Intermittent burning plastic/melting wax smell in cabin air

[JH2016FusionHybrid]

Hi all,

 

I purchased my 2016 Fusion Hybrid Titanium brand new in Jan 2016. About 5,000 miles into it, I started noticing an intermittent burning plastic/melting wax/hot electrical smell coming through my AC or cabin air. After NUMEROUS trips to two different dealerships, they still cannot get to the bottom of it (or have trouble replicating the issue to diagnose).

 

Yesterday I was told that another customer with an Explorer had the same complaint, and that it turned out to be the lubricant used on all manufactured parts. They said when the part in the engine gets hot enough to heat up the lubricant, that smell is the result.

 

The issues I have is that 1) this happens sometimes when I first start up the vehicle and it’s running all electric; 2) it’s coming through my cabin air intake; 3) it’s not constant, which means a part would be overheating (??); and 4) that I was sent away being told, “It’s the nature of the beast” and that there was nothing they could do about it.

 

We have had an electrical issue in the past, where they changed the throttle body. I swear they also said once that a connection plug was shorting and they changed that as well, and we didn’t experience the smell for several months afterward, however their records do not indicate this fix, but we are missing records from two visits, and notes about my complaints were not included in reports.

 

I implore you - does anyone have any other ideas? I cannot live with this smell.

[VonoreTn]

Is it better or worse in recirculation mode versus fresh air mode?   

[JH2016FusionHybrid]

I don’t typically use recirculation, so I couldn’t say better or worse. I’ve almost always got just the fresh air. 

 

Thank you!

Edited June 7, 2018 by JH2016FusionHybrid

[VonoreTn]

You will get better mileage in recirculate, in humid climates, as much as 40% of the air conditioning load is taking humidity out of the "fresh" air.  On recirculate, once the humidity is taken out there is less load on the AC system.   As for your problem, you give too many describers of the smell, you need to pin that down a little.  It may be as simple as a minor air leak in your ventilation system to the engine compartment.  I shouldn't say minor,  because in automotive design of cars, that is a serious shortfall.  Your dealer should be all over that problem, not dismissive.   I worked at a major auto company in engineering for 33 years.  

[JH2016FusionHybrid]

Thank you for the recirculation and mileage tip - I truly appreciate it!

 

I describe the smell as hot or burning wax, but my husband leans more toward electrical. I’m not terribly familiar with electrical smells, so I gravitate to the wax description.

 

if you have any other thoughts I am all ears; I’ll ask about the possibility of an air leak in the ventilation system! Thank you for taking the time to assist me with this.