Keeping an eye on your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless classic routine service is designed to keep your Fiat 500 X running smoothly with time, some unexpected breakdowns can add heavily to your annual motor vehicle budget. Today we’re going to look at your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible malfunction, that’s why our team has made this article to help you in the event you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Fiat 500 X . To help you verify that it is nothing significant, first we will detail the different things that can create a burnt plastic smell on your motor vehicle, then, in a second step, how to locate the origin of this burnt plastic smell on your Fiat 500 X? .
The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Fiat 500 X
So we start our content with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Fiat 500 X . In general, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good signal. Obviously, recent vehicles are full of it and it could be the sign of a critical malfunction. Down below we will review the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the most important possible origin of such an odor. Obviously, the function of gear or transmission oil is to lubricate the different components of your gearbox so that all the gears and pinions are not damaged, it as well has a second function as a temperature regulator. Nevertheless, over time, the oil will lose its efficiency and will not lubricate the auto parts and control the temperature as well, which will trigger the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Fiat 500 X. 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 deteriorate and no longer rotate entirely on its axis. With the friction that this will trigger 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 Fiat 500 X.
- Faulty hose wear: This case occurs specifically on Fiat 500 X 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 presume will trigger the plastic auto parts to wear out more fairly quickly. Hoses are the first to be affected 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 possibly melt. The risk of this issue is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less general, specifically present on Fiat 500 X’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body auto parts that may possibly have been bent may possibly rub against one of your wheels and give off that burnt plastic smell. This may as well pre-wear out your tyres.
How to find out where the smell of burning plastic comes from on a Fiat 500 X?
And now, to finish our article, we’re going to try to help you locate the origin of the smell of burnt plastic on your Fiat 500 X . 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 problem quickly. If your Fiat 500 X smells hot, don’t think twice to go through our article on this topic.
- Transmission oil: Nothing could be easier, open your transmission oil cap (when cold) and verify that your oil is reddish in colour and fluid enough. If you find out debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to replace it. Do not think twice to consult our article to find out how to change the gearbox oil on a Fiat 500 X.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it may possibly also produce a whistling sound if it is in poor state. Do not think twice to replace it.
- Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually verify all your hoses to find out if any are frayed or melted. If this is the case, change them.
- Body auto parts: Last but not least, the last element that can trigger the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Fiat 500 X, a body component, verify all wheel arches, that no component rubs against
If you want more tutorials on the Fiat 500 X, go to our Fiat 500 X category.
