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I own a 2006 VW Jetta 2.5L For the last two years, I have had this awful smell coming out of the vents. It'll last for about 20 minutes after I turn on the A/C and then it'll somewhat go away. Does anyone know how to fix this? It's pissing me off. I've taken it to the dlr numerous times for this issue and all they do is replace the cabin filter. It's not the damn filter. I love this car but the smell is not only in inconvieniance but is very embarrassing when someone gets in my car. Somebody pleeeeeeaaaase help!  

most a/c shops have a machine... that they stick the end of its nozzle up in the drain tube that sticks out through the firewall on the engine side....   they then spray disinfectant into the evaporator box...   they drain it.. and flush it again....

some shops also have a tiny hose they scan snake into the vent tubes... spraying a circle of disinfectant through the tubing..

there is a lot of air flow through the evaporator box... tehre is also a lot of moisture in there... a great place to grow slime...



now there is one more thing that happens....     sweat on the seats...   real funk...  personal body mold... this can get into seats...   i had one customer with  in his car...   at the shop ... we refused to get in his car...   we pushed it... and we still got it on our clothes...  it got into my car seats... and into my chair at home...  i used several real cans of lysol spray...    i threw all my clothes in the wash.. put in some lysol liquid...   used the lysol spray on my chair... soaked it... yes it stained it slightly..  but i enjoy that chair...

i put the car windows up.... sprayed it into the car... soaked the seats with it... soaked the carpets...   closed the doors... let it sit... till the next day...

i even did that to the customers truck who was still at the shop...

i also called his office...   got his staff... to spray everything down as they left...   i also got them to do his dry cleaning..

they called me back and thanked me...  they were suffering..

it did take several applications ... to remove most of the funk...

do to the a/c system design ... when you have it on recirculate... it pulls in air from the floorboard area... not from outside the car... so your funk smell could have come from getting splashed by another car in a puddle of sewage...  driving through a cloud of dust with mold spores in it..   is that model a us built model??? i don't keep track...   it could be from the ship that brought it over..  so many places for contamination to get into the system..

if all else fails....    talk to the dealership... the service manager and the A/C tech at the same time..   they might be able to evacuate the freon.. take the dash apart.. and remove the evaporator box and do a proper cleaning...  including all the ducts...  some of the trap doors are foam covered...  replace them...  this is not cheep... be sure that they let you see it apart... you want to inspect for what ever is making the smell...


i googled cleaning the evaporator case..

came up with this and many others

http://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/92253-cleaning-ac-system-evaporator.html

seems they can drill a small hole in the case and spray cleaner in it...  something different than when i did it...  the tool i used had a flex hose that went up and an outer tube that sealed the drain with air powered suction... so you could spray some in the case.. then suction it out .. and   suction while you were spraying..

there was no name on the tool...  the shop owner had it in the back room... and kept it locked up...    that shop and the owners are long gone... so i cannot ask... sorry...

i hope this has helped...

i also had one customer.. with a lizard in her saturn ducting.. she got him out with strawberrys...   she then returned him to where she got the car at...

i have also found rodents in the ducts...

there have been stories of snakes...

it is also possible... that somebody on the assembly line stuck their lunch in there... almost anything is possible...

thats why... when all else fails... take it apart and have a look...

oh.. some techs now have fiber optic cameras...   home depot sells them...   pull a vent and see whats in there...

when you take the car in.. do have a disc of Lynyrd Skynyrd » That Smell  playing...   that should really set them off... in a good way...