[SELLO]

well I have owned my 08 IS F for about 2 weeks.. absolutley love the car. Was a faithful BMW guy for 15 years but decided i was tired of dumping money into them. I figured out why the BMW forums are so active,,everyone needs help fixing problems with their Bimmers..lol.. well heres my problem everytime I get on the F it smells like rotten eggs really bad. it only has 25k miles on it, so i really dont think the catyltic converters are fouled up, or could they be? anyone ever experience this. also if i decide to take it to lexus and have them look at it, will they give me problem because it has a K&N intake on it. not sure how lexus looks at this? any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks

 

[Digger08]

As for the problem, here is what I have experienced with my car.

It is only ever evident when absolutely hammering the throttle (entering the highway at speed or short runs)

I have related it to two issues - switching fuel providers has lessened the smell.

I also discovered that the previous owner damaged the HVAC system by forcing the pollen filter access damper open and breaking the linkage. This leaves my air system in an open or closed position all of the time. The dealer is fixing it under (used car) warranty, as I pointed this out days after purchase. This is a $2K fix for the dealer.....and the sulphur smell just pours into the cabin worsening the symptoms.

I have checked my catalytic's as well and everything operates normally including heat cycles.

I would think that if you are going into Lexus to have the catalytic's looked at they will undoubtedly point to your K&N intake as the blame. Be on the safe side and put the factory air box back in before getting a dealer to inspect this to remove all of the unknowns from the equation.



Digger08

 

[Carbon]

Were the cats removed? IE: aftermarket headers or exhaust? or were there aftermarket headers on the car and the stock ones were not put back on properly?

I'm not sure where the cabin air intake is, maybe you can locate the problem as Digger suggested.

 

[SELLO]

im using 93 octane by shell..what gas are u using? and unfortunately i dont have the stock airbox considering it came with the K&N intake. anyone wanna let me borrow theirs ill pay shipping to and from or is anyone willing to sell me one cheap. its kinda weird cuz I didnt smell this at all the first week i had the car and u guys know damn well i beat her up pretty good when i got her. I guess i can deal with it as long as its not hurting the car. should i use 91 octane gas instead?

 

[SELLO]

and it looks like it has always been stock headers and exhaust

 

[Carbon]

I use the similar Sunoco Ultra 94 here in Toronto. The dealer here is fine with intake mods, but you may want to call a dealer service department and describe the situation.

Does it smell like gas or oil? It's not like natural gas that is scented like rotten eggs. Maybe you ran over something.

 

[evil teo]

i dont think they will give you a problem with the K&N. It looks like the cause is from your cabin air filter, which is in the glove compartment. Inspect the the cabin filter if it needs to be change. I think the recommended intervals was 30k to change the cabin filters so urs is pretty close. I would look at the manual if you have it about the cabin air filter and how to remove it. It is simple but you don't want to break that door mention above to the access damper.

 

[Carbon]

While we are on the subject, does the F have any recirculation of oil or something into the intake like on some engines? I haven't come across any aftermarket catch cans for the F.

 

[SELLO]

thanks ill look into the cabin air filter..

 

[GC617289]

You may have an unwanted guest! Check the condition of the cabin filter (it's behind the glove box shelf). If it shows signs of physical damage, particularly hole(s), you may have a nest in the HVAC ducts and there may be living and/or dead occupants.

If the filter is damaged have someone ... such as a Lexus dealer ... run a snake camera through the HVAC ducts.

If the filter is not damaged and everything in the ducts is fine ... the most common cause of a rotten-egg smell is the CAT.

 

[evil teo]

check ur battery as well. there was this thread on cl.

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-second-generation/572333-vsc-light-on-sulfur-smell-from-is350.html

it could be mold buildup in ac condenser or your cats or battery. could be ur gas as well.

 

[johng35]

Hi , I know you posted your rotten egg problem years ago. But Im experiencing the same problem. Did you ever resolve the problem, can you tell me what was the problem.

 

[Luxion]

there aftermarket headers on the car and the stock ones were not put back on properly?