Taking care of your car all the time is the best thing you can do. Although conventional maintenance is supposed to keep your BMW 5 Series running smoothly over time, some unpredicted breakdowns can add heavily to your annual motor vehicle budget. In this article we’re going to focus on your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible malfunction, that’s why our team has written this article to help you in the event you detect a burnt plastic smell coming from your BMW 5 Series . To help you verify that it is nothing severe, first we will outline the different things that can generate a burnt plastic smell on your motor vehicle, then, in a second step, how to discover the origin of this burnt plastic smell on your BMW 5 Series? .
The different possible sources and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a BMW 5 Series
So we start our content with the different possible sources of burnt plastic smell on a BMW 5 Series . Generally speaking, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good signal. Indeed, modern vehicles are full of it and it could be the sign of a important malfunction. Below we will talk about the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the main possible origin of such an odor. Indeed, the action of gear or transmission oil is to lubricate the different components of your gearbox so that all the gears and pinions are not broken, it also has a second action as a temperature regulator. However, over time, the oil will lose its performance and will not lubricate the parts and control the temperature as well, which will trigger the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your BMW 5 Series. You risk pre-wearing your gearbox if you don’t take care of it.
- The accessory belt: Although rarer, it is possible with wear and tear that your belt, which is mainly made of rubber, will decline and no longer rotate totally on its axis. With the friction that this will trigger the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will generate a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine unit block of your BMW 5 Series.
- Faulty hose wear: This case arises specifically on BMW 5 Series that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In reality, storing your car contrary to what you might believe will trigger the plastic parts to wear out more quickly. Hoses are the first to be suffering from this phenomenon. The rubber will disintegrate little by little and with the rise in heat of the fluid that circulates in it, it might melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less basic, specifically present on BMW 5 Series’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body parts that might have been bent might rub against one of your wheels and give off that burnt plastic smell. This may also pre-wear out your tyres.
How to find out where the smell of burning plastic originates from on a BMW 5 Series?
And now, to finish our article, we’re going to try to help you discover the origin of the smell of burnt plastic on your BMW 5 Series . Now that you know the different possible origins of this smell, we’ll just have to do some checks to eliminate the tracks that don’t concern you and solve your problem quickly. If your BMW 5 Series smells hot, don’t hesitate to go through our article on this topic.
- Transmission oil: Nothing could be less complicated, open your transmission oil cap (when cold) and verify that your oil is reddish in colour and fluid enough. If you see debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to replace it. Do not hesitate to consult our article to find out how to change the gearbox oil on a BMW 5 Series.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor condition, it might also make a whistling sound if it is in poor condition. Do not hesitate to replace it.
- Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually verify all your hoses to see if any are frayed or melted. If this is the case, change them.
- Body parts: Last but not least, the last element that can trigger the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your BMW 5 Series, a body component, verify all wheel arches, that no component rubs against
To get more tips on the BMW 5 Series, take a look at the BMW 5 Series category.
