Taking care of your car at all times is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless standard maintenance is designed to keep your Subaru Crosstrek running smoothly with time, some unpredicted breakdowns can add heavily to your annual motor vehicle budget. In this article 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 created this content to help you in the event you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Subaru Crosstrek . To help you check that it is nothing significant, first we will detail the different things that can produce a burnt plastic smell on your motor vehicle, then, in a second step, how to find the cause of this burnt plastic smell on your Subaru Crosstrek? .
The different possible origins and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Subaru Crosstrek
So we commence our guideline with the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell on a Subaru Crosstrek . In general, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good signal. Indeed, recent vehicles are full of it and it could be the sign of a critical breakdown. Down below we will talk about 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. Nevertheless, in the long run, the oil will lose its efficiency and will not lubricate the auto parts and control the temperature as well, which will bring about the oil to overheat and thus give off that burnt plastic smell on your Subaru Crosstrek. 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 made 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 unit block of your Subaru Crosstrek.
- Defective hose wear: This circumstance arises specifically on Subaru Crosstrek that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In reality, storing your car contrary to what you might presume will bring about the plastic auto parts to wear out more 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 melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less basic, specifically present on Subaru Crosstrek’s that have suffered a small shock. Following a front or rear impact, wheel arches, bumpers or other plastic body auto 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 find out where the smell of burning plastic originates from on a Subaru Crosstrek?
And now, to finish our content, we’re going to try to help you find the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Subaru Crosstrek . 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 problem quickly. If your Subaru Crosstrek smells hot, don’t hesitate to browse 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 consult our content to find out how to change the gearbox oil on a Subaru Crosstrek.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor condition, it may also make a whistling sound if it is in poor condition. 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, 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 Subaru Crosstrek, a body part, check all wheel arches, that no part rubs against
If you wish more guides on the Subaru Crosstrek, go to our Subaru Crosstrek category.
