Burning Smell from Outside, Model Y parked outside not charging.

[Nate23MY]

Hi everyone, if this has been discussed before please link me the thread.

I have a brand new MY I got 3 weeks ago and twice I have smelled strong burning electrical smell from outside, round the car. It does not smell inside. Both times it happened when the car was parked for a long time (overnight) and not charging. Also both times it happened after we drove in the rain.

Before I hit up the SC I thought I would ask the Tesla community first. Thanks in advance for your answer, tip and advice!

Nate

 

[irobot2090]

I don't have any issues with that. No smell at all for me. Maybe check under the car to see if anything damage on the battery portion?

 

[drtimhill]

Hi everyone, if this has been discussed before please link me the thread.

I have a brand new MY I got 3 weeks ago and twice I have smelled strong burning electrical smell from outside, round the car. It does not smell inside. Both times it happened when the car was parked for a long time (overnight) and not charging. Also both times it happened after we drove in the rain.

Before I hit up the SC I thought I would ask the Tesla community first. Thanks in advance for your answer, tip and advice!

Nate

You should never smell that .. time to get a service appt.

 

[Nate23MY]

Thanks for the replies, I’m monitoring the car for now. Just want to isolate that the smell is not coming from another source since my car is parked outside. Would you smell it inside the cabin if the smell is actually from the car itself? Once we’re inside and have the AC on auto (with recirculation off) we could not smell it at all.

 

[Benito1283]

When you smell it, can you move your car like a block away and determine if you smell it in the original location (ie not the car) or if you still smell it coming from the car?

 

[Nate23MY]

When you smell it, can you move your car like a block away and determine if you smell it in the original location (ie not the car) or if you still smell it coming from the car?

We actually got in the car and drove off as we were late for church, we did not smell it at all on our 20 min drive. I was paying attention to see if the smell would eventually make it into the cabin but nothing!

 

[Rocinante777]

Was there a resolution to this? I'm having a similar issue with our 2023 Mod S. It smells like burning plastic _outside_ the car after a drive. It dissipates a little while after. We originally noticed it in our garage after parking the car. It went away after we aired out the garage, but it is back today after a 20 minute drive at moderate speeds.

 

[jcanoe]

Check for a stuck brake caliper or rubbing brake pad. Drive a short distance (~1/2 mile), stop. Get out and walk around your vehicle. Place your hand close to but not touching each of the brake rotors and feel for any heat coming from the brake rotor. You can also use a digital infrared thermometer to measure the temperature of the brake rotors. A stuck brake caliper or rubbing brake pad will quickly get very hot and may give off a burning odor.

 

[Rocinante777]

It turns out the smell was not from the car. There were some mothballs scattered at the entrance to our alley. We drove through them just before entering the garage. I guess we did not recognize the smell in context, especially when mixed with warm tire smell.