Greetings,

That definitely does not sound normal - possibly the fresh air vent control was left (open) during transit, or a "critter" or two decided they liked your new car purchase when you got the vehicle home..

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I'd discuss w/ the dealership where you picked up the car - this should have been caught in the delivery prep,

Regards,
GottaCruise

 

Thanks,

No critters, that would be to easy. Looked every where. Replaced air cabin filter and the smell gone instantly but the filter has no oder? Fixed for now.

 

shoebuilt - was exactly does "completely blugged" mean? and what specifically was in the filter?

 

And who doesn't know that cars with AC practically always develop musty smells, depending on the local climate and how the system is operated. I'm in a very humid clime and it was a hot summer, the second one on this car. I have yet to have any mustiness in it and the cabin air filter has yet to be changed. Just goes to show 'Different strokes for different folks'. Plus, since the problem was solved be changing the filter, what point is made by taking it to the dealer? Who thinks that any dealer checks the cabin air filter on a new car prior to selling it? Why/how could it possibly be contaminated? I have no doubt the filter was 'blugged' after the sale.

 

i find it helps if the air circulating switch is left open rather than close. definitely decreases any musty odor. 9,500 miles and no smell. hope this works for you.

 

There's been a thread in the forum on the subject before -- mildew from the condensate.

There are "air conditioning duct cleaners", a aerosol that is sprayed into the AC intake, I'd assume to sanitize. I don't know how well they work.

 

The smell is back. We are heading to dealer this week. Filter is full of pieces of leaves, bug parts, and dirt. Mind you the car has never seen a dirt road. My 2008 Toyota has no problem with the dirty moldy smell. We live in a try climate.

 

Sounds like you have environmental problems, not a problem with the car. The car didn't come with all that stuff in it, its from wherever you park it and drive it. Just because its never seen a dirt road doesn't mean dirt can't show up.

 

For what it's worth, there is a TSB on foul smell from vents. The dealer will order a cleaning kit for your car. Someone else mentioned this tsb already but can't remember who or which forum but I believe it applies to all A/C units that has a bad smell.

 

Thanks,

Ya I have read the TSB. I posted the one that I found on the Sportage Forum. Do you know if it just masks the smell or fixes the problem?

 

I would imagine the 'fix' corrects the issue by reversing the source of the smell. Can't say how often you would need to apply or what chemicals are used. Ask the dealer to show you the kit and contents.

 

If you take off the glove box, take out the cabin air filter. You can see straight through the cabin filter housing straight through the outside grill on the base of the windshield. Not surprised if the filter get dirty fast.

 

Update on 2012 Sportage stink

Now that KIA Corp as taken us serious, today they disassambled our car and YES there is mold inside of the evapotor casing. So, to answer questions no your ac should not stink. Different strokes for different folks. Whatever dude.

 

Maybe the drain doesn't work right on that one, or the way you park it tilts away from the drain. In any case, no need to try to be a prick about it, 'dude'.

 

2012 KIA Sportage LX AWD has a moldie smell at 4000 miles, after two of the air conditioning system deodorizer treatments they finally completely dismanlted our car (5 days in the shop) and long and be hold it is full of mold. They replaced it, but it still makes my wife sick when she drives it. Mr. Lopez with KIA Consumers states that she as an allergy to mold and not their problem..... Wait a minute - when did we ever say that it is okay to buy a new car that as mold inside of its HVAC system, so when you turn your fan, or your vents are open - look out - you are now eating mold. Take a look at what mold does to a person.. It is not good. So my wife is now driving here new car (under 7000 miles) with one of those white masks on, and has no problem with it. So, is it okay to spend $23,000 to have the joy of wearing a mask. I bought this KIA Sportage in April and thought I did my homework. Boy was I ever wrong. The gas milage refund.. What a joke they want us to say ya give me the money. My check would be about $50 bucks.. Ya.. I did plan on keeping this car for at least 5-7 years I want that check for my gas that they lied about. We can even make it 1 year with 10,000 miles. There is no way that we can keep it out of the shop. Our doors all leak water in as well. Our car has been in the shop 3 times in 3 months. We are making another appointment for next week to try the door leak again.

 

Hi shoebuilt, Can you please tell me if you leave a/c on at all times or only sometimes?

 

The mold issue isn't a problem with KIA vehicles, this will happen with most vehicles. Run the heater to kill the mold and get rid of the smell and change the cabin air filter more often, especially if you run the AC quite a bit.

 

Where do you live? I have NEVER heard of this before. As far as the $50.00 a year refund your getting....would you rather get nothing? I think it's a LOT BETTER than NOTHING!

 

Hello, we are not even using ac. This is happening with just with the air going thru the vents. We live in northern Idaho it is 27 outside right now.

I have chanced air cab filter twice. And we are just under 7000 miles. It is not that dirty this last time.

So, is the gas rebate a yearly thing? I Guess I didn't fully read it. If that is the case I'm in the wrong for sure.

 

I doubt the cars are water damaged.

If the filter works before the evaporator, it filters intake air, but after the mold. I don't know if recirculated air gets filtered. OEM cabin air filters aren't true-HEPA anyway. Changing the filter at regular intervals is important, but not this problem's solution.

I wouldn't spray inside the dash with Lysol or plant extracts, personally. They contain several alcohols (as solvents) that could damage plastic/rubber/lubricants. Maybe into the exterior intake if I was desperate, careful of paintwork. Spraying water-dilutions into the ducts is probably worse. There's commercial aerosols that spray into the vents, but there is too much twisting in car AC ducts to soak the entire system.
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shoebuilt, let us know how the door leak fix goes.

While Kia's design may be worse, mold is a problem in any car. As well, they all have inaccessible ductwork, and are upholstered with non-removable fabric. Imagine driving with a plasticizer, leather, sun, or nickel allergy.

Those antiseptic "air freshener bombs" get good reviews. I don't know if they sanitize, but it's a way to slow inaccessible growth.

We are not even using ac. This is happening with just with the air going thru the vents.

If the AC hasn't been used since the evaporator service, then it's the residual mold in the car, and it needs cleaning. Do you park overnight in a garage?

 

Yes, every year you own the Kia you will get a refund.

 

The filter will "look" clean but the trapped mold and the moist air will leave you with the smell.

Try a little spray of vinegar/water on the air filter (kills the mold as it goes through the filter) and then make a small potpourri of borax and cat litter and place it in the air ducts away from the blower motor (attached behind the filter??). The odor in the air passing the potpourri will be dried and sweetened by the cat litter and the borax will kill the rest of the mold.
Something to try
Dave

 

Wow. That is cool that they are doing the right think. Thanks for clearly that up. I will go back and read the letter I just got in the mail yesterday.

 

Okay I will try that. I have replaced the filter but I'm willing to try anything at this point.

 

I was not too happy with the odor either in our sportage and have cleaned the evaporator core with the KIA core kit.

Anytime the car is on the defrost cycle the AC is on as it is used to dehumidify the air. So even though it is cold out, you are still allowing water to accumulate, grow mold and then freeze up and preserve the mold until you drive the car again and it warms up, grows more and builds up.

One thing over the years I have determined is any vehicle I have had that has the HVAC system with the filter behind the glove box has always had the mold smell issue, no matter how I played around with shutting off the AC and running the heater before I shut off the vehicle... This is in comparison with HVAC systems where the filter is under the hood/bonnet. Those evaporator and condenser cores are in the engine bay as opposed to residing in the cabin. The residual engine heat always helped dry out the system when you shut off the vehicle.

 

I have a 2008 Toyota Tacoma and have never had any problem with smell and it has the filter behind glove box. We love the car but we are hiring an attorney because of health issues and we won't our money back let alone the med bills.... Sorry to hear that you are have problems as well. What month was your car built? Ours was built 11-2011.

 

The only practical way to sterilize is bleach (or extreme temperature), and I'm sure it means at least disassembling the dash. Vinegar is an easy way to kill many types of mold, but it won't disinfect. I imagine the evaporator comes after the cabin air filter, but you may want to find an aftermarket HEPA filter replacement anyway.

An N95 dust mask will reduce mold exposure, but you'd need a P100 respirator to stop it. They're pretty comfortable, and hilarious to drive wearing.

A problem with mold allergies is they include mold spores, which will be in the ducts, carpets, seats...since allergies don't differentiate between alive/active or dead/inactive spores, cleaning means physically removing or destroying the spores.

I'm told there is a Kia Technical Service Bulletin, and several different threads discussing this issue. It happens with many cars, but is mentioned with Kia frequently.

Any water staying in a car long enough to grow mold is bad for several reasons. Maybe there's a way to add a drain hose to the evaporator somehow.

There are car air ionizers...won't kill the spores, but it'll help make them stick to things instead of float in the air. They also produce ozone, which helps with odors, but will aggravate respiratory allergies. An ozone generator running in the car may help oxidize mold with high ozone concentrations. There's a Canadian product called "Emzone OdorStop" (I have it, haven't tried it), a sort of "air freshener bomb" that circulates alcohol/ethanol vapour in a closed car to kill microorganisms. Running the heater will dry out the ducts, and dry conditions discourage mold. If nothing works, try other dealerships for a second car, or bars for a hypoallergic wife.

Good luck