GREENSBORO, N.C. — You don't want to live without air conditioning in the car during the summer, but sometimes, it stinks. If your A/C smells musty, let's answer the why and how to fix it.
2 Wants To Know turned to Consumer Reports. CR Auto Experts say water is meant to exit your car by the evaporator drain under the bottom of the vehicle. Sometimes you'll see a puddle of water under your car on a hot and humid day. But sometimes the water collects in the air conditioner's evaporator, and if it sits there long enough, it starts to stink
MAKE YOUR A/C SMELL BETTER
You'll want to use a disinfectant like Lysol or a special A/C disinfectant spray you buy at an auto parts store. Before you spray, turn on the car's interior fan on the lowest setting, and then open up the windows
Spray into the PLENUM of your car, this is the box that connects your heating and the A/C system. You find it at the base of the windshield where the wipers are located. HINT: you might have to open the hood to get there but you'll see a grate to spray into.
CHANGE YOUR CABIN AIR FILTER
Consumer Reports has two other things you can do after you spray. First, change your cabin air filter.
"Dealers will do this for you but charge you a lot of money and it's an easy thing to do in most cars. Usually, it's located in the car's glove box and you can replace it with a new one you buy online," said Jake Fisher, Consumer Reports, Senior Director of Auto Testing.
I can test, for this. I just had my car in for an oil change and the dealer wanted to charge me $70 for my cabin air filter. I checked online and can buy one for $15 and put it in myself.
WHAT TO DO EVERY TIME YOU DRIVE TO KEEP YOUR A/C SMELLING GOOD
"To keep your A/C smelling good turn off the air conditioner and let the fan still run for a few minutes before you turn off the car's ignition, that will clear out some of the moisture that can be in the A/C vents, that will keep that musty smell from forming," said Fisher.