I have an Escalade that smells like a new car until you turn on the air conditioner. Then it smells like cat piss! Could that be what it is and if so, can it be cleaned out of the system somehow?

Asked by John Nov 09, 2015 at 08:59 PM about the 2012 Cadillac Escalade Premium RWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

No, I do not own a cat.

6 Answers

Is your car still under warranty? If so take it to a dealer and make a stink!

4 people found this helpful.

Seriously, fixing a moldy, stinky ventilation system can be very difficult and expensive to do IF you ever get it right.

Did you get an answer on how to replace the filter? I have same issue...bought the filter and now need to know where it is.

10

Cats get into the engine compartment area to stay warm at nite. For feral cats, that will become a place they go back to over and over again to lay their hat...or urine. Naturally, you can expect them to urinate in there as it will drip down and not all over them. Problem is, the urine gets onto the engine metal and pipes, etc., and when heated up, eventually is burnt into the metal. You cannot get that smell out but you can mask it. Good luck.

1 people found this helpful.

On December 2019 I purchased a 2016 Escalade Platinum....Gorgeous car. Loved it. The day after I took delivery I noticed a foul smell....???? Where is the smell coming from? My Cadillac dealer dismissed it as not their problem. I learned that the previous owner traded it for a Navigator....because of the smell. Solution: I convinced my Cadillac dealer to put the car on the hoist and allow me to look with their shop manager allover the undercarriage of the car. The frame of the car has black rustproofing, very thick black and sticky. The exhaust manifold, which gets extremely hot is very close to the rustproofed frame. The shop manager cleaned a small area of the rustproofed frame which was very close to the exhaust manifold. The heat was cooking the grease on the frame and the vapors were coming in to the cabin once the car was parked after a short or long drive. NO MORE SMELL!!!!

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