Taking care of your car permanently is the best thing you can do. Nevertheless standard maintenance is designed to keep your Volkswagen Caddy running smoothly with time, some unexpected breakdowns can add heavily to your annual car budget. Today we’re going to talk about your sense of smell, and the clues it can give you about a possible malfunction, that’s why our team has made this article to help you in the event you identify a burnt plastic smell coming from your Volkswagen Caddy . 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 car, then, in a second step, how to locate the cause of this burnt plastic smell on your Volkswagen Caddy? .
The different possible origins and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Volkswagen Caddy
So we commence our content page with the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell on a Volkswagen Caddy . Generally speaking, noticing a plastic or rubber smell is never a good indicator. In fact, recent vehicles are full of it and it could be the sign of a significant malfunction. Down below we will talk about the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the main 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 damaged, it also has a second action as a temperature regulator. However, as time passes, the oil will lose its effectiveness and will not lubricate the 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 Volkswagen Caddy. 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 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 Volkswagen Caddy.
- Defective hose wear: This circumstance happens especially on Volkswagen Caddy 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 believe will bring about the plastic 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 might melt. The risk of this problem is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less common, especially present on Volkswagen Caddy’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 also pre-wear out your tyres.
How to identify where the smell of burning plastic originates from on a Volkswagen Caddy?
And now, to finish our article, we’re going to try to help you locate the origin of the smell of burnt plastic on your Volkswagen Caddy . 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 Volkswagen Caddy smells hot, don’t hesitate to browse our article on this topic.
- Transmission oil: Nothing could be simpler, 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 change it. Do not hesitate to seek advice from our article to identify how to change the gearbox oil on a Volkswagen Caddy.
- Accessory Belt: Visually check that your accessory belt is not in poor state, it might 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 see if any are frayed or melted. If this is the circumstance, replace them.
- Body parts: Last but not least, the last element that can bring about the smell of plastic or burnt rubber on your Volkswagen Caddy, a body component, check all wheel arches, that no component rubs against
In the event that you have any further questions about the Volkswagen Caddy, do not hesitate to consult our Volkswagen Caddy category.
