Taking care of your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Although classic maintenance is supposed to keep your Mercedes Actros running smoothly with time, some unforeseen breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car budget. Today we’re going to focus on your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible breakdown, that’s why our team has created this content to help you in case you notice a burnt plastic smell coming from your Mercedes Actros . 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 car, then, in a second step, how to locate the source of this burnt plastic smell on your Mercedes Actros? .
The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Mercedes Actros
So we start our content page with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Mercedes Actros . Generally speaking, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good indicator. Indeed, recent vehicles are full of it and it could be the sign of a major 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. Indeed, the action of gear or transmission oil is to lubricate the different components of your gearbox so that all the gears and pinions are not broken, it also has a second action as a temperature regulator. However, as time passes, the oil will lose its efficiency and will not lubricate the auto parts and regulate the temperature as well, which will bring about the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Mercedes Actros. You risk pre-wearing your gearbox if you don’t take care of it.
- The accessory belt: Although rarer, it is possible with wear and tear that your belt, which is principally made of rubber, will deteriorate and no longer rotate entirely on its axis. With the friction that this will bring about the plastic will heat up and burn out, this reaction will create a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine unit block of your Mercedes Actros.
- Faulty hose wear: This circumstance arises specifically on Mercedes Actros that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In fact, storing your car contrary to what you might believe will bring about the plastic auto parts to wear out more fairly 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 may possibly melt. The risk of this issue is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less basic, specifically present on Mercedes Actros’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 Mercedes Actros?
And now, to finish our content, we’re going to try to help you locate the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Mercedes Actros . Now that you know the different possible roots of this smell, we’ll just have to do some checks to eliminate the tracks that don’t concern you and resolve your problem quickly. If your Mercedes Actros smells hot, don’t think twice to read our content 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 discover debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to change it. Do not think twice to consult our content to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Mercedes Actros.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it may possibly also make a whistling sound if it is in poor state. Do not think twice to change it.
- Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually verify all your hoses to discover 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 bring about the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Mercedes Actros, a body part, verify all wheel arches, that no part rubs against
In the event that you have any additional questions about the Mercedes Actros, do not hesitate to consult our Mercedes Actros category.
