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I financed a certified 2016 Civic EX-T from my local Honda Dealer in October. I noticed a big outline on the back seat cushion, like a big oil stain. I figured I would just cover it. However, my civic started smelling like a weird diaper smell. I tried cleaning it, but it smelled weird.
I ended up cleaning the the seat belts, etc. Brown/black stuff came off them that smelled like a sewer/rotten odor. Under the seat, the black clips also had this on them. I was able to clean it all with a urine remover (idk what it was tho).
Anyway, I ended up throwing the bottom cushion seat away. Nothing worked. I soaked it in vinegar, urine removers, baking soda, etc. The smell subsided. However, when I first get in, I smell pee. I smell the floor, and it’s coming from the rug. I cleaned it with vinegar, urine removers, etc. It still has an odor. Like a sweaty odor.
I changed the cabin filter. I checked for mice etc. I also had a detailer detail the whole inside.
I ended up replacing the back seat cushion.
I found out the back rug smells. It smells after all the cleaning etc.
Biggest odd part....the trunk smells like pee the worse.
Now i’m stuck with a car I had cleaned 100x times & worried about getting mold. My anxiety has been crazy.
Question: If I buy the rug from the dealer, would it come with the jute padding attached?
How hard would it be to do the carpet swap on
a 2016 civic ext? I can’t find any instructions or manuals. Everything refers to different year civics. Please help!
Nope. It’s supposed to be “certified pre-owned”. When I picked up my seat I spoke with the parts manager & was assured it was never in a flood.... but they can lie & I would never know. I just want to be able to drive my sister to school in my new car I only had for 4 months..... but I can’t because i’m too embarrassed of the smell. Will me putting in a new rug myself void any type of warranty?
They would never do that.... would they? I got it for like $16,000 and financed through capital one. Now the balance is like $24,000 but to pay it off is $18,000, if i’m correct. I would have fought for that the first week I had it & sent an email about ordering a new seat.... & the dealer calls me and says “how are you paying for this”... and I said with a credit card... like a dummy 😩.
Is it even worth fighting for? Has anyone ever had them do this? Just trying to be able to show people my new car I had for months and had to hide because of the smell
Don't replace the rug yet (consider it evidence), and definitely push the dealership to replace the car. There's no point in trying to fix something like that.
It’s a car loan through Capital one auto loan. Honda’s interest was too high. Do you guys really think it’s unfixable? Is there a way to know for sure it was flooded? Idk it seems like it’ll be impossible to get them to switch out the car. They only gave me a 20% discount on the seat “for my troubles”.... then I later seen they had an offer of 20% off parts for everyone who buys through them.
So I have a civic with a back seat cushion (no cover for it because it’s sold separately and I was saving up) with a rug that smells. right now it’s covered in baking soda.
Anyway to know if it has mold or how to prevent it? Sorry for all the questions. This is my first car
And yeah... the carfax said 1 owner... who leased it. No damages or accidents. When I first bought it... it smelled like fresh diaper? Idk how to explain it. It all started when I noticed a big circle stain on the seat cushion. I tried cleaning it & bam. I smelled urine. Then I sprayed vinegar etc. before just tossing it. Then I cleaned the rug & BAM.... my car smelled like urine. Then I used urine removed etc. Everything you could think of. Now it smells like dirty socks/sweat
Yes.... and that’s exactly what I think. At first it only smelled in the morning when I got in it (usually when it’s colder outside).... then it went away a little as I drove. Now it just smells like dirty sweat. I know someone on here said don’t replace the rug... but do you honestly think i even have a chance at getting a swap or something? Do you think this could be mold or from a flood? Or just someone who peed or something or had a bladder problem?
Another thing...When you take off the side panel of in the back bear the seat cup holder... is there supposed to be brownish styrofoam or something near there? I think I seen that when I opened up the back rug & a piece of my panel broke off (I know... my civic is basically junk now... i’m still trying to find a glue that will pond it back together)
A few I found off yelp. I had my seat taken out & professionally cleaned for $125 before I replaced it. It costed almost $300 for a new one so I basically wasted $125.
My concern with the rug is if it’s the main problem & I waste another $125 having it cleaned.... I could have just replaced it for $370.
I worry about mold because you can’t see it. It makes me anxious. People say mold can smell like urine. I just was always thinking it was real urine causing the smell because the seat had a big urine smelling circle in it before replacing it. However, how much urine could possible be in a car to make it ruin a rug? And why would the trunk smell the strongest? How would urine get into the trunk? It has no rug underneath. I don't see any mold tho. Any test or something I can buy? because if the car has mold I will trade it in & lose money or try to get a swap because that is a big no for me. I will never feel comfortable in it
I wouldn't necessarily trust Carfax. My buddy got a Mercedes off Copart with a clean Carfax and about 2 months after buying it, it was adjusted to a salvage title. You could always take it to a mechanic for an inspection; they'll know pretty quickly if it was in a flood or not. I'm not sure if there's any legal strength behind that, but it wouldn't hurt at this point.
It honestly could be an old fluid leak. I spilled some gear oil in the back of my civic and it absolutely stinks (I'm pretty sure I'm just immune to the smell because people still complain about it). It soaked right through the carpet and into the metal so it's basically impossible to get out now. That would explain the spot in the back seat, and maybe the stink in the trunk. The grime on the seatbelts is still interesting... I dunno man. I'd talk to the dealership if I were you, but you seem to be in a weird spot. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Depends on the colour of the car (I didn't notice it anywhere), but I would assume not. I'm now starting to believe that there was a fluid leak back there at some point. Something like gear oil can break down paint if left untouched for a long enough period of time. It also smells similar to what complaints you're making.
Out of curiosity, what's the mileage on it? May give me a better idea of what it could be.
It has 30,xxx miles. It’s a blue 2 door coupe (automatic). I’m going to post a pic if the foam behind the interior side panel next the the back seat, a pic under my steering wheel, and a pic if under my rug in which the yellow tint paint is also shown. Let me know what you think.
Every vin site I check says it’s free of flood damage but I guess like what others have experienced on here, the dealer can be good at hiding things inside the back seat side panel (through a piece of panel that broke off when pulling out piece of rug) under my rug (the yellow tint i’m talking about) under my steering wheel. Not sure if this is normal or if it’s a bad sign
Okay, that's almost definitely water damage. The underside of the steering wheel should never get moisture like what you're showing (unless you live in a super humid area), and the foam behind that side panel looks damp. Same thing with the trunk. It'll be slowly rusting from all the sitting water.
I live in NJ. And if water filled up to the steering wheel... how come it didn't ruin the driver & passenger seats? What should I do now? It drives fine, and looks all new besides the smell/rug.... is this car trash? i’ll be paying it off for 5 years so should I just trade it in now?
That's why I'm guessing humidity, otherwise yes, your car would be trashed. New Jersey is pretty close to the Atlantic ocean so it would be pretty humid there. Since you broke that piece in the back, that might technically void your warranty, I'm not super familiar with car warranty, but if they're slimy enough to sell you a flooded car, there's no saying what else they would do. I'd explore the idea of trading it in, but it's probably worthless as it sits.
So if it was flooded... it’s worthless? I’m guessing i’m going to lose like at least $6,000 by trading it in? And i’m also guessing the dealer isn’t going to swap it or cover any of it? This really sucks. Idk what to do now. There’s no way of knowing for sure & now i’m stuck. Where would u go from here if u were me?
-I don't think any of the pictures you posted prove flood damage.
-Bring it back to the dealer and complain. Likely won't work but it's always worth a shot.
-If the dealer won't do anything you have a choice to make: sell/trade the car or tear apart the interior to find the source and fix it. Possibly someone urinated on the seat/floor which would be very difficult to clean up.
Thanks... that makes me feel better a little. I just don’t understand how the trunk can smell like urine still. I emptied it & sprayed it with everything from vinegar to odorban to lysol. A few days later... smell it back. The smell in the car seems to be when I first get intobmy car in the morning so i’m assuming it’s the rug. When I cleaned it, it reeked of urine & a fart smell? lol. I know when I replace the carpet... it may go away. It just doesn’t explain the trunk? It’s just metal under the spare tire so i’m really confused.
I checked the car’s repair history through Honda last night. All that was ever done to it was an oil change & the struts on one side were replaced (not sure what that means).
I just wish there was a way to know if there is any kind of mold I cannot see in my car
Thanks... that makes me feel better a little. I just don’t understand how the trunk can smell like urine still. I emptied it & sprayed it with everything from vinegar to odorban to lysol. A few days later... smell it back. The smell in the car seems to be when I first get intobmy car in the morning so i’m assuming it’s the rug. When I cleaned it, it reeked of urine & a fart smell? lol. I know when I replace the carpet... it may go away. It just doesn’t explain the trunk? It’s just metal under the spare tire so i’m really confused.
Could just be the smell building up in the trunk overnight. The trunk of a smoker's car still smells even though the smoking wasn't done there.
Also, you get some fresh air throughout the cabin when driving, the trunk doesn't get any unless it's opened. When initially opening the car it smells but then you get used to it while driving. If you spent some time in the trunk you would eventually get used to it and wouldn't notice the smell as well.
Originally Posted by hondadude92
I just wish there was a way to know if there is any kind of mold I cannot see in my car
Removing interior pieces including side panels, center console, seats, and carpet would be a good way to find any hidden mold.
This is inside of of the back panel (left & right sides both have the same thing)...... it’s under the cup holder near the floor..... is this glue? Should it be this color?
It seems like the smell is deff coming from the trunk too.
The top is yellowish like how the floor is so does that mean it’s just the way it’s painted?
THE LAST PIC= The smell of urine.... but it’s the “jute” foam stuff that’s near the roof? of the trunk? Can you even buy this to replace it? I’m not sure how that could be near the roof? I’m so confused.
Carvana will pay est $14,000 for my car.... but the payoff is $18,000. Dealer will not even replace the rug... says “it’s outside of the warranty”. They will also not swap the car or check it for free. All the manager said was he could give me a little discount if I trade it in & get a new car the same day. Heeelp
Not sure what color the glue is suppose to be. It's generally a yellowish color. That off brown does look odd but I'm not sure.
Depending on how confident you are about getting the smell out it might be worth a try to replace the jute and carpet (depending on cost). Sounds like the car was leased/owned by an overweight crazy cat lady!!
14k trade in and you either roll 4k onto another car or pay it off and start fresh. Back in college I had to roll a car payment into another car and it sucked paying 5k for a beat down 94 Accord but it's what I had to do at the time.
You could get a lawyer involved which can get expensive but they might be able to tell you if you have a worthwhile case.
