairly reliable they stopped producing. Idiots.

[dby2011]

You have to wonder- this really tarnishes a good car. I am struggling with the prospect of getting rid of my 2012 Cruze. After test drving a Focus and Dart (I will only buy domestic) I will be settling if I get rid of the Cruze- for various reasons the Cruze offers more and is a better car then both of them. If I knew that GM improved things for 2013 I would get another Cruze but we just don't know. I notice the latest service bulliten for the new water pump and gasket does not apply to the 2013 models. I also read that someone stated they moved the air intake in the 2013 Cruze so it is away from the coolant reservoir. I really wish the GM CS reps on these forums would get a GM engineer to work with us on these forums and reassure they are actively problem solving this issue.

[Jim Frye]

I am watching to see if the AF Smell problem is corrected like the '11 6T40 bad shifting problem was. GM came out with a second gen. transmission for '12 and there was no fix for the folks that bought a '11 auto Cruze. If Chevy fixes the AF Smell for the '13s and does nothing for prior models, that would be bad. I doubt seriously that Trifecta can tune out the smell like they did with the bad shifting transmission.

Update: I'm going to back track on this a bit. Historically, car companies have made major design errors with certain models and then fixed those issues in later versions with no changes to the earlier deficient designs. Case in point, the first generation Corvair (59 - 64). Chevy used the feeble swing arm rear suspension copied from the early VW beetle. It was a disaster and Ralph Nader made a lot of money publicising it. Chevy sat down and reverse engineered a 911 and brought out the second gen. Corvair which was completely different car handling wise (as well as quality and sporty). However, the damage was done and the market moved on. There was nothing for the folks that bought the first gen version. Perhaps, the second generation Cruze will not have issues like the AF Smell, or the others we have seen documented. Hopefully, the model name will not be ruined by that time. (Cavalier & Cobalt come to mind).

[cerbomark]

I am watching to see if the AF Smell problem is corrected like the '11 6T40 bad shifting problem was. GM came out with a second gen. transmission for '12 and there was no fix for the folks that bought a '11 auto Cruze. If Chevy fixes the AF Smell for the '13s and does nothing for prior models, that would be bad. I doubt seriously that Trifecta can tune out the smell like they did with the bad shifting transmission.

Update: I'm going to back track on this a bit. Historically, car companies have made major design errors with certain models and then fixed those issues in later versions with no changes to the earlier deficient designs. Case in point, the first generation Corvair (59 - 64). Chevy used the feeble swing arm rear suspension copied from the early VW beetle. It was a disaster and Ralph Nader made a lot of money publicising it. Chevy sat down and reverse engineered a 911 and brought out the second gen. Corvair which was completely different car handling wise (as well as quality and sporty). However, the damage was done and the market moved on. There was nothing for the folks that bought the first gen version. Perhaps, the second generation Cruze will not have issues like the AF Smell, or the others we have seen documented. Hopefully, the model name will not be ruined by that time. (Cavalier & Cobalt come to mind).

I don t undertand.... it s leaking or venting somewhere in the system. They can t find it?? Come on. What a confiendence killer.
For all those who had heater core changed, I doubt(in most cases) that s the issue because it smells under hood too. My guess is it s dripping onto something hot a burning and the smell enters the cabin froma underhood area. I m wondering if the heat being on is just pushing the smell further to the driver.? See , I m already wasting too much time thinking about their problem. LOL.

I was watching Top Gear last night and they had three new super cars (100s of thousands of dollars EACH) and while driving on roads (not track) one broke down and couldn t shift. They took the trans down to find the clutch pad all broken up....

[Chevy Customer Service]

I've had the same issue with the coolant smell. dealer noticed that the resevoir was down a bit and finally traced it to a leaking water pump. hopefully that fixes it

Sparks,
I am happy to hear that your dealer has been able to identify your issue. I would like you to keep me posted on this. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me anytime.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service

[Chevy Customer Service]

I have a 2011 Cruze 1.4 with 24000 miles. I had not been on the site often and knew nothing about these posts. Today I thought I smelled anti freeze. Came online to find this is not uncommon for our Cruzes. I had a slight smell inside as it is very cold and heat was on. Also upon opening hood I got a wiff of anti freeze. I was a bit low on coolant but just left it alone at this time to get a baseline. No coolant inside on floors. No leaks detected on underhood inspection. I let it run from cold to hot while looking around for leaks, nothing.

My feelings being a car guy owning dozens of cars, including Corvettes, new Malibu, new Cobalt and many many new GM trucks are as follows. I have been a loyal buyer of new GMs for years. But after reading here I realize that the dealers just don t have the answers for this issue. Like someone said pages back, "I don t think I should have to go to a dealer and explain what I know about the issue only to get a confused look from them". I am 1 hour away from my dealer and leased my Cruze. Don t have time for them to take car in and out only to find no fix and throw parts at the problem. I have not seen any post that show a certain fix. Many have had repairs done only to still have the issue. (Waste of time). If GM wants to practice, they can take my lease back now and spend the time (on their dime) fixing their product. In fact, that would be the only thing at this point that would ever make me look at a GM again.
I feel sorry for the poor person who knows nothing about cars and is breathing in the anti freeze thinking all is sweet!

cerbomark,
I would like to apologize for the issues that you are experiencing with your Cruze. I would like to look into this for you. Can you please send me a PM with your name, address, phone number, VIN, current mileage and the name of your dealer? I look forward to your response.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service

[cerbomark]

Someone posted a pic of a vent tube on the top that the dealer had epoxyed... Mine doesn t have that tube or fitting on the top. Did anyone notice all the condensation on the inside of that tank. I ve never seen this before.. My 911 vents out the cap and I never see this condensation thru the tank... Any ideas or comments on that?

[Bohdan]

On the Cruze the overflow tank is pressurized once it reaches the caps pressure and beyond it releases the air thru the vent tube. As it cools down it draws air back into its self. On my 2012 once the engine is really hot the coolant is at the top of the arrow. After it sits in the morning the coolant is half way down the arrow. Then it heats up again and the coolant is at the top of the arrow once more. I have not losted any coolant yet and have only smelled it once when I got the car and begain running it at that point I had to add 10z of coolant to raise it up. It seems mine still had air in the system when I first bought it and now all seems well . But yet I wonder do I have a Water Pump waiting for that magic moment to let it all flow out or come apart. The more I thing about this the more I believe the Water Pumps are made in China.

[cerbomark]

Took my car in this past Monday to get this fixed a FOURTH time. This time dealer used epoxy for the tube. This seemed to work as it survived a 6 hour round trip yesterday. However, I still smell a strong coolant smell under the hood even with the fix. I attached a pic of the latest fix.Attachment 8823

I have had numerous issues with this Cruze. My problems are summarized here: Advice on how to deal with my Cruze situtation

The coolant issue in particular has been a problem since April 2012 and it took me until Nov 2012 to have it repaired correctly but I am not convinced this is solving the issue as a strong coolant odor is still present in the engine compartment. I am just disgusted by all of this now and have been patient with GM and the dealer through all of this. I am grateful for the extended warranty but that does nothing to help me when I have to keep going back to the dealer and spend time out of my day dealing with repairs, whether they are paid for or not. For those who have 1.4L Cruzes, do you routinely smell coolant if you lift up the hood?

That s the pic,,, mine is different.....????

[cruze2011white]

Actually I think its leaking again. The dealer called and ask me about it and I told the service department like always is very good but it might still be leaking. The lady on the phone said she would let my service advisor know that I might be calling again. I can't see the leak but opening the hood i can see where somehow its leaking on the belts and spraying it on frame and there is a smell.