I have a 97 expedition. Purchased new. Since the first summer it has had a terrible stink when the A/C is turned on. Especially when the car has sat for about an hour. The dealer has used the spray, the foam, changed the evaporator, and I think part of the housing. Does anyone else have this problem and if so was it able to be cleared? I getting tired of the run around at the dealer.
Thanks

 

I was searching through the TSB's for a problem with my Exp, and there was one or two TSB's about your problem. I'd get my hands on the actual TSB memo to see if the dealer has followed Ford's recommendations. Good luck.

 

I have the same problem with my 99' EB Expi. It was fine last year but now have the same stink this year. My Expi has been to the dealer three times for this problem. It will be checked out again in the near future.
One thing you need to do is make sure that the climate control is set to the "vent position" when parking the truck and shutting down the engine. The owners manual discusses this. If the climate control stays in the AC position or in the "off" position, the condensation will not be able to evaporate and thus will cause the bad stink. Good luck. Jake.

Jakegypsum // Ford fleet, soup to nuts.

 

Everyone has this problem if they turn off the engine with the AC turned to the maximum position. Air cannot circulate through the system to dry it out with the flow control door turned to recirculate.

If you'll turn it to some setting other than max before you shut down, that problem will go away.

What you are smelling is the beginning of mold, and that will corrode right through the evaporator coil - which is a major headache.

If your dealer didn't know that, you probably need a new dealer!

 

The dealer told us about the selector location when the problem first arose. The switch is rarely put into the off position. Generally when the car is parked the switch is in the panel position. I would think that this is a unusual way to have the system set up. All of my other cars and trucks have not had to be in any special position. Why have and off position if this is the case?

 

I have had the same problem.. I have put 7k on my truck since I've had it and the 'dirty socks' smell comes and goes after about 3 minutes.. had it in to the dealer and they keep spraying baby powder smelly stuff into the vents or something.. from what I understand the problem is mold related.. bottom line, it's a design flaw that does'nt allow proper draining of the system. Even if I run the blower without A/C the smell comes back.. just not as bad... I 'm not sure what to do.. maybe I'll just ignore it and keep my windows down for the first 3 minutes of A/C.. I've owned a nissan and never had a problem with A/C smell before. I have a 89 6000 that has a similar smell problem.. just not as bad.

 

This smell can be reduced by having the dealer install a moisture purge module from TSB 99-19-5. The module runs the blower fan for a while after vehicle is shutdown, in order to help evaporate condensation that contributes to growth of stink producing mildew/mold nasties. The TSB also outlines a thorough cleaning procedure.

 

I Have it all! The knowhow to keep the climate control in a proper "parked" position, the update module, and the anti-stink air freshener. I have had the system anti-stunk three times now. Yes, the sent is down compared to what it used to be but it is still there. Bottom line, just like the previous posting, keep the windows down for the first couple of minutes with the air on. Blast the stink out in the first couple of minutes and then raise the windows. After that, we have no problems with the climate control. I will say that when I do bring it in for service again, I will let them dose it again with the anti-stink freshener.

Jakegypsum // Ford fleet, soup to nuts.

 

Basically because NipponDenso engineers are some kind of idiots.

Shortly after A/C became common in automobiles some bright young engineer realized that in the process of the A/C cooling the incoming airflow it oftentimes also dehumidified it. And that of course helps prevent and remove condensation from the interior windshield surface. So from that time on, until about the mid-eighties, it became pretty standard to use the A/C, supplemented by lots of heat, whenever the defrost/defog/demist function was activated at least as long as the A/C was functionally effective, usually only above about 50 degrees F.

Then some idiot decided that if a little bit of something was good then a LOT would be excellent!

NOT!!!

If you wish to use the A/C below 50F (when the RH is usually below 50% anyway, with a few regional exceptions)to dehumidify the airflow then the system must become SUPER EFFICIENT.

The A/C evaporator, the device that does ALL the work, cooling and dehumidifying, cannot be chilled below freezing. So that leaves very few ways to increase its efficiency, my 92 LS400 evaporator is extremely dense and complex, over 10,000 square inches of surface area. The longer the air molecules take to move through the evaporator the colder they become, so in order for the system to work the airflow must be very low.

The entire Lexus product line uses the A/C system EXCLUSIVELY to help prevent and remove condensation from the interior surface of the windshield in defrost/defog/demist mode, a system which is entirely NON-FUNCTIONAL for this purpose with outside temperatures near, at, or below freezing.

So if you hear of someone inexplicably leaving the roadbed and being killed on a snowy and cold day driving a Lexus or Toyota think about this. Maybe s/he lost sight of the roadbed because his/her windshield fogged over virtually instantaneously.

And now along comes toxic mold to further muddy up the issue. Prior to the mid-eighties there was no reason to run an A/C below about 50F, so heat was used exclusively heat the windshield and evaporate condensation from its surface and to lower the relative humidity.

Above these (50F) ambient temperatures when the A/C was used what moisture that was condensed onto the evaporator vanes but didn't run out the drain tube would evaporate away fairly quickly and not cause a problem.

Remember that extremely dense and complex A/C evaporator in my 92 LS400? It came from the factory coated with a porous nylon film into which was embedded an ant-microbial substance.

In the summer of 1991 Lexus already knew that their use of the A/C in already cool climates for these purposes was creating an environment, cool, damp, dank, that encouraged mold and mildew growth.

Look around on the internet at just how many products that have been developed in the last ten years or so to combat the "gym sock syndrome", the mold and mildew smell we all now have to live with because some idiot engineer decided to try a new gimmick.

Remove you A/C compressor relay when the ambient temperature fall below an average of 50F. And turn up the system heat when you activate defrost/defog/demist mode. The response you get for removing condensation from the interior surface of the windshield will be one damnsight quicker than the A/C can EVER be, and it will continue to work that way all the way down to sub-freezing levels.

AND you won't have to worry about toxic mold.

 

Hmmm. Something to take into consideration.

 

What if I sprayed Lysol into the intake vents while the fan was on high?

 

i believe lysol is bbbbad for plastic/rubber, but perhaps someone else can corroborate/refute this idea...

i use some natural orange spray from trader joe's and just try and always remember to leave it on 'vent'

 

I have the same problem. Smells like hell when you first get it going. But like others, I just run with the windows down. I think the next time I take her in, I will mention the problem and get them to install that update. God I love extended warranties.