Strong Burning Smell 2009 370Z (Auto)
 

Hi guys, I've been having a strong burning smell in the engine bay and inside my car. Almost like an oil burning smell every time I drive it. I checked the oil and the coolant levels and both seem fine. There is no check engine light on and oil temp is normal. The transmission is shifting smoothly. The smell is there regardless of whether I have the a/c on or off. Not sure what is going on. Any ideas?

In my case it was the valve covers leaking and the leak would alway drip on the headers and smell

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If you just had an oil change somewhere they may have spilled oil where it shouldn't go and that'll smell. It happened to me, not with the Z but another.

Could be a plastic bag or pedestrian stuck on your exhaust.

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My oil was last changed in April. Were the valve covers an easy fix?

Depends on your level of aptitude. Have to pull the intakes, upper manifold, coil packs, and a gazillion hoses to get to the covers. Then pull covers and install new gaskets.

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Have you tried running the engine while the car's on a lift and sniffing around?

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Nooooo, it took me 12 hours, was taking my time and there is one valve cover bolt on the driver side that is a b****

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First thing I'd do is get under the car and look for something on the exhaust system. If nothing there, I'd look for a fluid leak onto the exhaust manifold.

First thing I'd do is check the FSM :tup:

I looked underneath and there is a liquid on what looks like maybe the catalytic converter or an exhaust heat shield in the upper mid section? How do I post a picture?

Download tapatalk.

Left or right side?

It's on the driver side.

So I just touched it with my hand and it was dry. I think it might be plastic lol. Also found a white piece of melted plastic towards the back. I guess it was a bag or bottle. Still smells terrible and I got a bad sore throat from a week of toxic chemicals :(

I had something similar happen to me, some type of plastic had melted on the exhaust right after the x-pipe. I figured it would just burn off after a few days, bzzt. Two weeks later, still had the smell and could see that the plastic had not burned off.

I can list of bunch of things that did not work removing the plastic, so I'll just tell you what did. Go to your local HW store and purchase a nylon (?) or non-metallic wheel brush designed to remove paint from wood. Fit it to your drill, get some safety glasses and go to town. Be sure to remove all the plastic particles from your exhaust, this is going to make a nice mess. The non-metallic wheel leaves a very lightly brushed look after removing the plastic.

Good luck.