Got rid of musty smell?

Hi All,

at a second breath the car i'm considering has a light but rather poignant smell of grandpa's old shanty. Even irritating on the throat after a 20 min drive.
This would make the car almost not usable.
I've been reading a bit into this on this forum, and people suggest removal of carpets and original (organic?) soundproofing.
Has anyone been able to completely get rid of this smell, as these carpets/felt have been in there for 40 yrs? Nothing remains in seats or headlining?

Thanks,

best regards, marco.
 
To get on your throat I would suspect either sodden mats & carpets or possibly the car was a heavy smoker’s in the relatively recent past.
 
Same problem, my car was shut up for 34 years. I tried an odour bomb, definitely helped. I don't think you will cure it without removing all the trim and replacing. It is very annoying as when you get out of the vehicle you smell of old Rover.
 
I already have a wife and she is not so fond of the smell...
The carpet does look pretty stained, so has seen some moisture for sure, the metal underneath looks really almost spotless. The carpets have been cleaned "professionally", but i don't know if you can wash out 40 yrs. of use and moisture.
It might be that an aftermarket (now removed, the seller admitted) leaking airconditioning installation is the reason for the irritation in the throat?
So: everybody succesfull with carpets and soundproofing replaced?
 
When you say odour bomb, did you try a Chlorine dioxide generator? Another simple thing to try is borrow a dehumidifier and leave it running for a few days inside. But yes removing the sound control material made the most difference. It's rubbish anyway compared to the modern stuff, simply not dense enough. But you won't get rid of the smell completely because it is basically the trim materials decaying.
 
When you say odour bomb, did you try a Chlorine dioxide generator? Another simple thing to try is borrow a dehumidifier and leave it running for a few days inside. But yes removing the sound control material made the most difference. It's rubbish anyway compared to the modern stuff, simply not dense enough. But you won't get rid of the smell completely because it is basically the trim materials decaying.

This one. I exposed as much felt to the mist as possible, rear seats out etc. It was a bit intense, but did take the edge off the old smell. I think a twice yearly dose would achieve results. I cannot remember which variety.

Dakota - Odor Bombs (Various Fragrences)
 
As well I had lot of contributory factors to "the smell". Looking at my firewall to the engine bay I had leaking grommets which I sealed up (slight oily edge to the smell) and a weak spark which meant the interior was tainted by combustion products (also really not great for your health). My car is also in a very large, dry shared garage (about 40 vehicles). This allows a lot of air to circulate and I leave the windows open. this is of course brilliant for bodywork too as the underside and sills dry in under half an hour - many tiny, old, damp UK garages are worse than being out in the rain as the moisture never really dries. My car is pretty smell-free now. It smells faintly of kind of "old vinyl" if that makes sense. The kind of material that isn't made anymore. You know the smell that intensifies when it gets hot. It's not at all bad, you are aware it's an old car and that's about it. I'm pleased with the results. Like I say an intense dehumidifier session or wait until summer and park in the open for a few days securely with the windows open will tell you if its a damp problem.
 
I agree, you will never get a nice smelling interior if it is damp. I really cannot be bothered to do a full interior strip out / replace so just put up with it.

Keep a very close eye out for mice if you leave all your windows open in a large building.
 
Those chlorine dioxide bombs can work very well on some odours as they actually kill fungus and bacteria. I believe you can also get ozone treatment but this has to be done professionally..
 
Thanks everybody for the extensive answers!
I think i know the smell of old vynil. Sounds like it smells of childhood, mixed with sigarsmoke, that is.
Great, I know what to do now, step by step or rigorously pulling out everything that lives/lived in the interior.

Thanks!
 
It seems that ClO2 bombs or odour removal products are forbidden in Belgium...
Just as so much more that works and/or is beautiful (like classic cars in the inner city of Antwerp).

Does anyone have an producer/seller in the UK that would sell the Chlorine dioxide car odour products (and ship to the EU)?
 
I think I would be inclined to strip out the interior, specifically remove the seats, underfelt and carpet. The headliner is vinyl and can be cleaned up with detergent. After letting it ventilate, sit it in the car with the interior removed and see if the smell is still there. The exterior surfaces of the seats can be cleaned, although cloth seats are more delicate than leather or vinyl. You don't want to get the foam insides wet while you're scrubbing! Give the felt a sniff, that's what I reckon gives off that musty smell, especially if it has ever got wet. Perhaps use the old felt as shape templates and cut new soundproofing material?
Is there no special exemption for historic vehicles to be able to drive into the city centres in Belgium? What a pity.
 
Hi mrtask,

There are differences between all belgian cities: Antwerp and Gent don't allow cars 25-40 yrs and older than 40 yrs only with payment (180 e/yr), Brussels allows cars older than 30 yrs (no diesel and "oldtimer"-licenseplate), etc. etc.
I really do understand that city administrations try to make the airquality better, and avoid people from driving a (for instance) 1983 mercedes 200d without filter in the innercities, just because it is cheap (tax = 35 e/yr and insurance 150 e/yr for cars older than 25 yrs), but now classic car owners (who do not drive 25.000 km/yr anyway, so hardly add to pollution) cannot even enter the city they live in! In the meantime parkingspots for visiting cars (tourists, who in Belgium usually drive a dieselcar, as this has been promoted by the government for years) are added in the innercities and public transportation reduced...
And they don't make a difference between old polluting cars and "heritage" cars, which is really stupid. I own a '89 volvo 780 also, and have to park it outside the city after having lost 3 lawsuits against the city administration...
It's a real mess, and one has to keep up with new lawmaking in every city one wants to visit.

I'm superannoyed by this unfair "greenwashing" of decisions of the city of Antwerp, so excuse the extensive but pretty much completely off-topic reply...

Anyway: thanks for your answer, this is very much in line with Peters approach i think!
 
Hi All,

is the removal of carpets and soundproofing easy enough for someone with 2 left hands? Do central console and cladding of B-pillars have to be removed as well?

Thanks!
 
As a general comment, my car is ... smelly. A mix of oil/petroleum based vapours, antirust treatments of old, and general funk deeply held by the carpets, underlays and seat foam. What comes into the car gets better after a thorough cleaning of the engine but it's usually pretty strong to the point where passengers have asked, "Nice car but ... Tor, what is that smell?" It sticks to my clothes after driving even short distances. So I've got quite a job to get rid of it, but it seems a good starting point in my case will be to take care of the various little leaks and seepage (tappet covers, fuel pump blanking plate, sump, carb heat blocks) I can address on the engine, and then to rip everything out of the car to treat it with some steam and chemicals plus replace the sound deadening.
 
Fumes from the engine bay should not get into the car. Have a look at the rubber seal at the rear of the bonnet. If it doesn't seal properly against the heater box, then you have everything emitted in the engine bay getting into the car via the heater.
 
If your boot seal isn't quite right, you can get fumes into the boot. If you then drive with the windows open, it can cause a lower pressure in the cabin drawing the fumes in from the boot.

You can check this by driving with the windows open, then closed and see if it's worse with them open.
 
Fumes from the engine bay should not get into the car. Have a look at the rubber seal at the rear of the bonnet. If it doesn't seal properly against the heater box, then you have everything emitted in the engine bay getting into the car via the heater.
Yep, I had to replace this too. Check also the fuel tap isn't leaking, the manifolds are tight, the grommets on the firewall are intact.
 
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