[aupilot]

Hello, I have a 2011 Cruze, bought it with 20 miles from the dealer a few weeks ago and now have about 200 miles on the car. It is a LS model with 6 speed manual transmission and bluetooth package.

I have been noticing that after my car has been driven and parked in the garage, I notice a bad burning smell coming from the car when walking back into the garage about 15 minutes after the car has been shut down. The smell lingers in the garage for hours.

Can this be a new car burning smell of all the new parts in the engine/transmission as it is getting broken in? I also thought maybe it could be the clutch since it is a manual transmission? I am confident that I am not 'slipping' the clutch when driving as I have had many manual transmissions in the past and never had any problems with burning smells. I always keep my foot on the floor and not resting on the clutch pedal. I also shift swiftly and ensure the clutch is fully released when traveling down the road.

I am puzzled and worried as a brand new car with 200 miles should not already be having problems with something burning up inside the engine compartment somewhere.

 

[jakkaroo]

motor breaking in still give it time its fine unless it smells like burnt oil

 

[GSDB]

Hey Pilot,

I've had my car about 3 weeks and have about 900 miles on my manual Eco and I noticed the same smell for the first couple weeks. I didn't smell like clutch to me, more like warm plastic. If I had to guess, it could be some of the underbody paneling that is just letting off some odor when it heats up, but I never worried too much about it. The smell is pretty much gone and now all I have left is the new car smell on the inside.

Greg

 

[SBK15]

My clutch stunk for awhile for the frist couple of days, guess just getting broke in. Esp if I had to slip it real bad to get up the driveway

 

[cruze 2011]

ditto my car did the same thing when i got it the smell does go away i thought it might have been the blower motor myself because i noticed more when i had the blower on , but everything is new and breaking in so its nothing to worry about .

 

[aupilot]

TThanks everyone. Very helpful. The smell is like burning rubber or plastic so I'm hopeful this is just a break-in smell because its very noticeable in the garage. I've checked all around the engine for leaks or debris that may have fallen in the engine compartment during production. All seems to be in place.

On a seperate note, it rained yesterday and I noticed water dripping out of a black flapper device on the inside of the engine compartment firewall. Is this water draining from the bottom of the windshield? Seems strange for water to drip inside the engine compartment on top of the plate under the engine. Seems like water will collect in this area and rust that plate and area around it over time.

 

[nccruze]

I'll add one more ditto. I have an LS manual and had that smell for several hundred miles. I'm at 1200 miles now and it seems to be over.

 

[Silver RS]

Yes Pilot,
My Cruze has 270 miles on it and it is getting better already.

 

[luv2cruze]

I also had that smell coming from my AT ECO for the first few hundred kms. I'm just over 1000kms now, and it's gone. Kinda sad actually, cause that smell means NEW!

 

[ChevyCruzeLTZ]

My guess is it's from the Catalytic Converter. They have a coating from the factory that smells real bad when it burns off.

 

[aupilot]

Interesting comments. Thanks. I called the dealer and they say they get about 3 calls a week about this. But he is saying it is most likely a grocery plastic bag that is stuck on the exaust system somewhere and needs to be scraped off with a wire brush? I find it hard to beleive that Cruze owners are prone to getting grocery bags attached to their exaust systems when driving down the road, but who knows??

 

[CHEVYCRUZE RS]

yeah. i noticed the same smell to only for the first week. Its normal for cars even when i bought my Z06 i noticed the exact same smell.

 

[gfxdave99]

Ive had mine for about 5 weeks now and the smell is gone most of the time. The only time i notice is if i work the car harder then normal before coming to a stop i still get some burn off smell. Nothing to worry about.

 

[aupilot]

Well, I think I may have found part of the problem with the burning smell coming from my new Cruze. I got underneath the car and noticed there is a giant bar code sticker affixed to the cataytic converter/exaust area. Makes me wonder if this came from the factory that way, or did the dealer install this after delivery prior to selling to me? I can't imagine that it would need to be replaced after only 20 miles (that is how many the car had on it when I purchased it). Or does all new cars come with this sticker attached and dealer is supposed to scrape it off prior to the sale (whoch could be another "good" reason why dealer love to charge that $299 or higher "prep fee"!

 

[ChevyMgr]

ALL cars and trucks have this smell new. It will go away.

 

[twin1987]

Worked at a dealer for 5 years through college. Did hundreds of new car preps and they all smelled like that, some more than others depending on how hard they are worked.

Ryan

 

[itsbmw]

theres a weird silicon sealant they use on some engine components when they leave the factory, that smell is it burning off, it'll go away after a couple of weeks.

Source: Service dept. at my dad's chevy dealer. My mom and dad get Demo vehicles and every single one has that smell when they first get a new one.

 

[Abhishek39]

I have a cruze. I drove it for about 300 kms. 50 of which were uphill. When I parked the car, I could smell something burning. the smell was similar to plastic or rubber burning.

I checked the tyres, the exhaust. But could not find anything. The smell comes from above the front tires. The bonnet of the car is warm but not hot. However, the side fenders above the front tyres are hot. This is the place where i suspect the smell originates from.

I was worried abt the chevy and now my fears are coming true. Hopefully it aint anyting major. Can someone help

 

[72buickgs]

it is only the coatings and any paint that has been oversprayed onto those parts that run hot which includes the engine and exhaust system from the block to the tailpipe. the smell will fade away the more miles u drive.

 

[Cruzemeister]

I have a cruze. I drove it for about 300 kms. 50 of which were uphill. When I parked the car, I could smell something burning. the smell was similar to plastic or rubber burning.

I checked the tyres, the exhaust. But could not find anything. The smell comes from above the front tires. The bonnet of the car is warm but not hot. However, the side fenders above the front tyres are hot. This is the place where i suspect the smell originates from.

I was worried abt the chevy and now my fears are coming true. Hopefully it aint anyting major. Can someone help

I can help... test drive a few different new cars on a good "workout" and then park in an enclosed area like a garage. Then catagorize the individual odors that are created by a new Chevy, Ford,Toyota,Honda, etc.
After catagorizing the various burn off smells, sit back and ask yourself if your concerns were all for nothing. I worry about Chevy too.... I worry that they will give in to the prsessures of the new age order, resulting in the softening of the Corvette. I dream of owning one someday and would hate to find that it would become a hybrid or worst yet - electric. Speaking of which, where does everybody think electric power comes from? The Electric Fairy? Global concerns about Nuke plants and we all think an electric car would be a greener car. And where does Honda think pressureized natural gas comes from? Right again! The Natural Gas Fairy! Oh...no... it comes from raping the Earth even worse than oil drilling! Where are those *%*^$*% extraterrestrials when you need them? Oh, right... we probably don't want their help - no profit in cheap sustainable power sources.....
Sorry for the rant. I was just trying to help.
New rubber,paint,coated metals,brake linings,silicones, etc. will smell when hot.