Taking care of your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless classic maintenance is supposed to keep your Dodge Caliber running smoothly with time, some unforeseen breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car budget. Today we’re going to talk about your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible breakdown, that’s why our team has made this content page to help you in the event you identify a burnt plastic smell caused by your Dodge Caliber . To help you verify that it is nothing serious, first we will detail the different things that can create a burnt plastic smell on your car, then, in a second step, how to discover the source of this burnt plastic smell on your Dodge Caliber? .
The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Dodge Caliber
So we commence our article content with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Dodge Caliber . Generally, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is hardly ever a good indicator. In truth, modern cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a significant breakdown. Below we will talk about the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the most important possible source of such an odor. In truth, the objective of gear or transmission oil is to lubricate the different elements of your gearbox so that all the gears and pinions are not damaged, it also has a second objective as a temperature regulator. However, over time, the oil will lose its effectiveness and will not lubricate the auto parts and control the temperature as well, which will bring about the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Dodge Caliber. 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 mainly done of rubber, will degrade and no longer rotate completely on its axis. With the friction that this will bring about the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will produce a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine unit block of your Dodge Caliber.
- Defective hose wear: This circumstance arises especially on Dodge Caliber that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In reality, storing your car unlike what you might think will bring about the plastic auto 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 issue is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less general, especially present on Dodge Caliber’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body auto 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 identify where the smell of burning plastic comes from on a Dodge Caliber?
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 Dodge Caliber . Now that you know the different possible roots of this smell, we’ll just have to do some checks to get rid of the tracks that don’t concern you and solve your issue quickly. If your Dodge Caliber smells hot, don’t hesitate to go through our content page 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 change it. Do not hesitate to seek advice from our content page to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Dodge Caliber.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it might also produce a whistling sound if it is in poor state. Do not hesitate to change 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 circumstance, replace them.
- Body auto parts: Last but not least, the last element that can bring about the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Dodge Caliber, a body component, verify all wheel arches, that no component rubs against
To get more tips on the Dodge Caliber, take a look at the Dodge Caliber category.
