Moldy Smell In '97 Ls 400? Can Anyone Help?

[Hybrid-JD]

Hey Everyone, not sure if you guys are able to help me. But i'm experiencing a really horrible moldy wet laundry smell whenever i turn on my vents. Is there a filter? or something that i can do to get rid of this smell??

the car model is a 1997 lexus ls400....

thanks

Jimmy

[Threadcutter]

Hey Everyone, not sure if you guys are able to help me. But i'm experiencing a really horrible moldy wet laundry smell whenever i turn on my vents. Is there a filter? or something that i can do to get rid of this smell??

the car model is a 1997 lexus ls400....

thanks

Jimmy

Jimmy:

Yes, there is a filter & it's behind a removable panel in the glovebox. Do a search for "Cabin Air Filter" & you'll find detailed instructions on how to remove/replace the filter. It's very easy, Lexus just "camoflagued" the location of the filter.

There may be more involved than just a filter change. You could have a leak in your system, but I haven't been down that road & am not qualified to address that aspect of it.

[Ross W.]

Definitely change your cabin filters, but that won't cure the problem. My '94 does that once in awhile, and what's happening is there's mold growing inside the ducting due to condensation. Here's the cure:

Start the car and set the temp control to max cold, open the hood, and spray some Lysol disinfectant into the climate control's outside intake. Also make sure that the A/C is set to ext., not recirculate. Either on your own or with an assistant, as soon as the Lysol can be smelled fairly strongly at the dash vents, set the control to recirculate, shut the A/C off, and turn the car off. Done this way, there will be a fog of Lysol throughout the ducting of the A/C system, and that will kill off the mold. You might need to do this more than once.

In '03, I discovered ants were living in the A/C system on my car. They built a nest in some accumulated leaves and debris. I had to set off a Raid fogger to kill the ants and then vacuum their nest and thousands of little corpses out! Mold's a little easier to deal with.....

[jainla]

In '03, I discovered ants were living in the A/C system on my car. They built a nest in some accumulated leaves and debris. I had to set off a Raid fogger to kill the ants and then vacuum their nest and thousands of little corpses out! Mold's a little easier to deal with.....

Ewww....although I know someone who had a brand new car in which mice had built a nest in the CC system...maybe when it was sitting on the dock or something. Had bits of leaf and twig blowing at him for months until he figured it out.

This is why I almost always turn off the AC and let the CC system run for a little while before shutting off the car (especially if its hot outside); the system warms enough to disapate the accumulated condensation and dry out. Yes you get a blast of humid air but better than that moldy smell later on....

[fblonk]

Jimmy,

If the Lysol trick does not work, You can get an evap cleaner from (gulp) a gm dealership. I have a friend that is a lead tech at a Buick dealership and he claims the stuff works great.

It is a can that injects into the evap drain tube and foams up into the evap. You let it sit for 1/2 hour and run the a/c on high and the system cleans out. removes all mold and smells. Very common here in florida.

To prevent it from happening again, when running the a/c use fresh air intake for the last 10 minutes of use, it seems to keep the mold from growing.

Hope this helps.

Fblonk

[wwest]

Hey Everyone, not sure if you guys are able to help me. But i'm experiencing a really horrible moldy wet laundry smell whenever i turn on my vents. Is there a filter? or something that i can do to get rid of this smell??

the car model is a 1997 lexus ls400....

thanks

Jimmy

First. read the material, description, of the EED, Electronic Evaporator Dryer, at Airsept.com for an overall description of the problem. It help greatly to open the windows in the garage EVERY night to prevent the build up of moisture within the A/C plenum.

[ModMan]

My 92 LS400 developed a moldy smell after there was a slow refrigerant leak; turns out the leak was in the evaporator core and the oil which leaked out caused dust to collect on the that portion of the evaporator. The combination of dust and moisture plus blocked airflow must have been a great breeding ground for mold.