Keeping an eye on your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless conventional maintenance is designed to keep your Mazda Mx5 running smoothly with time, some unforeseen 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 the event that you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Mazda Mx5 . To help you verify that it is nothing severe, 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 cause of this burnt plastic smell on your Mazda Mx5? .

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The different possible origins and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Mazda Mx5

So we start our content page with the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell on a Mazda Mx5 . Generally, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is hardly ever a good signal. In fact, modern cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a critical breakdown. 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. In fact, 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 as well has a second action as a temperature regulator. However, in the long run, the oil will lose its efficiency and will not lubricate the parts and regulate the temperature as well, which will trigger the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Mazda Mx5. 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 trigger the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will generate a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine unit block of your Mazda Mx5.
  • Defective hose wear: This circumstance arises especially on Mazda Mx5 that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In reality, storing your vehicle contrary to what you might believe will trigger the plastic 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 might melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
  • A body component: Less general, especially present on Mazda Mx5’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body parts that might have been bent might 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 originates from on a Mazda Mx5?

And now, to finish our content, we’re going to try to help you locate the origin of the smell of burnt plastic on your Mazda Mx5 . Now that you know the different possible origins of this smell, we’ll just have to do some checks to eliminate the tracks that don’t concern you and fix your issue quickly. If your Mazda Mx5 smells hot, don’t think twice to browse our content on this topic.

  • Transmission oil: Nothing could be simpler, 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 seek advice from our content to find out how to change the gearbox oil on a Mazda Mx5.
  • Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor condition, it might also make a whistling sound if it is in poor condition. 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 circumstance, replace them.
  • Body parts: Last but not least, the last element that can trigger the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Mazda Mx5, a body part, verify all wheel arches, that no part rubs against

    If you need more tutorials on the Mazda Mx5, go to our Mazda Mx5 category.