Keeping an eye on your car on daily basis is the best thing you can do. Although conventional maintenance is designed to keep your Volvo S90 running smoothly with time, some unforeseen 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 breakdown, that’s why our team has created this content page to help you in case you notice a burnt plastic smell caused by your Volvo S90 . To help you check that it is nothing severe, first we will outline the different things that can generate a burnt plastic smell on your car, then, in a second step, how to find the origin of this burnt plastic smell on your Volvo S90? .
The different possible roots and risks of smell of burnt plastic on a Volvo S90
So we start our article with the different possible roots of burnt plastic smell on a Volvo S90 . 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 breakdown. Below we will review the different possible origins of burnt plastic smell:
- Transmission oil: This is the main 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 damaged, it also has a second function as a temperature regulator. Nevertheless, with time, the oil will lose its effectiveness 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 Volvo S90. 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 done 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 generate a strong smell of burnt plastic or rubber in the engine unit block of your Volvo S90.
- Defective hose wear: This circumstance happens especially on Volvo S90 that are starting to get a few years old or that have stayed a long time without rolling. In fact, storing your car unlike what you might believe will bring about the plastic auto parts to wear out more fairly quickly. Hoses are the first to be impacted by 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 issue is the breakage of the accessory belt.
- A body component: Less basic, especially present on Volvo S90’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 Volvo S90?
And now, to finish our content page, we’re going to try to help you find the source of the smell of burnt plastic on your Volvo S90 . 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 problem quickly. If your Volvo S90 smells hot, don’t think twice to go through our content page 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 think twice to seek advice from our content page to find out how to change the gearbox oil on a Volvo S90.
- 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 think twice 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 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 Volvo S90, a body part, check all wheel arches, that no part rubs against
If you wish more tutorials on the Volvo S90, go to our Volvo S90 category.
