Taking care of your car at all times is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless classic maintenance is designed to keep your Citroen C4 Cactus running smoothly with time, some unexpected breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car budget. In this article we’re going to talk about your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible malfunction, that’s why our team has written this content page to help you in the event that you identify a burnt plastic smell coming from your Citroen C4 Cactus . To help you check that it is nothing severe, first we will detail the different things that can produce a burnt plastic smell on your car, then, in a second step, how to discover the cause of this burnt plastic smell on your Citroen C4 Cactus? .
The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Citroen C4 Cactus
So we start our article with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Citroen C4 Cactus . Generally, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is hardly ever a good signal. In actual fact, recent cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a major malfunction. Down below we will review the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the main possible source of such an odor. In actual fact, the function of gear or transmission oil is to lubricate the different elements of your gearbox so that all the gears and pinions are not broken, it as well has a second function as a temperature regulator. Nevertheless, over time, the oil will lose its performance and will not lubricate the parts and regulate the temperature as well, which will cause the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Citroen C4 Cactus. You risk pre-wearing your gearbox if you don’t take care of it.
- The accessory belt: Nevertheless rarer, it is possible with wear and tear that your belt, which is principally done of rubber, will degrade and no longer rotate completely on its axis. With the friction that this will cause the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will generate a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine block of your Citroen C4 Cactus.
- Defective hose wear: This case occurs especially on Citroen C4 Cactus that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In reality, storing your vehicle unlike what you might presume will cause the plastic parts to wear out more quickly. Hoses are the first to be impacted by this phenomenon. The rubber will disintegrate little by little and with the rise in heat of the fluid that circulates in it, it may melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less basic, especially present on Citroen C4 Cactus’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body parts that may have been bent may rub against one of your wheels and give off that burnt plastic smell. This may as well pre-wear out your tyres.
How to identify where the smell of burning plastic comes from on a Citroen C4 Cactus?
And now, to finish our content page, we’re going to try to help you discover the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Citroen C4 Cactus . Now that you know the different possible roots 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 Citroen C4 Cactus smells hot, don’t hesitate to go through our content page on this topic.
- Transmission oil: Nothing could be easier, open your transmission oil cap (when cold) and check that your oil is reddish in colour and fluid enough. If you discover debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to replace it. Do not hesitate to seek advice from our content page to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Citroen C4 Cactus.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor condition, it may also produce a whistling sound if it is in poor condition. Do not hesitate to replace it.
- Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually check all your hoses to discover if any are frayed or melted. If this is the case, replace them.
- Body parts: Last but not least, the last element that can cause the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Citroen C4 Cactus, a body component, check all wheel arches, that no component rubs against
To get more tips on the Citroen C4 Cactus, take a look at the Citroen C4 Cactus category.
