Exhaust smell in cabin Escalade 2021

[BlaineBug]

Isnt the fill line the plug?.You cant overfill a transfer case is my understanding unless it was filled out of the truck?

Yes, that's correct. You can overfill it if you pump in a lot and then are quick to shove the plug in but that seems unlikely. I doubt his exhaust smell is oil burning on the exhaust.

 

[maddocmatt]

Yes, that's correct. You can overfill it if you pump in a lot and then are quick to shove the plug in but that seems unlikely. I doubt his exhaust smell is oil burning on the exhaust.

Bummer I was hoping for an away fix. Knowing these guess they will have my truck for two weeks

 

[BlaineBug]

Bummer I was hoping for an away fix. Knowing these guess they will have my truck for two weeks

That's kind of why I replaced my wheel bearings in the front and axle seals in the rear myself. For one I am certain the powertrain warranty does NOT replace anything in pairs and only replaces affected parts, and two I can spend half a day doing this myself and be ready to go versus waiting who knows how long at the dealership.

 

[maddocmatt]

That's kind of why I replaced my wheel bearings in the front and axle seals in the rear myself. For one I am certain the powertrain warranty does NOT replace anything in pairs and only replaces affected parts, and two I can spend half a day doing this myself and be ready to go versus waiting who knows how long at the dealership.

It’s probably not something I should try myself? I’ve done some auto work but this is probably beyond me.

 

[BlaineBug]

It’s probably not something I should try myself? I’ve done some auto work but this is probably beyond me.

It depends on your capability. At least try the smoke machine. That can't possibly hurt anything. And crawl around beneath and look for smoke which indicates a leak.

 

[maddocmatt]

Well I always like to close the loop on problems. The tech smoke tested the exhaust system and found no leaks. They said that the awful smell was a bad cabin air filter. I was a little surprised. They replaced the filter and put bacterium into the system and it does indeed smell a lot better. The air filter had 14k miles on it and we do do a lot: camping. offroad, 4k mile road trip from CO to WY to MO and back, pulling a side by side, lots of mountain driving. That said I was / am a little skeptical but if anybody has some insight I would appreciate it.

 

[DuraYuk]

Well I always like to close the loop on problems. The tech smoke tested the exhaust system and found no leaks. They said that the awful smell was a bad cabin air filter. I was a little surprised. They replaced the filter and put bacterium into the system and it does indeed smell a lot better. The air filter had 14k miles on it and we do do a lot: camping. offroad, 4k mile road trip from CO to WY to MO and back, pulling a side by side, lots of mountain driving. That said I was / am a little skeptical but if anybody has some insight I would appreciate it.

Yes that can cause smells especially if it's contaminated. The vents on the outside by the windshield can also cause smells if it gets contaminated or crud gets in/mold/dead things.

 

[maddocmatt]

Yes that can cause smells especially if it's contaminated. The vents on the outside by the windshield can also cause smells if it gets contaminated or crud gets in/mold/dead things.

Appreciate the info. Obviously I’m stoked that it wasn’t an exhaust leak but I’ve never had a cabin filter smell that bad. And I wonder if there is a way to prevent that going forward. According to the air filter gauge it had 50% off life left.

 

[DuraYuk]

Appreciate the info. Obviously I’m stoked that it wasn’t an exhaust leak but I’ve never had a cabin filter smell that bad. And I wonder if there is a way to prevent that going forward. According to the air filter gauge it had 50% off life left.

It just depends on the outside really. If there is nasty stuff going on outside that gunk gets trapped in the filter and that smell can come inside.

 

[StephenPT]

Appreciate the info. Obviously I’m stoked that it wasn’t an exhaust leak but I’ve never had a cabin filter smell that bad. And I wonder if there is a way to prevent that going forward. According to the air filter gauge it had 50% off life left.

That "gauge" in the DIC is for the engine air filter. Cabin air filter is different and should be replaced as needed.