Taking care of your car on a regular basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless classic maintenance is designed to keep your Fiat Scudo running smoothly over time, some unforeseen breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car budget. In this article we’re going to speak about your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible breakdown, that’s why our team has created this content page to help you in the event that you identify a burnt plastic smell caused by your Fiat Scudo . To help you verify that it is nothing serious, first we will highlight the different things that can produce a burnt plastic smell on your car, then, in a second step, how to find the source of this burnt plastic smell on your Fiat Scudo? .

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The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Fiat Scudo

So we commence our article content with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Fiat Scudo . Generally, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is hardly ever a good indicator. Obviously, recent cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a important breakdown. 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 action 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 also has a second action as a temperature regulator. However, over time, the oil will lose its effectiveness 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 Fiat Scudo. 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 made of rubber, will deteriorate and no longer rotate completely on its axis. With the friction that this will trigger the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will create a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine block of your Fiat Scudo.
  • Faulty hose wear: This circumstance happens especially on Fiat Scudo 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 think will trigger the plastic parts to wear out more 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 melt. The risk of this issue is the breakage of the accessory belt.
  • A body component: Less general, especially present on Fiat Scudo’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 also pre-wear out your tyres.

How to identify where the smell of burning plastic originates from on a Fiat Scudo?

And now, to finish our content page, we’re going to try to help you find the origin of the smell of burnt plastic on your Fiat Scudo . 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 fix your problem quickly. If your Fiat Scudo smells hot, don’t hesitate to browse 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 find out 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 Fiat Scudo.
  • Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it may also produce a whistling sound if it is in poor state. Do not hesitate 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 circumstance, change them.
  • Body parts: Last but not least, the last element that can trigger the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Fiat Scudo, a body component, verify all wheel arches, that no component rubs against

    If you wish more tutorials on the Fiat Scudo, go to our Fiat Scudo category.