[herdiamond]

I've been working with my dealer about this smell for 6 months now. Their last comment - wait for it - my aftermarket winter floor mats (that were in my previous car with no issues) are too close to the floor heater vents and were creating the smell. For giggles, I put them in the truck. Same result. I've had the car since Jan 2011 and I didn't notice it the first winter but I noticed it intermittently this past winter. Its been a real pain and the dealer has been no help.

As for the previous comments about the read brakes, I had squeaking from the front pads which turned out to be improper lubrication when the factory installed the brakes. Dealer tried it was a servicing issue however I questioned why the brakes needed serviced well before the scheduled maintenance. They covered the repair under warranty.

 

[SuCraM]

I have a 2011 LT and am having the same antifreeze smell when using the heater and the coolant level is the exact same as your pics. I have mine at the dealership being diagnosed and I have provided them with the turbo issue TSB and hope they will have it all fixed soon. I will post my results as I hear from the dealership.

 

[Jim Frye]

I have a 2011 LT and am having the same antifreeze smell when using the heater and the coolant level is the exact same as your pics. I have mine at the dealership being diagnosed and I have provided them with the turbo issue TSB and hope they will have it all fixed soon. I will post my results as I hear from the dealership.

I find it a bit unnerving that the customer has to tell the dealer service department where to look for service information. Please let us know what transpires.

 

[SuCraM]

I totally agree Jim Frye. Pretty sad I had to tell them where to look to find out whats wrong with the car. I am giving them a chance though as they have been great to me in the past buying other vehicles. Other than the antifreeze smell issue and the hard tranny shifting I still love my Cruze.

 

[limited360]

wow... just wow...

 

[gt_cristian]

I have a 2011 LT and am having the same antifreeze smell when using the heater and the coolant level is the exact same as your pics. I have mine at the dealership being diagnosed and I have provided them with the turbo issue TSB and hope they will have it all fixed soon. I will post my results as I hear from the dealership.

Hi SuCram,
If you are referring to my pictures, please let me know what your dealship will say. I will go see mine on Friday. Today, I could not smell it. I tried a number of heat levels and fan speeds, I tried driving a little harder to get the turbo going, and ended up smelling antifreeze with the fan off. Weird...

Maybe it leaks more when the fan is off. Not having any air circulating the heat will cause the heater core to expand or something?

 

[SuCraM]

Well I just got off the phone with one of the GM techs and he said the foreman of the service department cant duplicate the issue. Friggin idiots. I told them when I dropped it off to take it for a good 20 min drive and blast the heat on full and they will smell it in the cabin and even more after putting the car in park and popping the hood. He said that burn off of the dexcool antifreeze is normal and I laughed. He told me he was going to make sure his foreman was updated with the 20 min drive thing and that I have a picture of the overflow tank when the car was a day old and it was full and now it is almost empty. He said they would call me tomorrow with an update. Hope this gets resolved and the resolution can help some other people on the forum.

 

[limited360]

I need a TSB or a recall... Only way I'll take my car in, too modified

 

[gt_cristian]

wow... yeah that is something. How is it normal for antifreeze to burn off and smell inside the cabin. I still have my old '96 Altima and it never loses coolant...

All glycol based antifreeze are toxic, possible deadly for animals and extremly toxic for children. They should know that...

What is weird is that sometimes you can't smell it. This morning I smelt it but I had a hard time smelling it when comming back from work. Maybe it smells more when it is cold outside.

I don't know if the coolant would cause this, but I also noticed my eyes would sometimes feel itchy and I feel like coughing when driving with the heat on. I dont smoke and I dont wear contacts, and nothing else has changed in my environment.

 

[Jaycruze]

Glancing through this thread, I thought I should mention something.

For those who are saying it's the turbo causing the smell, I have an LS (no turbo) and I have also had this strong coolant smell when I start the car sometimes, I have not been watching my coolant level though, I will try to keep an eye on it.

I'd also like to point out that the smell isn't coming through the vents, It's coming through the area by my feet.

edit*
I just thought of something kind of funny, I have a sub/amp in my car and the power cable is running through the grommet by my feet. I bet the dealer would try to say thats how the smell is getting into the cabin lol.

Last time I was at the dealer I mentioned the smell and he asked me if my car has a cabin filter... ugh

 

[70AARCUDA]

Last time I was at the dealer I mentioned the smell and he asked me if my car has a cabin filter... ugh

...it does and it has carbon granules embedded in it to "remove" odors...guess it doesn't work so well on coolant vapors!!

 

[SuCraM]

Just got a call from the service rep at the dealership and she said her shop foreman drove my car home last night and could smell it. Plus he drove it back to the dealership this morning and it was even worse. They are going to do a dye test on it today to attempt to isolate the leak.

 

[fwyaikow]

I had the same problem with my 2011 CHevy Cruze LT . First it been in the shop 4 time , Defrost motor not working , Front wheel bearing & caliper was put on wrong some how? & the Antifreeze smell . Since they counld not fix the smell problem I sold it to another dealer & got a 2012 Chevy Malibu LT .problem solved

 

[Jaycruze]

I had the same problem with my 2011 CHevy Cruze LT . First it been in the shop 4 time , Defrost motor not working , Front wheel bearing & caliper was put on wrong some how? & the Antifreeze smell . Since they counld not fix the smell problem I sold it to another dealer & got a 2012 Chevy Malibu LT .problem solved

I wish i could do that but i financed mine so i'd lose too much money lol, Hope the Malibu is nicer to you.

 

[SuCraM]

I wish i could do that but i financed mine so i'd lose too much money lol, Hope the Malibu is nicer to you.

I am in the same boat as you Jaycruze so I am hoping they can get everything resolved and I will be a happy camper.

 

[gt_cristian]

I made 300 km on the highway today and I had coolant smell all the time inside the cabin. Somehow, I could feel it a lot more on the driver's side than the passenger's side. I am not sure how that could be, may my passenger was congested. I always have my fan set on windshield+legs setting.

With the heat on and the fan to min, I could smell coolant all the time. I turned off the fan but left the heat on and I could smell it even more. Why would that be?

Once arrived at destination, I tried to find the source. I assume the heater core is behind the central console because that metal component was extremly hot, I burned my fingers on it (see picture below). But I could'nt smell coolant there and everything felt dry. It is hard to put your nose in there anyway.

The smell seems to come from the windshield vents, especially the small one on the left side or the dashboard.

 

[SuCraM]

Well guys and gals I just got off the phone with my service adviser. She said the dealership and GM acknowledge there is this coolant issue with the cruze and they are working to identify and find a resolution for it. She told me that they dye tested it and used a UV light to check for leaks and cannot find any. She did say they found the coolant reservoir tank was loose and they replaced it with a new one as that is the only thing they found that could be the issue. They checked everything including the turbo and found no issues. They also flashed the tcm to fix the hard tranny shifting. Hope this is the fix but I have a feeling I will be taking it back to them in a few days after driving it. I will post an update after driving it for a couple days.

 

[gt_cristian]

Good luck SuCraM. Maybe that will fix it for you. Did they tell you anything else about this coolant issue besides acknowledging it?

 

[11RS]

From my case with GM over these issues (antifreeze smell inside the car when fan speed is low to medium and heat is on, and haze on windshield) I have had my car at the dealership 3 times. First they said there was no issue. Second time, after getting GM Canada Customer Service involved they steam cleaned my carpet and dye/pressure tested the cooling system and found nothing. Third time they replaced my carpet and underlay. I still have the same issue.

It was explained to me that there were multiple suppliers for heater cores to GM for the Cruze. It was found that one of the manufactures was producing a faulty part and those Cruzes effected had their heater cores replaced at the factory, before the car left for shipping. In some cases, antifreeze/coolant was spilt in the car and got into the carpet and underlay. This is why the second time my car went back to the dealership they steam cleaned my carpet as they found antifreeze under it on the floor and later replaced the carpet.

GM is very aware of the coolant issues with the Cruze and it has been explained to me that GM Engineers are currently working on a fix and even working on specific cars with the noted issues.

 

[Jim Frye]

Can someone kindly describe the antifreeze smell? I think I might be smelling it. I only get this weird smell if the fan is on or if the car hasn't been driven for a long period of time.

When the engine is cold, raise the hood, open the overflow tank cap, and take a whiff.