Taking care of your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless standard maintenance is designed to keep your Mercedes Classe E 5 running smoothly with time, some unexpected breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car 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 created this article to help you in the event that you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Mercedes Classe E 5 . To help you check that it is nothing serious, first we will highlight the different things that can generate a burnt plastic smell on your car, then, in a second step, how to locate the cause of this burnt plastic smell on your Mercedes Classe E 5? .

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The different possible sources and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Mercedes Classe E 5

So we start our content with the different possible sources of burnt plastic smell on a Mercedes Classe E 5 . Generally speaking, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is hardly ever a good signal. Indeed, recent cars are full of it and it could be the sign of a major malfunction. Down 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 function 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 function as a temperature regulator. Nevertheless, over time, the oil will lose its effectiveness 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 Classe E 5. 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 done of rubber, will decline and no longer rotate totally 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 block of your Mercedes Classe E 5.
  • Faulty hose wear: This case arises specifically on Mercedes Classe E 5 that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In fact, storing your vehicle contrary to what you might think will bring about the plastic auto 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 might melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
  • A body component: Less common, specifically present on Mercedes Classe E 5’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body auto parts that might have been bent might 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 Mercedes Classe E 5?

And now, to finish our article, we’re going to try to help you locate the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Mercedes Classe E 5 . Now that you know the different possible origins 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 Mercedes Classe E 5 smells hot, don’t hesitate to go through our article on this topic.

  • Transmission oil: Nothing could be less complicated, open your transmission oil cap (when cold) and check that your oil is reddish in colour and fluid enough. If you see debris inside, and it is darker, it’s time to replace it. Do not hesitate to seek advice from our article to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Mercedes Classe E 5.
  • Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it might also make a whistling sound if it is in poor state. Do not hesitate to replace it.
  • Hoses: For hoses, you will need to visually check all your hoses to see if any are frayed or melted. If this is the case, replace 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 Classe E 5, a body part, check all wheel arches, that no part rubs against

    If you want more tutorials on the Mercedes Classe E 5, go to our Mercedes Classe E 5 category.