Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Ok so here is my problem...ever since I can remember my 2002 VR6 Jetta has smelled like crayons...yes, crayons. I have tried everything I could think of to get rid of the smell but nothing has worked. Its soaked into the fabric of my car (other than the leather seats).

No, I dont draw pictures in my car and lose the crayons, and no I dont advertise for crayola. I've heard pretty much all the jokes. My car is even referred to as "the black crayon". [:@]

Things I have tried:
- Windows down to air out the car on a windy day
- Washed interior including carpets (smell is soaked into carpets & cant remove it even after machine wash)
- Sprayed ozium inside car/vents
- Sprayed Fabreeze
- Used carpet powder
- Bounce sheets in vents (worked for a few)
- Car fresheners (becomes a mix of the car freshener smell and crayons combined)

Nothing seems to work.

Any ideas of what else I could do?? HELP PLEASE!! I cant take this anymore!!

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

bummer, ive had two stinky episodes in my other cars, and dryer sheets under the seats always worked, never thought of them in the vents,
at least it doesnt smell like mildew or something bad,
my single cab dakota smelt like gummy bears cause my gf left an opened bag on the seat under the console, and they melted in teh texas heat and ran down the back of the seat and into the carpet behind, never got it all out either, still a patch of gummy back there when i sold it. haha.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

LOLOL What did the people say about the gummy bear stain when they bought it?

Yea, I put the dryer sheets in my vents and it smelled so fresh hehe. But I think the crayon smell is some sort of mildew...I dunno.

My vents still blow air even when the air is off and when it rains the smell gets really funky. I've had it with this smell...its such a pain.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Issa4you10-
Dont think your alone:::
My car smells like crayons too!
Oh ****, I"m gonna have to be Black Crayon numero duos.

Let me know if anything works for you....

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

it was a friend so he didnt care too much, he laughed about it.
my vents do that too, so i usually keep it on the defroster/top dash vents

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

No way!?!?! hahahaha two black crayons, we should start a crayola box and try to get all the crayon smelling jetta colors!!!

I wonder if crayola would pay us for advertising... LOL

Yea Im gonna keep trying to get rid of the smell. Ill let you know if i figure anything out, you do the same. ;)

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Well at least you gave your friend a sweet treat with the purchase hehe.

Hmmm..I should try that defroster idea too.

I usually keep my vents closed because its so annoying, but it still comes out of the bottom vents by your feet.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Maybe its the filter or something in the vents (further in). I think theres an A/Cfilter

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Yeah thats what I thought it could be too.

But does anyone know how I could get into the filter system or vents??

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Well i dont know how to solve it but i know what your problem is.... you see any vw newer than 98 VW packed the bodys with wax for shipping purposes and the dealerships dont bother to take it out thats why your getting the crayon smell in some high heat cases you mite even get some melted wax dripping out of of your window and door frames... watch for this try to clean while its still wet otherwise it will be there eternally and will ruin your paint.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

in response to issa- I think you can get to the A/C filter through the back of the glove box. not sure about the VWs though. i know that on the 98 GMC's its in the glove box. hope it helps.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Yea I have seen that wax dripping out of my door frames before. Where is all this wax located? Geez the crazy things that go on, just nuts!

How did you find this out?

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Thanks for the advice, Ill check out the glove box and see what I find.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Most likely your problem is the Fresh air intake filter. it should be located under the Plastic panel that covers your windshield wipers unser the hood on teh passener side. Noone ever replaces these and wonders why their car doesnt smell new. Better call teh dealer b4 you start takeing stuff apart because they can range from 30-140$...And the plastic clips break easy and they are a speial order item at most dealers........ Have fun.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Yea i was thinking that too but didnt know where it was located. I'll be sure to contact the dealer about it. Thanks!

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

Black Crayon numero Trou, (3). My girlfriend has been commenting on the crayon smell in my 00 Jetta for a while now. There has got to be some explaination for this. She just assumed the original owner was a fan of drawrings, and had one stuck inbehind the dash... Whoo would have knew other ppl had same problem?!? :p

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

I tried asking about it but no one ever gives me a straight answer. The dealership is always confused and says "hmmm thats weird"

Well, duh its weird...I'm 24yrs old and my damn car smells like a crayon box!! I might as well be getting paid to market for crayola!

I changed the filter but it didnt help at all. Although, I am breathing better now hehe.

I get the same stories..."you really need to stop drawing with crayons in your car" ormy favorite while I'm driving "hey why dont you draw it out for me" haha.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

i've heard of this too, there is a cabin air filter and i heard that replacing that fixes the smell.... yeah i believe its behind the glove box but not sure, check your owners manual

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

I dont know about that one. I changed my cabin filter and it still stinks crayons.

I've givin up hope...

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

I have an '01 Jetta with the same problem. The only thing that works for me is using Auto Expressions for Vents (Outdoor Breeze). The smell is so strong it takes out the Crayon smell for awhile. Once it starts getting dull again, just rebuy them.

RE: Smells like crayons...HELP!!
 

United we smell. http://forums.automotive.com/_siteco...bbcode/mad.gif

I have an older Jetta - same smell....car's way out of warranty but runs smooth - when I bought the car, I assumed it was the leather...or a deoderizor....mine is not too bad...but it still bothers me. Everything else with the car is mint - with these gas prices...getting 800-1000kms a tank is just amazing.

I went into the dealership and inquired...more for a joke...as I already heard what their response was going to be from many others on-line.

Sure enough...."nope, we've never heard of that before??? Crayons?...huh...nope" There was even a mechanic at the front desk and I asked him too....(although the service guy wasn't happy)..same response...When I told them that this was all over the internet..they told me not to beleive everything that I read on the internet.

I even advised them that there were others who had the necessary repairs done to their vehicles at a VW dealership......so that they didn't smell...and this was something that I was willing to pay for...but they still played dumb.

I have researched this a lot and found out the following.

1. The smell (some say)is a result of an anti-rust proofing agent that is applied to the car and is (on some vehicles) oversprayed under the dash and under the interior carpet. It is also common on BMWs and other vehicles shipped over seas (protection from salt water?)
2. The chemical starts with a C...like camoline or something...I can't recall exactly what it is..but did find some solvents online to remove it (once you get to it).
3. VW apparently issued a TSB on it...but it seems that no one online can find it - I think TSBs are for specific vehicles so who knows which one the smell TSB was issued under....Beetle, Jetta, VR6, Passat...they all suffer.
4. No one knows if the smell is bad for you or not and the potency varies from vehicle to vehicle.
5. I have found two people online who stated that this problem was corrected by VW for a cost of $600 and the other was charged $5k! Problem is..the people who had the problem corrected are not on the forums any longer...as they don't have the issue any longer...and there was no e-mail address...so I can't ask them what dealership did the work etc. as I would walk into my local dealership and smack them in the head with it!
6. The problem apparently lies under the dash and under the carpet...which means removing the seats etc...and removing the dash and cleaning out this stuff.

I love the car...so I am going to talk to a friend at a body shop and ask him how much it would cost to have him do all this work...I would attempt to do this myself..but I might do more harm then good.......then If it works...I'm going to tell him that he just tapped himself into a gold mine - I would easily pay $500-$1000 to get this cleaned up.

I don't think I have a leg to stand on with VW as my car was purchased privately - but all of you with warranties and new cars...man I would be going nuts.....I'm talking BIG NEON PAPER SIGNs stating your problems and parking it right out front of the VW Dealership....they will solve this for you soon if you start doing this....how many new customers do you think they'll get if you're sitting there (or your car) with bad things written all over it....just put up this forums web site address - THEY CAN READ FOR THEMSELVES!!!

Good luck.
E-mail me directly if you have any luck - I am still researching and checking into many forums. carrie.smith19@yahoo.ca

Hope this helps... http://forums.automotive.com/_siteco...code/frown.gif

Hi I have a 2003 Beetle that i recently bought. It took me about a week to figure out the smell i was smelling was crayons! now im constantly made fun of because of it! I've read somewhere that the reason is because VW (who recently admitted to this) has stated that the crayola smell was from the asphaltic sound deadening material that they sprayed on the floor. It did not cure properly and smelled during hot weather...awesome. I live in the Alabama heat and humidity so of course my electric blue bug looks and smells like something that came out of a crayola box. I've got two different types of air fresheners in there but it just kinda blends in with the smell. I read somewhere else that someone put a car freshener bomb and that seemed to help. I have no idea what to do and i would prefer not to smell like a crayon since this smell ends up sticking to me once i get of the car. if anyone has any suggestions that would be great!
and don't worry you're not alone if you have a crayon smelling car. apparently there's a whole world of people who own crayon cars...and lots of other forums for them too!