Hi to you all and it's great to be a member of the Smart Car comunity. I have recently purchased a 2004 For Two and have noticed it has a plastic/rubber type burning smell after it has been running for any length of time above 15 minutes. Has anyone else had trhe same problem and if so did you find out what it was ? I have been underneath the car and looked around the engine compartment, and i cannot see any fluid loss or anything burning!!! It's a bit worrying as it is quite strong at times and I can smell it in the car too. The car has covered around 39000 miles now and i have owned it for a few weeks only. please help!!!
APACHE GAZ
I had that with my 2008 Smart Fortwo Pure. I read some where on this forum that was a 'burn in'?
I have 13,500 miles on my 451 and it still smells like that. I think it is the hot catalytic converter burning rod junk.
[if I may, moderators]
You problem sounds urgent, Apache Gaz. I suggest you visit and present your concern in the UK forum SmartManiacs
You problem sounds urgent, Apache Gaz. I suggest you visit and present your concern in the UK forum SmartManiacs
Check to see that the engine compartment lid is properly secured.
Check your belts; they may be slipping.
Check your brakes; you may have a shoe or pad dragging.
Check for oil leaks; the engine should be dusty, not oily.
Check for insulation falling down.
Any good mechanic should be able to diagnose the problem, even if he doesn't have smart parts.
Check your belts; they may be slipping.
Check your brakes; you may have a shoe or pad dragging.
Check for oil leaks; the engine should be dusty, not oily.
Check for insulation falling down.
Any good mechanic should be able to diagnose the problem, even if he doesn't have smart parts.
I'd suggest doing everything RVGRINGO said.
I'd also suggest either taking off the rear fender (if you're comfortable with that) or having someone do it for you that you trust and looking around. Not a bad idea to jack up the rear of the car and look under it as well.
Also, not sure where / if it is talked about here but it has been extensively covered in the Canadian and European Smart forums that the engine is fed dirty oil vapour where the cold air (from the side of the car) meets the engine/turbo. This is a very BAD design decision and causes a few problems on the 450, one of which is that burnt oil smell.
The easiest solution is to remove a connection from the TIK (air intake to turbo) pipe and fit a catch tank.
I'd also suggest either taking off the rear fender (if you're comfortable with that) or having someone do it for you that you trust and looking around. Not a bad idea to jack up the rear of the car and look under it as well.
Also, not sure where / if it is talked about here but it has been extensively covered in the Canadian and European Smart forums that the engine is fed dirty oil vapour where the cold air (from the side of the car) meets the engine/turbo. This is a very BAD design decision and causes a few problems on the 450, one of which is that burnt oil smell.
The easiest solution is to remove a connection from the TIK (air intake to turbo) pipe and fit a catch tank.
To clarify my earlier statement about removing one of the two hoses that attach to the top of the TIK pipe, have a look at this picture:
![Image]()
The first hose from the left(vertical and the bigger of the two vertical hoses) is the hose you would want to remove from the TIK pipe. The TIK pipe is the black, horizontal pipe. Connect the removed hose to a catch tank (also called a CCV). This is one our Canadian friends like. You could just remove and let it hang loose but that isn't a clean option.
You must also plug the TIK pipe's connector for the removed hose. Otherwise dirt and other things could get into the turbo and engine.
Now, why the heck should any 450 owner do this? There are 3 big problems with the design without a catch tank that can cause costly problems and negatively affect the life of your 450's engine.
The hose to remove is connected near the bottom of the engine block. This pipe is supposed to send any hot oil vapor back into the engine via its cold air intake (problem #1: don't mix hot oil vapor with clean, cold air) to be re-burned by the engine.
Problem #2 is once the engine cools or is shut off that oil vapor then condenses (becomes a liquid again) and gets into the turbo and engine as liquid oil, which then could send it to the intercooler. NOT GOOD! We do not want this liquid in our turbo, engine and intercooler. There are many posts at http://clubsmartcar.ca and the European Smart car forums detailing this as the cause of problem #3: the intercooler fills up with this oil and then fails.
Aside from replacing the intercooler being a costly repair visit for our Canadian and European friends, here in the States it would be even more difficult and expensive. Good luck finding anyone that has the parts in the States. There might be one (G&K?), however ordering directly from Europe or Canada is your better option. It is an expensive part. Then look at the HOWTOs for accessing and removing the intercooler. Not fun for anyone which means doubly not fun for your wallet if you have a mechanic do it.
Look at that picture again. See all the grime and dirty, oily stuff all over the area where those two vertical hoses connect to the TIK pipe? That is caused by the oil vapor leaking out onto those surfaces and then cooling, which creates the thick, sludgy mess. This can also be the cause of a burning oil/rubber smell that the creator of this thread mentioned.
So yes, the best course of action is to avoid this problem all together. With such a simple and inexpensive fix (the catch tank linked to earlier in this post is selling for US$30 at the time of this writing), why wouldn't we?
NOTE: the above picture is from my silver 2005, fortwo passion coupe before I replaced the TIK Pipe with the 4-ply silicone TIK from http://forgemotorsports.co.uk
The first hose from the left(vertical and the bigger of the two vertical hoses) is the hose you would want to remove from the TIK pipe. The TIK pipe is the black, horizontal pipe. Connect the removed hose to a catch tank (also called a CCV). This is one our Canadian friends like. You could just remove and let it hang loose but that isn't a clean option.
You must also plug the TIK pipe's connector for the removed hose. Otherwise dirt and other things could get into the turbo and engine.
Now, why the heck should any 450 owner do this? There are 3 big problems with the design without a catch tank that can cause costly problems and negatively affect the life of your 450's engine.
The hose to remove is connected near the bottom of the engine block. This pipe is supposed to send any hot oil vapor back into the engine via its cold air intake (problem #1: don't mix hot oil vapor with clean, cold air) to be re-burned by the engine.
Problem #2 is once the engine cools or is shut off that oil vapor then condenses (becomes a liquid again) and gets into the turbo and engine as liquid oil, which then could send it to the intercooler. NOT GOOD! We do not want this liquid in our turbo, engine and intercooler. There are many posts at http://clubsmartcar.ca and the European Smart car forums detailing this as the cause of problem #3: the intercooler fills up with this oil and then fails.
Aside from replacing the intercooler being a costly repair visit for our Canadian and European friends, here in the States it would be even more difficult and expensive. Good luck finding anyone that has the parts in the States. There might be one (G&K?), however ordering directly from Europe or Canada is your better option. It is an expensive part. Then look at the HOWTOs for accessing and removing the intercooler. Not fun for anyone which means doubly not fun for your wallet if you have a mechanic do it.
Look at that picture again. See all the grime and dirty, oily stuff all over the area where those two vertical hoses connect to the TIK pipe? That is caused by the oil vapor leaking out onto those surfaces and then cooling, which creates the thick, sludgy mess. This can also be the cause of a burning oil/rubber smell that the creator of this thread mentioned.
So yes, the best course of action is to avoid this problem all together. With such a simple and inexpensive fix (the catch tank linked to earlier in this post is selling for US$30 at the time of this writing), why wouldn't we?
NOTE: the above picture is from my silver 2005, fortwo passion coupe before I replaced the TIK Pipe with the 4-ply silicone TIK from http://forgemotorsports.co.uk
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