Rotten egg smell until car dies

[Galinette]

Hi,

I'm posting the weekend story in case it happens to someone else... There are a few stories of rotten egg smell in Tesla, but none ended up in serious trouble. And the road assistance was of no help...

Saturday, we were on a trip and it started to slightly rotten eggs inside. This was light and only happened when getting inside the car. As soon as we started, the smell was not noticeable anymore. Same thing sunday.

Monday morning, the smell appeared each time the car stopped (tolls, red lights, etc...). I suspected a stupid joke like a stinky bomb on the air intakes, so monday evening, I washed the car, and especially windshields and front intakes. At that point, the smell had become super heavy and it was not possible to drive without opening the windows.

Tuesday morning, I called the Tesla SC to get the techs have a look on the afternoon. But, by then, the smell totally disappeared. I assumed the stinky bomb hypothesis was right and that cleaning the car did it. So I cancelled the SC appointment (and they did not warn me of any potential serious issue)

Tuesday evening, I do a 5 min drive to check the smell which was OK. But 2 minutes after parking in my garage, the car shut down. I went out and (stupidly) closed the door, after which it was fully bricked.

A quick search on the internet showed me that faulty lead-acid batteries overheat and emit H2S, that Teslas have a 12V lead-acid battery, and if these die, a circuit breaker disconnects the main battery, fully shutting down all car systems.

I never had any battery issue warning on the dashboard. I was pretty lucky that the shutdown happened in my garage and not on the highway...

So if you smell rotten eggs in or around your car, don't wait, have your 12V battery replaced or checked...

 

[scottm]

I hope Tesla workers in the factory aren't resorting to ways of the past workers in that location:

The Fremont Assembly factory which NUMMI took over was built by General Motors and operated by them from 1962 to 1982,[3] when the Fremont employees[32] were "considered the worst workforce in the automobile industry in the United States", according to the United Auto Workers.[15][16][5] Employees drank alcohol on the job, were frequently absent (enough so that the production line couldn't be started), and even committed petty acts of sabotage such as putting "Coke bottles inside the door panels, so they'd rattle and annoy the customer."[15][16]

 

[Bill33525]

Way back my friend worked in a Chevy dealership. Customer came in complaining "every time it rains this car stinks!"
Short of it; A line worker left his lunch in the door panel.

 

[Brass Guy]

It is very unlikely the car would shut down while driving due to the 12V battery. When driving, the DC-DC converter powers 12V systems, similar to how an ICE car will run on the alternator even with a dead battery. Unfortunately, once the main contactors close the car is down until you jump it with a 12V source.
If you're in this situation and have to drive it, once you jump it you could probably keep it going by using "Keep climate on" to prevent the car from shutting off.

 

[scottm]

Way back my friend worked in a Chevy dealership. Customer came in complaining "every time it rains this car stinks!"
Short of it; A line worker left his lunch in the door panel.

What year and model of Chevy? It may really have come from the plant that is now Tesla's

 

[Bill33525]

What year and model of Chevy? It may really have come from the plant that is now Tesla's

This was probably around '66 in NJ

 

[tga]

What year and model of Chevy? It may really have come from the plant that is now Tesla's

I doubt many of the Chevy/Toyota employees went to Tesla. The plant was closed for 6 months before Tesla opened it, and Tesla only bought the building (not equipment, etc).

To the OP - if the 12V is bad, the car isn't bricked. Just jump it and step on the brake to activate the HV bus and DC-DC converter and you should be able to drive to service or drive it onto a tow truck.

 

[ElectricLove]

If a 12v battery dies I’d also recommend replacing with a longer lasting and lighter Lithium rather than the standard Lead Acid one. I’ve personally had very good results in my S (and my previous one as well)... I won’t name brands but there is at least one option out there which I am aware of!

 

[tga]

If a 12v battery dies I’d also recommend replacing with a longer lasting and lighter Lithium rather than the standard Lead Acid one. I’ve personally had very good results in my S (and my previous one as well)... I won’t name brands but there is at least one option out there which I am aware of!

I can't find it now, but there was a discussion here that 12V Li-Ion's aren't good in areas that go below freezing, since they can be damaged if charged below freezing.