Keeping an eye on your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless classic maintenance is designed to keep your Kia Niro running smoothly with time, some unpredicted breakdowns can add heavily to your annual motor vehicle 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 to help you in case you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Kia Niro . To help you check that it is nothing significant, first we will outline the different things that can produce a burnt plastic smell on your motor vehicle, then, in a second step, how to discover the source of this burnt plastic smell on your Kia Niro? .
The different possible origins and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Kia Niro
So we begin our guideline with the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell on a Kia Niro . In general, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good indicator. In actual fact, recent cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a critical breakdown. Below we will review the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the most important possible source of such an odor. In actual fact, 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 broken, it also has a second objective as a temperature regulator. However, over time, the oil will lose its performance and will not lubricate the auto parts and regulate the temperature as well, which will cause the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Kia Niro. 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 specifically made of rubber, will deteriorate 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 create a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine block of your Kia Niro.
- Faulty hose wear: This circumstance occurs especially on Kia Niro 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 cause the plastic auto parts to wear out more fairly quickly. Hoses are the first to be troubled 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 problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less common, especially present on Kia Niro’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 also pre-wear out your tyres.
How to identify where the smell of burning plastic comes from on a Kia Niro?
And now, to finish our content, we’re going to try to help you discover the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Kia Niro . 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 resolve your issue quickly. If your Kia Niro smells hot, don’t hesitate to read our content 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 find out debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to change it. Do not hesitate to seek advice from our content to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Kia Niro.
- 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 hesitate to change it.
- Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually check all your hoses to find out if any are frayed or melted. If this is the circumstance, change them.
- Body auto parts: Last but not least, the last element that can cause the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Kia Niro, a body part, check all wheel arches, that no part rubs against
To discover more tips on the Kia Niro, take a look at the Kia Niro category.
