2003 Corolla - Animal Smell Coming Out of Vents

[falcon802]

I have an 03 corolla that has a foul smell (rodent Like smell) coming from the air vents. I have changed the cabin air filter and inspected the air box and see nothing that looks out of place. when looking through the air box I can see up through the system and kind of see where the air comes through near the bottom of the windshield vents. my question is, is there some other area of the car that the air comes in, maybe on the bottom of the car that I can't see, that maybe a rodent has camped out?

Thanks,

Bruce

 

[tdhins]

in new owner orientation the said they often find mice in the air systems behind the cabin air filter, might take another look as when they die they start getting pretty flat.

 

[mwatters]

I'd take your Toyota to a shop and get a checked out. I don't think there is a place a rodent CAN'T get to, let alone only a few they can get to.
And in the meantime - get a new car tree scent to hang on your rearview mirror!

 

[dwb4]

Had some mice get into the heater ducts of a truck i have.Man,what a mess .Took awhile for the smell to dissipate.You have to give it a good cleaning and spray disinfectant of sorts

 

[Scott O'Kashan]

This can be caused by mold and mildew accumulating in the ducts from condensation building up from the use of the air conditioning.

 

[TOPNOTCH]

when cats go bad they put off a smell almost Luke rotten eggs.
I would get that checked also..

 

[Scott O'Kashan]

My cats are never bad and they don't smell either as they are very clean and get baths regularly.

 

[TOPNOTCH]

catalytic converter

 

[Buck Masterson]

I've had that same issue, it was in fact a dead mouse. It was the middle of winter so the smell was mild and had me looking all over for the source, then spring hit and the first 70 degree day I could not even sit in the car. I ended up pulling the entire dash apart, and cleaning everything I could take apart to clean. It eventually went away but even after a cleaning it was pretty smelly for a while still. I ended up keeping a bottle of air freshener between the seats to start my trip with and prayed it stayed nice enough to keep the windows down!

 

[corolla_mike]

Read about this very issue somewhere a year or so ago. Some stainless-steel mesh screen was the fix; it allows air water to run through and keeps the critters out. Another area of entry for them is around the trunk area where a vent allows interior air to escape. The same screen works there, too, it seems.

 

[Dawn]

Hi. I have a 97 Toyota Corolla which contained mice and I am having a difficultly time getting the urine smell out. How do you get into the heater vents to clean. It is wicked when the heat comes on!

 

[Scott O'Kashan]

Go to any decent auto parts store and tell them the problem. You can purchase cans of air freshener, (for lack of a better term), that are pop the top and toss it into the car kinds of, "bombs", that will eliminate any odors inside the car.

Good luck with it and welcome to the Corolla Forum.