I couldn't find tape that would stick well and not deteriorate. Also don't want to have something for water to collect in should it find its way into the intake. I considered a water repellant (neverwet etc) but they usually require reapplication every 6 months or so which is the very maintenance I set out to avoid. I considered some sort of sealant (polyurethane etc) as well but those usually have an odor, have a long dry time, and would need to be reapplied with every filter change. The plastic clip made the most sense to me. Thanks for the comment!
Metallic HVAC tape should do the trick. EZ to find at hardware stores or Home Depot/Lowe's. Try to tape it on with a slight ~ 2 mm upward fold on the both intake and evaporator sides.@@adamdport
Actually, just shape the tape into a 2 mm lip and adhere one into the filter holder on both the intake and evaporator sides. Then, you can use regular filters without any further modifications.
I dipped mine in flexseal clear, very cheap to do, works. Just the bottom portion tho up to the fins, let dry for at least 24 hours so the smell and it adheres 100%
I am beyond impressed with the effort you took to investigate this issue. Getting the module itself was truly a "hold my beer" moment. 😂 I hope this amount helps towards your costs to get this video made.
I don't know what to say, you are beyond generous. You've covered the hvac module, the anemometer, both brands of filters, and still plenty left over for part 3. Just need to get my hands on a Y in western NY! I'll definitely feature some French fries on your behalf, thank you Lee!
I usually don’t subscribe but after two videos I did. This guys stuff is great. Informative and no usual UA-camr talking to loud and begging for likes.
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I dont even have a Tesla, but I found your first video interesting. My jaw dropped when you unboxed the HVAC module to help you figure out the problem. If you keep this kind of content quality up, youll be a full time youtuber next year...
Thank you so much for digging into this! I've been studying this problem for months and was just about to do a similar teardown-style investigation. Your work confirmed what I had already figured out through prior tests and observations. 1) It was primarily the filter that stank, not the evaporator. 2) Rain water was somehow getting into the filter. 3) Humid days would also trigger the problem. Our car is in a fairly airtight garage so Tesla's "solution" would suck that trapped, humid air into the filter and the car would smell horrible a few hours after driving it. FYI, I did try the XTechnor filter and while it did seem to last longer (6mo instead of 3mo) it would still get smelly, presumably because of organic matter inside the filter rotting, as you said in the first video. So that is not a complete solution but I think if it is combined with the gasket or removing the duct, would solve the issue. Your work saved me a lot of time so here is my thanks. I am printing that clip now and ordering a gasket. Might try a few other things, too. 😄
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
There's logic to it but the thought process is limited. He needs more time in the problem-defining step. What's actually happening? What do other legacy car makers that have been around for much longer do to handle the issue? There's no examination of examples of what does work in other cars and compare.
I just did the gasket install with new filters a couple weeks ago. This video was bittersweet for me as I thought I solved the issue and now I see I should probably change to those other filters that don’t absorb the water. Haha. Seriously though, the dedication to this issue from you is remarkable. Can’t thank you enough for putting in this effort to solve one of the most nagging problems with these cars.
@@frankng1212 Honestly, it’s too soon to really say as it usually takes some time and I just put them in 2 weeks ago. I’m going to monitor it and if that smell does start to come back, I’ll be switching to the filters he recommended in the video.
Same here, but honestly, I feel like the gasket can't hurt. If I get the smell again, I will get the filters that don't absorb water and be confident that the problem is well and truly solved.
@@MuffhenCrew The gasket did not help. I actually haven’t tried the other filters yet as I found a decent fix in the interim. What I do now when I notice the smell is starting to come back is: 1. Change the HVAC to manual if you haven’t already, and turn on the AC in the car to a high fan speed (around 8) and vent all the windows or open the doors. 2. Open the frunk and remove the plastic piece along the bottom of the windshield. (The piece that covers the intake that the HVAC pulls air into) 3. Spray a disinfectant like Lysol or any other disinfectant spray directly into the intake 4. Let the system circulate for about 5 minutes 5. Keep the windows vented for a little while to ensure you don’t over saturate the interior with the disinfectant spray smell. 6. Done I’ve noticed this has helped a lot with the smell. I am going to swap to those non absorbent filters on the next filter change though and I’m hoping that will solve the problem without the need to do the disinfectant spray. But for right now, this has been working really well as it is easy to do.
I am one of the desert dwellers with odor problems. I’d love to add some data to your findings. I live in Boise Idaho where the summers get to triple digits and winters can hit single digits. I only ever have odor issues in the summer. The “fix” I have implemented is in the early summer when the smell starts I buy new filters and buy the condenser cleaner and do a full clean out before putting new filters in. I tried just replacing the filters. And that worked, but the smell came back within weeks. If I do the full clean, let everything dry, then put in new filters the smell stays gone for most if not all of the rest of the summer. I’ve been doing this since 2019 with 3 different Model 3s and one Model Y. As soon as cooler weather hits and the AC isn’t being used the smell goes away. The smell is the worst when getting in the car on a hot day and starting the AC. After the AC runs for 5 mins the smell is mostly gone. But it’s really bad for those first few mins. I really feel like the AC and the resultant water condensation is the problem for me. In the summer after running the AC really hard there will be a puddle under the car if it sits parked for a while. I imagine that puddle is most of the condensation, but that some of it wasn’t able to escape the car and is causing the odor. Tesla didn’t used to run the fan to try to dry anything out and I still had the problem back then. It’s gotten a little better after they started running the fan to the to dry things out. Only a little. I really hope you keep digging into where the odor is coming from for different people in different places.
I’ve had my 2018 Model 3 for over 5 years now, and I live in Phoenix, AZ. I got the funk smell in my car with the OEM filters, but I’ve been using “HEPA” replacement filters with the open cell foam around them for about the last 4 years. I haven’t had the funk smell since I started using them. The reduced airflow has not been noticeable to me, and as you can imagine, it gets very hot here in the summer (the A/C still works fine). I think your hypothesis about the open cell foam not retaining moisture at the bottom of the filter is valid based on my experience.
I had this issue fairly consistently in 2021. I started buying the XTechnor Tesla Model 3 Model Y Air Filter HEPA 2 Pack with Activated Carbon Cabin Air Filter Replacement, with the foam around it on Amazon and I haven't had an issue since.
@@jagnum1fanvery interesting! I just changed the OEM filter with the Xtechnor ones and did an evaporator clean- hopefully the funky smell is gone and won’t come back for a while!
I wish you had walked through the air flow path of the AC system you purchased. I used to be a HVAC engineer for Mitsubishi and remember many days sending cars through the water ingress booth with cameras in the intake system. Basically you always suck in water into the HVAC system when the duct size is small. The trick is to slow the airflow down to allow the droplets to fall out of suspension usually in a large cross area. The cars I worked on had a large box post fan with an oversized outlet to stop mud wasps laying larvae in the outlet. The filter was at the top of this box. My BMW does the same thing but with a large cross section filter before the fan below the air intake. I think the main problem with the Tesla design is it never slows the air down before the filter. This will always be a problem. Secondly the filter is very close to the evaporator which is very cold any like to pull heat from the filter causing it to limit post operation evaporation. Final thought is that there could be capillary action of condensed water migrating from the evaporator to the filter. This could explain the moisture profile and the benefit you noted from adding the clip. You could just paint the lower edge of the filter in a rubberised bathroom water proofing paint to confirm the capillary action.
The video's already close to half an hour, hard to decide what to show and what to cut! The intake I showed, it's that metal screen, very small, 11:01. It expands to the size of the stacked air filters, 18:11. So it seems like tesla IS increasing duct size as it passes through, but unfortunately if water does "fall out of suspension" as you say it's just going to fall onto the filters. That being said, MOST of the filter seems dry, it's just moist above that drain hole, so I'm not sure about your other ideas? Really appreciate you sharing your expertise!
If you can add moisture to the filter without external direct water ingress I.e. rain it can only come from humility condensing on the evaporator and migrating to the filter (seems weird as this would be against the air flow direction hence the capillary action hypothesis) or the evaporator chilling the filter once the air flow stops (cold air sinks and keeps one side of the filter cold and the other side exposed to warm exterior air hence the moisture profile) or just the loss of radiant heat of the filter to the evaporator keeping one side of the filter cold and the other side exposed to the warm humid air (the filter then acts like an evaporator condensing small amounts of moisture). You could try thermocouples either side of the filter to confirm if the filter gets cold.
If that little orange plastic piece is 3d printed then it could be worth including a slot for a magnet to be installed inside it, that way it would be easier to fish out using a magnetized pole (like the ones they use to get keys out of drains).
Adam, you need to be hired by Sandy as he deconstructs Tesla vehicles for their brilliant designs and occasional flaws. Great job on your part! Loved the resolve to find the problem.
I installed aftermarket cabin filters almost exactly a year ago that have the foam lining around the outside and I can say with certainty that the bad smells are gone. Usually about a month into a rainy season it would come back but nothing so far. My Model 3 is 6 years old and I’ve changed the filters with OEM ones 4-5 times. Each time the smell would come back in months. Here we are a year later and nothing! Great videos and kudos for all the experimenting.
Regarding the aftermarket frunk gasket, you can install the gasket only on the passenger side, so water closest to the intake vent will get blocked off, while air from the driver side can still freely feed into the cavity. Might be worth measuring to see if it’s worth trying
I work for company that makes the car heat exchangers. One of the exchangers - the evaporator core important to design this part where water can drain fully otherwise if stays moist then microbes buildup and produce smell with time. Also some of the evaporators are dipped in solution having chemicals with some zinc compounds that leave thin coating and prevents biofilm or microbe buildup even with moisture. This is extra cost and not all companies getting evaporators want to pay extra for the coating.
Id like to report that after installing the 3D printed gasket for almost 4 months now, no hint of the mold smell has returned. Previously I would get it in 2 months tops. Will update again after a few more months. Thanks for the hard work 👍
This is the first time I've ever felt compelled to donate to a UA-camr. Amazing job. Please, continue to put out investigative series on any other issues with Model 3s and Ys. I'm about to pick my first Tesla up next week 😅
Congratulations! They're really neat, I really enjoy driving it, I don't miss gas stations. Happy I could figure out some of these issues and help some people out. I've definitely got some more videos cooking!
I installed the gasket after your earlier video (and also did a filter change and cleaned the condenser) hoping it would solve the problem. As this video shows, it unfortunately did not. I live in SoCal and it's generally not super wet around here, however we do get a lot of cool, humid days in the winter since I'm close to the ocean. The smell came back as soon as that weather started happening. I think your theory that one of the causes of the mold and musty odor is, ironically, Tesla's software attempting to dry the system out. Hopefully they can change that drying cycle process to correct the problem. It's crazy that this issue has gone unresolved for so long.
The amount of work put into this video is impressive. Thank you for being so thorough! For me so far, your first solution is still holding up and working well. I look forward to more videos from you!
Telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I’ve never been more excited to watch a YT video than this one. Have a 2023 M3 that sits outside and the stink is real. My 2022 MYP sits inside and I feel like the cabin filters last 2-3x as long. Purchased the weather stripping and will see how things go. Thanks for all the detailed experiments. Love it and hope Tesla modifies the drying system. I like you idea of heat. The heat is there in the pack after a drive so just use a little of it to dry the filters out. Keep it up!
@adamdport Installing a sound dampening material such as dynamat or NOICO covered by a closed cell foam placed on the metal floors below the driver & passenger's feet as well as on the doors are ideas. NO w/your technical prowess has done this for Model 3/Y owners in a way that the average man can do it. I for one love the low road noise of the 2024 M3 I test drove & wish my 2020 had far less noise. Last but NOT least thank you for your swift response to this message. Your channel is going places and I have liked, subscribed and shared w/other Tesla owners.
Amazing attention to detail Adam! Thanks for your incredible dedication to rooting out and solving(?) this stinky issue. Heading downstairs to fire up my 3D printer and make one of these clips.
@@adamdport I have access to all kinds of 3D printers at work, so I got the first one for home about 10 years ago. I'm currently on my third, along with a bunch of other fun tools. Our 2018 M3P (and our noses) appreciate your efforts.
I can't find the post now but someone on Reddit mentioned they have a 2018 and they 3d printed the bracket and had trouble fitting the filter back inside the car. He thought the bracket was too wide and risked popping off when trying to squeeze it through the opening. They weren't sure if "older" Model 3s have a slightly smaller filter access door.
They use the same filters so I don't see how that could be. Maybe deleted the post because he accidentally scaled it up or something? Please post a link if you can find it!
@@adamdport UA-cam isn't letting me post the link here. Use google and search for Tesla Motors Club Smelly Stinky Socks Mold in Model 3 AC. In that thread it's post #383 from user nayr14. They printed it using your STL. FYI I ordered one of your clips off eBay, my car is a 2019.
Here in Southern California our air is very dry and very hot in the summer, and when the AC is running the entire evaporator in our house gets completely soaked with water when our heat pump is running in our house. To the point where it fills with water. It's the reverse in winter when the heat pump is heating, water pours out of the outside evaporator our air in winter is also quite dry most of the time. It's the same in the Tesla -- somehow what little humidity there is in the air is pulled out of our air at 10-50% humidity. You'll see *puddles* of water underneath every tesla at the superchargers haha, little rivers flowing out from each one. My filters are definitely wet, I can see evidence of that by the water marks on the bottom filter.
Hi Adam, I am leasing a 2023 Model 3 since November, starting a month ago or so the HVAC started smelling bad. It has been very rainy and humid for the past few weeks in NJ. Today, I took out the cabin air filters to inspect them, lo and behold the bottom filter had 3 dark spots that I am very certain is mold growing! Needless to say I will be replacing these filters ASAP. I also went ahead and removed the duct. I also have the plastic clip and will be placing it on the new bottom filter once they arrive. Tesla says the service interval of the cabin air filters is 2 years, but I usually change them annually on my other vehicles, but this case it hasn't even been a year with the Model 3.
I really enjoyed your efforts to identify this problem and was impressed with the levels you went to. I hope Tesla watches them. I have a 2022 M3LR and live in the Dallas TX area. I don't drive a lot and garage my car. When I first got my car, I enabled recirculate like I always did with ICE cars. There were a few times when I got in to drive when there was a musty smell. I turned off recirculate and haven't used it since and have had no further smell issues. This effort was absolutely trivial in comparison to yours. A factor could also be use case. Mine is mostly short local trips, no commuting. Others may commute to work, with their cars parked outside and then return home which would be very different. In any case, your videos were enjoyable and very educational. Thank you!
This was superb investigation. I very rarely comment on UA-cam videos and I wanted to say thank you for the effort and thorough investigation and testing you put in to this. Looking forward to whatever comes next! Love the unboxing grin at 10:49 😂
I am a detail-oriented person as well, but I raised two arms in awe when I saw the camera and the light with plastic screws at the ‘3-d printed filter cover’. 🙇🏻
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
Those xtechnor foam style filters have a major design flaw. The foam disintegrates from the moisture in the cabin air system. Don’t use them or else it will make a mess with disintegrating foam getting everywhere.
Your level of detail and effort is incredible. Rarely I see UA-camrs at this level. Tesla engineering seriously needs to take notes. Everyone please try to send Tesla with links to this video, they must address this.
It was funny to see you 3D printing a piece of plastic for the filter test where I would use a piece of duct tape. "Once you hold a hammer, everything looks like a nail"😂
I live in Reno Nevada and I have used the open cell foam filters since the first time I swapped the filters. I still get the funk smell even with those filters, so I am going to try removing the initial duct and adding the sealing gasket as found in your first video. But, to confirm, just using the cell foam filters is not enough on its own.
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I also live in New York and appreciate how much work you put into finding the cause of the funky smell. I always seem to notice the smell more in the warmer weather when running the air conditioner to cool the car.
I have the highland and I got it around 3 months ago with 8k miles on it and about a month ago I’ve started getting the smell. I exclusively run the a/c on recirculate. I think the odor causes me to get sore throats. Gonna try the filter with the foam around it plus a coil clean. Hopefully that helps. My old 2022 model y didn’t really have much of the smell during the 2 years of ownership and 56k miles.
I am in central NJ and I have a 2021 Model 3. The cabin funk happened after about a year or so. I replaced my OEM filters with charcoal ones I got from Abstract Ocean. I kinda forgot about it since. Every now and again I get a waft of funk but it seems only when it’s been very humid/rainy out and usually when I am using the windshield defogger. Not sure if that adds a wrinkle or not. Thanks for your videos. Dedication to detail and the efforts you extend to prove your point are pretty impressive.
Nice work in helping to figure this out, Adam. It seems like the air movement past the drain hole is creating a vacuum that pulls any stagnant water (or even just humidity in the air, because I bet that material on the edge of the filter holds moisture easily) back up the drain. That would certainly explain why the 3d printed clip is making a difference.
It's possible that the area is still experiencing a vacuum even under pressure, due to the Venturi effect. The best way to confirm this is probably with some sort of telltale (like string, or put dye in water) in the drain. If you put some dye in the drain then recreate the conditions, you should easily see whether the dye comes back up onto the filter. You might want to use a cover or something like a paper towel over the filter so you can try this a couple times without having to replace the filter. I really suspect that stagnant water from the drain is the culprit here. Even in the desert, air conditioning will condense water out of the air, and the hotter it is the more the A/C runs and the more water condenses.
I bought the K&N filter and it seems to have helped a lot. I leave in a humid area near the beach and I was constantly having to clean the filters evap.
Just one point of nitpicking… reducing airflow by 20% will not be a straight linear 20% increase in the effectiveness of said airflow. That change could easily be logarithmic or otherwise non linear and counter intuitive. Much like a PC cooling fan does not cool twice as well with double the speed, but closer to 50% better. The relationship between airflow and heat movement is not always straight forward and simple. The actual difference may still be trivial, but it certainly won’t be just 20% longer.
Amazing and thorough investigation! Normally on UA-cam you will see instructions to replace the filters and spray up in there, but that does nothing to address the root cause that people may not even be aware of until watching this series. Well done!
Incredible work! I do think you've found some of the issues, BUT... I ran Abstract Ocean filters for a while because those have a plastic lip around the entire edge of the filters (about 1/4 inch) so they can't soak water. After about 6 months, they still stunk: even the top one stunk. Don't think the fan sucking air is enough to moisten the filter. The filters get damp after driving and then parking for a bit so I wondered if the sudden change in air pressure from shutting the driver's door could push water out of the condenser onto the filters?
Appreciate the data point! Curious if you addressed the water-in-the-intake issue from part 1? Do you have problems with other cars or just Tesla? I wouldn't think it's pressure related since there's a vent behind the trunk lining to let air escape the cabin
@@adamdportTesla is the only car I've owned that does this. I haven't done any modifications. I'm in FL so it rarely rains in the winter and I've gotten the smell to come back after a filter change and condenser cleaning in about 3 months with the car never seeing water: didn't drive it in the rain and didn't need to wash it. So I dunno. At that point, condensation on the condenser is about the only way to get water in there.
The windows roll down a bit before opening and roll back up after closing, I would expect that to take most of the pressure change out of the equation, but it could still be a factor I suppose. I just did an evaporator cleaning & changed to filters with foam edges and activated charcoal, we’ll see how it works out.
Great experimentation. Hotwire anemometers are consistent in laminar airflow through a channel and perpendicular mid-channel tip position. Turbulence in a channel may lead to frequent changes in results, especially for higher quality anemometers (faster response for more refined data). A vane anemometer can provide more consistent readings in turbulent flows, partly due to blade momentum. Moisture condensing only above the drain hole might be due to adiabatic expansion on the downgradient side of the drain, cooling the filter frame and material in that vicinity which increases probability of condensation. Maybe plug the drain, or anything to block that opening to support your theory.
Thank you! I'll be pursuing the 2x filter solution (Xtechnor on bottom and Wix on top) + the hood shroud to prevent ingres from the outside. The auto dry sequence being a problem is an excellent find!
So the reason why theres moldy smell and moisture even in hot regions is because of cold air conditioning. People set the ac to the lowest temperature and what that does is the whole path of the ducts get very cold. You park your car and go home till the next day. Meanwhile, when warm air from atmosphere touches those cold ducts, you have vapor in the walls of your ducts. That becomes moldy. When you’re almost at your destination, turn off the ac function raise the temperature blast the air and this should help.
You're very correct, I've done what you said and it does help! Unfortunately the design flaws means the smell eventually will appear/come back, but manually turning off the AC and blowing air definitely prolongs the smell free period.
Thanks for the finding & your deep dive analysis. My 2019 LR M3 was getting this issue in late 2020, however issue was resolved after replacing the air filter & never has that issue again ever since. For the idea of printing a clip, I think it will work the same if you place a piece of duct tape or aluminum duct tape on the bottom of the filter and cover 1/2” up, the glue will hold it . Thanks for the clip as it the first time I could see the whole ducting system of a M3
Maybe , run the model3 without those filters for a day or two but measure the moister at the base area before and after and check a sniff test in this location for mold ordour as well.
I am wondering if a potential fix is to install the K&N washable air filters. They should not hold moisture. They have a frame, but K&N filters usually flow well. Maybe test those filters?
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
Yes but either way its not really an issue compared to the paper/fabric filter which would wick moisture. " Open-Cell does not wick moisture out of air, or wick water like sponge. Water will only penetrate through the foam with pressure (i.e. submersion, flooding etc.). In fact, in 96 hour water submersion tests, 0.5lb open-cell foam was found to have a water absorption rate of approximately 25% - no more than typical plywood"
Just thinking.... Put a hole into the clip or add a little loop, attach some string and when you insert it have the string hang out the cover. Then, when it falls off you can just pull it out on the string.
Wow, thank you very much for your effort. When you bought the entire unit just for research I had to laugh. I was shocked how much attention to detail you put into this. Another idea: what if you put some duct Tape around the bottom side of the Filter? Or simply soak it with hot wax, paint it, glue it? Just put something on so the fabric has no direct contact to the water anymore :) Subscribed ❤️
I had to pause the second video half way. OMG bro, I have no words. You are beyond amazing. I had a 2020 model 3 and I was suffering with this smell for 2 years. Then got a model 2022 Y and it was greatly reduced. 3 months ago I got a 2024 model 3 and the smell comes in certain scenarios. I do DoorDash so I mainly keep climate control on here in Las Vegas. I never have any smell issues with climate always on. Recently the temps have been coming down so I won’t keep climate on when I exit the car to deliver an order. When I come back the AC smells but not every time. I’ve always been interested in how the hvac system works on a Tesla and you answered all my question. You really are a special individual. I’m really happy someone tipped you $500. I think I’m gonna leave a tip as well. Thank you so much for all the effort. I’m gonna resume the video and hopefully there is some fix available for this issue.
Very nice diving deep on this! I think that moisture might still be accumulating there as a result from water not completely draining from the pan and normally evaporating, finding its way through the small duct in the filter pan (and the drying cycle accelerates that). If that duct was blocked, very likely the vapors would spread out on the filter instead of accumulating in that area. If you dig a bit deeper youll find other cars with this issue, the c-class MB had a class action lawsuit over this as water dles not fully drain out from a design issue and causes the filters to moist and smell bad when parked (i had one with this issue and decided to sell the car).
Sometimes I click into the profile of commenters to see if they also create content. I had to use chatgpt to see what the heck I was looking at, and I've gotta say...I did not expect to be watching someone make butthole steam with microscopic solder scissors this morning. Thank YOU for improving lives!
I just had success in using FLEXSEAL in the can(not spray, paintable kind), just put it in a plastic container and just dipping the bottom end of any air filter rly and pull it out, let it dry 24 hours. Hello problem solved entirely. YOUR WELCOME, dont bother making plastic clip, flex seal is way to go, dont over complicate things, but ur video shined a ton of light on what needed to be done, so THANKS
After watching the vid, I thought about spraying the bottom of the filter with Platidip. Just reading the comments to see if anyone else did. Why not use the spray Flexseal?
Great research. Thank you. I spent $12 for a roll of Waterproofing Repair Foil Duct Tape. Covered the entire bottom, sides (around 1/8” or 1/4” to cover the sides), and the ends with the foil tape. Like a little boat that is stuck to the bottom of the filter, but doesn’t cover the pleated part of the filter. Will see how it works.
Great video Thanks. Two things that might work as well is either spraying the bottom of the filter with scotchgaurd water proofer or get a can of the flex seal spray and spray it to the bottom of the filter.
They have canned version of flex seal that allows you to roller it on or paint brush it. Could also use rubberized under coating or any series of similar stuff and a mini paint roller and make a few up at a time and store the flex seal until next need.
Before I owned my 2021 Model 3, I owned a 2008 BMW 328i, and a 2018 Audi A3, and a 2018 Audi A4. This smell happened in all of the vehicles. It's definitely not restricted to only Tesla.
So fricken fun to watch you problem solve. You’re a fricken rock star. I want so badly for Tesla to connect with your for a collab with a commitment from them that they won’t quit until it’s fixed. You deserve it for all your effort, and we Tesla owners deserve it because it’s a fricken gross pain in the ass. BTW… your video was the first-ever UA-cam video that I’ve watched where I was forced to watch full-length commercials, which normally annoy me to no end, but I literally said out loud, “Dude, you deserve any payment you get from an ad slot.” I surprised myself by saying, “He’ll, bring on another one. You’re a bad ass.” Super impressive deductive thought processing and testing rationale. Be proud, dude. You’re good!
@@stanschultz2455 thank you so much! Means a lot that my efforts are appreciated so much that you'd take the time to write out so many kind words! I appreciate watching the ads but this video gives me 1.2¢ per view so by all means feel free to skip when you can lol
This intense test done on the cabin filter is the amazing job that you did. I had a similar scenario and wanted to know the root cause of the smell that I was smelling in the cabin. I actually just purchased those cabin air filters that you showed in the video and installed them today. Hopefully that will be the root cause and solution to my problem that I was having. Thanks for this video
Fantastic work here Adam, so friggin' inspiring to see what lengths you went to get to the bottom of this matter that affects >1M EVs. Looking forward to Tesla's reaction to this! (I'm forwarding this video and PART1 to the few folks at Tesla that I've gotten to know, many of them from Tesla Solar so it's a bit of a longshot)
Following up after a few months on a Model Y with HEPA. Background: Live in the Southeast and the stank was unbearable during the spring/summer/fall. I'd change filters, and clean the evaporator every few weeks, but i never got much respite. Tesla was no help either. Watched your videos, inspected my filters and figured switching out the bottom cabin filter for the XTechnor would make sense. Results: Early spring, as the stank returned, I cleaned the evaporator, switched out the existing OEM filters with one Xtechnor on the bottom and one OEM on the top. 2 months later, still zero smell. Thank you so much for doing these videos! It's truly been a lifesaver.
I love your dedication man. Just yesterday, finally had a chance to put in the solution you landed on in the last video. This makes me convinced that it will at least help a little!
this is dedication! I have a 18 Model 3 with on again / off again stank and I definitely plan to utilize your tips! Seems like it mostly comes down to keeping that bottom filter edge from getting wet. Easy enough to try next time I'm in there
I installed this 3D printed part in April with new filters (and cleaned coils) and now in early July it’s smells bad again. So this fix didn’t work for me in Colorado where we do not get a lot of rain. Bummer, I thought this would have helped.
@@DaveDugdaleColorado do you have a 3 or a Y? Did you either remove the duct or install the gasket from the part 1 video? Did you recently wash your car or drive in the rain?
@@adamdport 2023 model y. I did not remove the duct or install the gasket. The car spends most of the time in the garage and we have received about a normal amount of rain since April which is not much here in the Boulder area. I can’t remember the last time I drove in the rain, perhaps a month ago? Also, when I installed the 3-D part, I was extremely precise on the placement. Another piece of information I can give you as I drove down to Texas about a week after I installed the new filters, I was super charging, and I left the air conditioning running, when I return to the car I could smell the smell which to me smells like vinegar and it was very dry and about 85° outside.
@@DaveDugdaleColorado I'm guessing that you either washed the car or drove in rain or somehow got water into the air intake under the hood. Your Y has a big hepa filter under the hood that I haven't had the ability to investigate yet but I'd guess that the gasket would prevent issues like this. Sorry you're experiencing this!
Thanks so much for all the information you provided! I made all the changes you suggested in January and have gotten through all of Spring and the wettest part of Summer in Florida with absolutely no A/C smell. Thank you so very much.
Why don’t you use duct tape to cover all of the bottom of the filter
I couldn't find tape that would stick well and not deteriorate. Also don't want to have something for water to collect in should it find its way into the intake. I considered a water repellant (neverwet etc) but they usually require reapplication every 6 months or so which is the very maintenance I set out to avoid. I considered some sort of sealant (polyurethane etc) as well but those usually have an odor, have a long dry time, and would need to be reapplied with every filter change. The plastic clip made the most sense to me. Thanks for the comment!
Metallic HVAC tape should do the trick. EZ to find at hardware stores or Home Depot/Lowe's. Try to tape it on with a slight ~ 2 mm upward fold on the both intake and evaporator sides.@@adamdport
Actually, just shape the tape into a 2 mm lip and adhere one into the filter holder on both the intake and evaporator sides. Then, you can use regular filters without any further modifications.
I think the main issue would be moisture stopping the adhesion then dust too would be an issue.
I dipped mine in flexseal clear, very cheap to do, works. Just the bottom portion tho up to the fins, let dry for at least 24 hours so the smell and it adheres 100%
I am beyond impressed with the effort you took to investigate this issue. Getting the module itself was truly a "hold my beer" moment. 😂 I hope this amount helps towards your costs to get this video made.
I don't know what to say, you are beyond generous. You've covered the hvac module, the anemometer, both brands of filters, and still plenty left over for part 3. Just need to get my hands on a Y in western NY! I'll definitely feature some French fries on your behalf, thank you Lee!
THANK YOU!!!
Wow! I was excited to get $2 for one of my videos the other day 😂
God bless you brother!
And Adam, keep grinding!!!!!
Wow Thank you for supporting the community!
When you unwrapped that module, it was an instant like from me. 🤣
SAME!
I hope this video gets a ton of views. The amount of effort put into it is certainly recognized.
I appreciate you calling it out! Lots of work but also lots of fun, pretty rewarding when you finally figure it out.
I’m here and I’m not a Tesla fanboy. Originally I wanted to see how Tesla failed but stayed around and came back for the science and research
I usually don’t comment on videos, but I’m here just to say “Well Done”. Efforts you are putting for this series is astonishing.
Issue was there before tesla added a drying feature. There are other videos on YT showing exactly why.
@@nexu2010 can you post a link?
I totally agree
I usually don’t subscribe but after two videos I did. This guys stuff is great. Informative and no usual UA-camr talking to loud and begging for likes.
Tesla should pay this man as a quality control consultant and troubleshooter.
I run a local EV repair shop where we run odor removal services for Model 3/ Model Y, this series is INCREDIBLY informative! Thank you!
You’re really incredible ! Never seen such attention to detail, curiosity, and never giving up to find the solution ! Love it
Thank you!
Are you a teacher? Keep up the great work! Tesla should give you some credits for this awesome deep dive into this issue!
Some problems will drive you mad , my plaid stinks , same issue
These two videos have been awesome, thanks for putting in the effort and sensibly approaching and addressing the problem!
You're welcome!
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I dont even have a Tesla, but I found your first video interesting. My jaw dropped when you unboxed the HVAC module to help you figure out the problem. If you keep this kind of content quality up, youll be a full time youtuber next year...
Thank you so much for digging into this! I've been studying this problem for months and was just about to do a similar teardown-style investigation. Your work confirmed what I had already figured out through prior tests and observations.
1) It was primarily the filter that stank, not the evaporator.
2) Rain water was somehow getting into the filter.
3) Humid days would also trigger the problem. Our car is in a fairly airtight garage so Tesla's "solution" would suck that trapped, humid air into the filter and the car would smell horrible a few hours after driving it.
FYI, I did try the XTechnor filter and while it did seem to last longer (6mo instead of 3mo) it would still get smelly, presumably because of organic matter inside the filter rotting, as you said in the first video. So that is not a complete solution but I think if it is combined with the gasket or removing the duct, would solve the issue.
Your work saved me a lot of time so here is my thanks. I am printing that clip now and ordering a gasket. Might try a few other things, too. 😄
Really appreciate it, I'm so glad you found it helpful!
I love the logical thought process and thorough testing methodology. As an engineer this video was a delight to watch.
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
There's logic to it but the thought process is limited. He needs more time in the problem-defining step. What's actually happening? What do other legacy car makers that have been around for much longer do to handle the issue? There's no examination of examples of what does work in other cars and compare.
This videos series should be used as a tool for anyone considering to study engineering. If you like this video, you’ll love engineering. Great job!
as a former mechanical engineer, very true!
I just did the gasket install with new filters a couple weeks ago. This video was bittersweet for me as I thought I solved the issue and now I see I should probably change to those other filters that don’t absorb the water. Haha. Seriously though, the dedication to this issue from you is remarkable. Can’t thank you enough for putting in this effort to solve one of the most nagging problems with these cars.
Do you think the gasket change made any difference?
@@frankng1212 Honestly, it’s too soon to really say as it usually takes some time and I just put them in 2 weeks ago. I’m going to monitor it and if that smell does start to come back, I’ll be switching to the filters he recommended in the video.
Same here, but honestly, I feel like the gasket can't hurt. If I get the smell again, I will get the filters that don't absorb water and be confident that the problem is well and truly solved.
@@M1A1SteakSauce any update on the filters? Did the gasket do the fix or did you end up switching to the foam filters?
@@MuffhenCrew The gasket did not help. I actually haven’t tried the other filters yet as I found a decent fix in the interim. What I do now when I notice the smell is starting to come back is:
1. Change the HVAC to manual if you haven’t already, and turn on the AC in the car to a high fan speed (around 8) and vent all the windows or open the doors.
2. Open the frunk and remove the plastic piece along the bottom of the windshield. (The piece that covers the intake that the HVAC pulls air into)
3. Spray a disinfectant like Lysol or any other disinfectant spray directly into the intake
4. Let the system circulate for about 5 minutes
5. Keep the windows vented for a little while to ensure you don’t over saturate the interior with the disinfectant spray smell.
6. Done
I’ve noticed this has helped a lot with the smell. I am going to swap to those non absorbent filters on the next filter change though and I’m hoping that will solve the problem without the need to do the disinfectant spray. But for right now, this has been working really well as it is easy to do.
I am one of the desert dwellers with odor problems. I’d love to add some data to your findings. I live in Boise Idaho where the summers get to triple digits and winters can hit single digits. I only ever have odor issues in the summer. The “fix” I have implemented is in the early summer when the smell starts I buy new filters and buy the condenser cleaner and do a full clean out before putting new filters in. I tried just replacing the filters. And that worked, but the smell came back within weeks. If I do the full clean, let everything dry, then put in new filters the smell stays gone for most if not all of the rest of the summer. I’ve been doing this since 2019 with 3 different Model 3s and one Model Y. As soon as cooler weather hits and the AC isn’t being used the smell goes away.
The smell is the worst when getting in the car on a hot day and starting the AC. After the AC runs for 5 mins the smell is mostly gone. But it’s really bad for those first few mins.
I really feel like the AC and the resultant water condensation is the problem for me. In the summer after running the AC really hard there will be a puddle under the car if it sits parked for a while. I imagine that puddle is most of the condensation, but that some of it wasn’t able to escape the car and is causing the odor.
Tesla didn’t used to run the fan to try to dry anything out and I still had the problem back then. It’s gotten a little better after they started running the fan to the to dry things out. Only a little.
I really hope you keep digging into where the odor is coming from for different people in different places.
I’ve had my 2018 Model 3 for over 5 years now, and I live in Phoenix, AZ. I got the funk smell in my car with the OEM filters, but I’ve been using “HEPA” replacement filters with the open cell foam around them for about the last 4 years. I haven’t had the funk smell since I started using them. The reduced airflow has not been noticeable to me, and as you can imagine, it gets very hot here in the summer (the A/C still works fine). I think your hypothesis about the open cell foam not retaining moisture at the bottom of the filter is valid based on my experience.
What filter are you using specifically?
I want to know too 😂
Same here.
I had this issue fairly consistently in 2021. I started buying the XTechnor Tesla Model 3 Model Y Air Filter HEPA 2 Pack with Activated Carbon Cabin Air Filter Replacement, with the foam around it on Amazon and I haven't had an issue since.
@@jagnum1fanvery interesting! I just changed the OEM filter with the Xtechnor ones and did an evaporator clean- hopefully the funky smell is gone and won’t come back for a while!
I wish you had walked through the air flow path of the AC system you purchased. I used to be a HVAC engineer for Mitsubishi and remember many days sending cars through the water ingress booth with cameras in the intake system. Basically you always suck in water into the HVAC system when the duct size is small. The trick is to slow the airflow down to allow the droplets to fall out of suspension usually in a large cross area. The cars I worked on had a large box post fan with an oversized outlet to stop mud wasps laying larvae in the outlet. The filter was at the top of this box. My BMW does the same thing but with a large cross section filter before the fan below the air intake. I think the main problem with the Tesla design is it never slows the air down before the filter. This will always be a problem. Secondly the filter is very close to the evaporator which is very cold any like to pull heat from the filter causing it to limit post operation evaporation. Final thought is that there could be capillary action of condensed water migrating from the evaporator to the filter. This could explain the moisture profile and the benefit you noted from adding the clip. You could just paint the lower edge of the filter in a rubberised bathroom water proofing paint to confirm the capillary action.
The video's already close to half an hour, hard to decide what to show and what to cut! The intake I showed, it's that metal screen, very small, 11:01. It expands to the size of the stacked air filters, 18:11. So it seems like tesla IS increasing duct size as it passes through, but unfortunately if water does "fall out of suspension" as you say it's just going to fall onto the filters. That being said, MOST of the filter seems dry, it's just moist above that drain hole, so I'm not sure about your other ideas? Really appreciate you sharing your expertise!
If you can add moisture to the filter without external direct water ingress I.e. rain it can only come from humility condensing on the evaporator and migrating to the filter (seems weird as this would be against the air flow direction hence the capillary action hypothesis) or the evaporator chilling the filter once the air flow stops (cold air sinks and keeps one side of the filter cold and the other side exposed to warm exterior air hence the moisture profile) or just the loss of radiant heat of the filter to the evaporator keeping one side of the filter cold and the other side exposed to the warm humid air (the filter then acts like an evaporator condensing small amounts of moisture). You could try thermocouples either side of the filter to confirm if the filter gets cold.
If that little orange plastic piece is 3d printed then it could be worth including a slot for a magnet to be installed inside it, that way it would be easier to fish out using a magnetized pole (like the ones they use to get keys out of drains).
Great idea that I will be adding to the one that I print.
Adam, you need to be hired by Sandy as he deconstructs Tesla vehicles for their brilliant designs and occasional flaws. Great job on your part! Loved the resolve to find the problem.
Bro it’s a crime this channel isn’t at 100k subs. Thank you for the dedication and putting this much effort into this issue.
I installed aftermarket cabin filters almost exactly a year ago that have the foam lining around the outside and I can say with certainty that the bad smells are gone. Usually about a month into a rainy season it would come back but nothing so far. My Model 3 is 6 years old and I’ve changed the filters with OEM ones 4-5 times. Each time the smell would come back in months. Here we are a year later and nothing! Great videos and kudos for all the experimenting.
Any particular brand you can recommend. And do the aftermarket filters work well at blocking exhaust smells?
@@inc55 I bought mine on the tsportline website. They sell a kit with aftermarket filters.
Regarding the aftermarket frunk gasket, you can install the gasket only on the passenger side, so water closest to the intake vent will get blocked off, while air from the driver side can still freely feed into the cavity. Might be worth measuring to see if it’s worth trying
I work for company that makes the car heat exchangers. One of the exchangers - the evaporator core important to design this part where water can drain fully otherwise if stays moist then microbes buildup and produce smell with time. Also some of the evaporators are dipped in solution having chemicals with some zinc compounds that leave thin coating and prevents biofilm or microbe buildup even with moisture. This is extra cost and not all companies getting evaporators want to pay extra for the coating.
First time I've ever donated to a channel. Amazing effort and impressive skills to get to root cause. Thank you!
You're welcome!
Id like to report that after installing the 3D printed gasket for almost 4 months now, no hint of the mold smell has returned. Previously I would get it in 2 months tops.
Will update again after a few more months. Thanks for the hard work 👍
Let's go!! Thanks for the update! Feel free to add something to your calendar to keep the updates coming!
Wow!!!!!! You win when it comes to this issue. Much respect for the time and persistence you gave to this problem.
My friend made me a few of them on his 3D printer, once I have it installed and it starts to heat back up here in Colorado I will report back.
@@DaveDugdaleColorado What's the news?
@@BigZeus it didn’t help me here in Colorado. Just ordered more filters. Only got 4 months out of the last pair.
This is the first time I've ever felt compelled to donate to a UA-camr. Amazing job. Please, continue to put out investigative series on any other issues with Model 3s and Ys. I'm about to pick my first Tesla up next week 😅
Congratulations! They're really neat, I really enjoy driving it, I don't miss gas stations. Happy I could figure out some of these issues and help some people out. I've definitely got some more videos cooking!
I installed the gasket after your earlier video (and also did a filter change and cleaned the condenser) hoping it would solve the problem. As this video shows, it unfortunately did not. I live in SoCal and it's generally not super wet around here, however we do get a lot of cool, humid days in the winter since I'm close to the ocean. The smell came back as soon as that weather started happening. I think your theory that one of the causes of the mold and musty odor is, ironically, Tesla's software attempting to dry the system out. Hopefully they can change that drying cycle process to correct the problem. It's crazy that this issue has gone unresolved for so long.
The amount of work put into this video is impressive. Thank you for being so thorough! For me so far, your first solution is still holding up and working well. I look forward to more videos from you!
Glad it helped!
Telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
Interesting you have a stink it the winter, I live in Sacramento and we sit around 90% humidity in the winter, but I only have the smell in the summer
I’ve never been more excited to watch a YT video than this one. Have a 2023 M3 that sits outside and the stink is real. My 2022 MYP sits inside and I feel like the cabin filters last 2-3x as long. Purchased the weather stripping and will see how things go. Thanks for all the detailed experiments. Love it and hope Tesla modifies the drying system. I like you idea of heat. The heat is there in the pack after a drive so just use a little of it to dry the filters out. Keep it up!
Man I was soo excited for the water to come up through the drain at 9:10
😔 you and me both, I was sure that's what it was
Adam, we all appreciate ALL you do!
Are you ever going to investigate potential solutions for the road noise issue?
I'd be happy to! What are the potential solutions?
@adamdport Installing a sound dampening material such as dynamat or NOICO covered by a closed cell foam placed on the metal floors below the driver & passenger's feet as well as on the doors are ideas. NO w/your technical prowess has done this for Model 3/Y owners in a way that the average man can do it. I for one love the low road noise of the 2024 M3 I test drove & wish my 2020 had far less noise.
Last but NOT least thank you for your swift response to this message. Your channel is going places and I have liked, subscribed and shared w/other Tesla owners.
Amazing attention to detail Adam!
Thanks for your incredible dedication to rooting out and solving(?) this stinky issue. Heading downstairs to fire up my 3D printer and make one of these clips.
It's so cool living in the future, where I can just upload a video and a thing and now you have the thing within hours of me uploading it. Wild!
@@adamdport I have access to all kinds of 3D printers at work, so I got the first one for home about 10 years ago. I'm currently on my third, along with a bunch of other fun tools. Our 2018 M3P (and our noses) appreciate your efforts.
I can't find the post now but someone on Reddit mentioned they have a 2018 and they 3d printed the bracket and had trouble fitting the filter back inside the car. He thought the bracket was too wide and risked popping off when trying to squeeze it through the opening. They weren't sure if "older" Model 3s have a slightly smaller filter access door.
They use the same filters so I don't see how that could be. Maybe deleted the post because he accidentally scaled it up or something? Please post a link if you can find it!
@@adamdport UA-cam isn't letting me post the link here. Use google and search for Tesla Motors Club Smelly Stinky Socks Mold in Model 3 AC. In that thread it's post #383 from user nayr14. They printed it using your STL. FYI I ordered one of your clips off eBay, my car is a 2019.
Here in Southern California our air is very dry and very hot in the summer, and when the AC is running the entire evaporator in our house gets completely soaked with water when our heat pump is running in our house. To the point where it fills with water. It's the reverse in winter when the heat pump is heating, water pours out of the outside evaporator our air in winter is also quite dry most of the time. It's the same in the Tesla -- somehow what little humidity there is in the air is pulled out of our air at 10-50% humidity. You'll see *puddles* of water underneath every tesla at the superchargers haha, little rivers flowing out from each one. My filters are definitely wet, I can see evidence of that by the water marks on the bottom filter.
Hi Adam, I am leasing a 2023 Model 3 since November, starting a month ago or so the HVAC started smelling bad. It has been very rainy and humid for the past few weeks in NJ. Today, I took out the cabin air filters to inspect them, lo and behold the bottom filter had 3 dark spots that I am very certain is mold growing! Needless to say I will be replacing these filters ASAP. I also went ahead and removed the duct. I also have the plastic clip and will be placing it on the new bottom filter once they arrive. Tesla says the service interval of the cabin air filters is 2 years, but I usually change them annually on my other vehicles, but this case it hasn't even been a year with the Model 3.
I really enjoyed your efforts to identify this problem and was impressed with the levels you went to. I hope Tesla watches them. I have a 2022 M3LR and live in the Dallas TX area. I don't drive a lot and garage my car. When I first got my car, I enabled recirculate like I always did with ICE cars. There were a few times when I got in to drive when there was a musty smell. I turned off recirculate and haven't used it since and have had no further smell issues. This effort was absolutely trivial in comparison to yours. A factor could also be use case. Mine is mostly short local trips, no commuting. Others may commute to work, with their cars parked outside and then return home which would be very different.
In any case, your videos were enjoyable and very educational. Thank you!
What if you spray the bottom of the filter with Flex Seal? Just put blue tape on the bottom 1/4 inch and spray it to seal it.
This was superb investigation. I very rarely comment on UA-cam videos and I wanted to say thank you for the effort and thorough investigation and testing you put in to this. Looking forward to whatever comes next!
Love the unboxing grin at 10:49 😂
You're welcome!
I am a detail-oriented person as well, but I raised two arms in awe when I saw the camera and the light with plastic screws at the ‘3-d printed filter cover’. 🙇🏻
The effort put into this series is incredible. Well done.
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I’m a Brand new owner of a Tesla and have been looking to solve for this. You’ve earned my subscription!
Let me know if it helps!
Those xtechnor foam style filters have a major design flaw. The foam disintegrates from the moisture in the cabin air system. Don’t use them or else it will make a mess with disintegrating foam getting everywhere.
Your level of detail and effort is incredible. Rarely I see UA-camrs at this level. Tesla engineering seriously needs to take notes. Everyone please try to send Tesla with links to this video, they must address this.
It was funny to see you 3D printing a piece of plastic for the filter test where I would use a piece of duct tape. "Once you hold a hammer, everything looks like a nail"😂
I live in Reno Nevada and I have used the open cell foam filters since the first time I swapped the filters. I still get the funk smell even with those filters, so I am going to try removing the initial duct and adding the sealing gasket as found in your first video. But, to confirm, just using the cell foam filters is not enough on its own.
Kudos for this guy. Buy an entire assembly to solve an engineering mystery 😅
it’s one of my favorite things on TechConnections videos when there’s a tear down
“… by the magic of buying two of them…”
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I also live in New York and appreciate how much work you put into finding the cause of the funky smell. I always seem to notice the smell more in the warmer weather when running the air conditioner to cool the car.
curious to know if any of these issues were addressed in the updated model 3 (highland)
I have the highland and I got it around 3 months ago with 8k miles on it and about a month ago I’ve started getting the smell. I exclusively run the a/c on recirculate. I think the odor causes me to get sore throats. Gonna try the filter with the foam around it plus a coil clean. Hopefully that helps. My old 2022 model y didn’t really have much of the smell during the 2 years of ownership and 56k miles.
I am in central NJ and I have a 2021 Model 3. The cabin funk happened after about a year or so. I replaced my OEM filters with charcoal ones I got from Abstract Ocean. I kinda forgot about it since. Every now and again I get a waft of funk but it seems only when it’s been very humid/rainy out and usually when I am using the windshield defogger. Not sure if that adds a wrinkle or not. Thanks for your videos. Dedication to detail and the efforts you extend to prove your point are pretty impressive.
Nice work in helping to figure this out, Adam. It seems like the air movement past the drain hole is creating a vacuum that pulls any stagnant water (or even just humidity in the air, because I bet that material on the edge of the filter holds moisture easily) back up the drain. That would certainly explain why the 3d printed clip is making a difference.
I think that entire area is pressurized by the fan, not vacuum, but I never took a class in this stuff. Any idea how to test to prove your idea?
It's possible that the area is still experiencing a vacuum even under pressure, due to the Venturi effect.
The best way to confirm this is probably with some sort of telltale (like string, or put dye in water) in the drain. If you put some dye in the drain then recreate the conditions, you should easily see whether the dye comes back up onto the filter. You might want to use a cover or something like a paper towel over the filter so you can try this a couple times without having to replace the filter.
I really suspect that stagnant water from the drain is the culprit here. Even in the desert, air conditioning will condense water out of the air, and the hotter it is the more the A/C runs and the more water condenses.
I bought the K&N filter and it seems to have helped a lot. I leave in a humid area near the beach and I was constantly having to clean the filters evap.
Just one point of nitpicking… reducing airflow by 20% will not be a straight linear 20% increase in the effectiveness of said airflow. That change could easily be logarithmic or otherwise non linear and counter intuitive. Much like a PC cooling fan does not cool twice as well with double the speed, but closer to 50% better. The relationship between airflow and heat movement is not always straight forward and simple. The actual difference may still be trivial, but it certainly won’t be just 20% longer.
Amazing and thorough investigation! Normally on UA-cam you will see instructions to replace the filters and spray up in there, but that does nothing to address the root cause that people may not even be aware of until watching this series. Well done!
Incredible work! I do think you've found some of the issues, BUT... I ran Abstract Ocean filters for a while because those have a plastic lip around the entire edge of the filters (about 1/4 inch) so they can't soak water. After about 6 months, they still stunk: even the top one stunk. Don't think the fan sucking air is enough to moisten the filter. The filters get damp after driving and then parking for a bit so I wondered if the sudden change in air pressure from shutting the driver's door could push water out of the condenser onto the filters?
Appreciate the data point! Curious if you addressed the water-in-the-intake issue from part 1? Do you have problems with other cars or just Tesla? I wouldn't think it's pressure related since there's a vent behind the trunk lining to let air escape the cabin
@@adamdportTesla is the only car I've owned that does this. I haven't done any modifications. I'm in FL so it rarely rains in the winter and I've gotten the smell to come back after a filter change and condenser cleaning in about 3 months with the car never seeing water: didn't drive it in the rain and didn't need to wash it. So I dunno. At that point, condensation on the condenser is about the only way to get water in there.
The windows roll down a bit before opening and roll back up after closing, I would expect that to take most of the pressure change out of the equation, but it could still be a factor I suppose.
I just did an evaporator cleaning & changed to filters with foam edges and activated charcoal, we’ll see how it works out.
Great experimentation. Hotwire anemometers are consistent in laminar airflow through a channel and perpendicular mid-channel tip position. Turbulence in a channel may lead to frequent changes in results, especially for higher quality anemometers (faster response for more refined data). A vane anemometer can provide more consistent readings in turbulent flows, partly due to blade momentum.
Moisture condensing only above the drain hole might be due to adiabatic expansion on the downgradient side of the drain, cooling the filter frame and material in that vicinity which increases probability of condensation. Maybe plug the drain, or anything to block that opening to support your theory.
You are my hero 🫡 This level of nerdery and dedication is what I'm here for. Thanks for making this series. So much to learn!
Thanks! Well done. I love your passion and logical approach. This is so helpful for the community.
Absolutely Amazing! The level of detail AND you even bought a complete HVAC unit! I don't own a Tesla but thoroughly enjoyed watching the process.
Thank you! I'll be pursuing the 2x filter solution (Xtechnor on bottom and Wix on top) + the hood shroud to prevent ingres from the outside. The auto dry sequence being a problem is an excellent find!
So the reason why theres moldy smell and moisture even in hot regions is because of cold air conditioning. People set the ac to the lowest temperature and what that does is the whole path of the ducts get very cold. You park your car and go home till the next day. Meanwhile, when warm air from atmosphere touches those cold ducts, you have vapor in the walls of your ducts. That becomes moldy. When you’re almost at your destination, turn off the ac function raise the temperature blast the air and this should help.
You're very correct, I've done what you said and it does help! Unfortunately the design flaws means the smell eventually will appear/come back, but manually turning off the AC and blowing air definitely prolongs the smell free period.
Thanks!
Love this! Can you do a comparison between the Model 3/Y system and why this doesn't happen on the S/X system?
I have a refreshed model S and it gets a really offensive smell when it’s raining or super humid. And it happens while parked in a garage.
Very thorough video thank you! I love Tesla and my model Y but the AC smelling thing is super annoying. I change my filters every quarter at least
Thank you Adam! I'm about to change my cabin filters again and saw this! I'm only 11 minutes in! Awesome content!
Thanks for the finding & your deep dive analysis. My 2019 LR M3 was getting this issue in late 2020, however issue was resolved after replacing the air filter & never has that issue again ever since. For the idea of printing a clip, I think it will work the same if you place a piece of duct tape or aluminum duct tape on the bottom of the filter and cover 1/2” up, the glue will hold it .
Thanks for the clip as it the first time I could see the whole ducting system of a M3
great findings... I'm just going to keep changing the filters every few months but it's nice to see why this might be happening
From CNY to you in WNY, thanks for your informative & well studied video
Get those snow tires on!
Maybe , run the model3 without those filters for a day or two but measure the moister at the base area before and after and check a sniff test in this location for mold ordour as well.
I am wondering if a potential fix is to install the K&N washable air filters. They should not hold moisture. They have a frame, but K&N filters usually flow well. Maybe test those filters?
Give this guy 10k subs for going above and beyond! Kudos to you! Shared!
Folks, telling Adam thanks is great & all; however, SUBSCRIBING, LIKING & SHARING is the way to grow his channel so do that to show gratitude for what he's doing for us all.
I'm going to use "open cell foam frame" filter on the bottom and a regular one on the top. Problem sovled!
18:40: Open cell foam is more absorbing moisture than closed cell foam. But thanks for this ultra well analyzed problematic!
Yes but either way its not really an issue compared to the paper/fabric filter which would wick moisture. " Open-Cell does not wick moisture out of air, or wick water like sponge. Water will only penetrate through the foam with pressure (i.e. submersion, flooding etc.). In fact, in 96 hour water submersion tests, 0.5lb open-cell foam was found to have a water absorption rate of approximately 25% - no more than typical plywood"
Just thinking.... Put a hole into the clip or add a little loop, attach some string and when you insert it have the string hang out the cover. Then, when it falls off you can just pull it out on the string.
Wow, thank you very much for your effort. When you bought the entire unit just for research I had to laugh. I was shocked how much attention to detail you put into this.
Another idea: what if you put some duct Tape around the bottom side of the Filter? Or simply soak it with hot wax, paint it, glue it? Just put something on so the fabric has no direct contact to the water anymore :)
Subscribed ❤️
I had to pause the second video half way. OMG bro, I have no words. You are beyond amazing. I had a 2020 model 3 and I was suffering with this smell for 2 years. Then got a model 2022 Y and it was greatly reduced. 3 months ago I got a 2024 model 3 and the smell comes in certain scenarios. I do DoorDash so I mainly keep climate control on here in Las Vegas. I never have any smell issues with climate always on. Recently the temps have been coming down so I won’t keep climate on when I exit the car to deliver an order. When I come back the AC smells but not every time. I’ve always been interested in how the hvac system works on a Tesla and you answered all my question. You really are a special individual. I’m really happy someone tipped you $500. I think I’m gonna leave a tip as well. Thank you so much for all the effort. I’m gonna resume the video and hopefully there is some fix available for this issue.
Very nice diving deep on this! I think that moisture might still be accumulating there as a result from water not completely draining from the pan and normally evaporating, finding its way through the small duct in the filter pan (and the drying cycle accelerates that). If that duct was blocked, very likely the vapors would spread out on the filter instead of accumulating in that area. If you dig a bit deeper youll find other cars with this issue, the c-class MB had a class action lawsuit over this as water dles not fully drain out from a design issue and causes the filters to moist and smell bad when parked (i had one with this issue and decided to sell the car).
These are some really comprehensive high effort videos. Great work.
Sometimes I click into the profile of commenters to see if they also create content. I had to use chatgpt to see what the heck I was looking at, and I've gotta say...I did not expect to be watching someone make butthole steam with microscopic solder scissors this morning. Thank YOU for improving lives!
@@adamdport thanks. I have those videos up so that people can check and see if I know what I’m doing.
I just had success in using FLEXSEAL in the can(not spray, paintable kind), just put it in a plastic container and just dipping the bottom end of any air filter rly and pull it out, let it dry 24 hours. Hello problem solved entirely. YOUR WELCOME, dont bother making plastic clip, flex seal is way to go, dont over complicate things, but ur video shined a ton of light on what needed to be done, so THANKS
Interesting idea, you did this in a Model 3 and it helped keep the smell away?
After watching the vid, I thought about spraying the bottom of the filter with Platidip. Just reading the comments to see if anyone else did. Why not use the spray Flexseal?
Great research. Thank you. I spent $12 for a roll of Waterproofing Repair Foil Duct Tape. Covered the entire bottom, sides (around 1/8” or 1/4” to cover the sides), and the ends with the foil tape. Like a little boat that is stuck to the bottom of the filter, but doesn’t cover the pleated part of the filter. Will see how it works.
What an amazing video. It is so detailed and with great scientific backing given you are just one guy. Thank you for this!
Wow, you are impressively tenacious! Thank you for doing such thorough research at considerable expense for all of us!
Great video Thanks. Two things that might work as well is either spraying the bottom of the filter with scotchgaurd water proofer or get a can of the flex seal spray and spray it to the bottom of the filter.
They have canned version of flex seal that allows you to roller it on or paint brush it. Could also use rubberized under coating or any series of similar stuff and a mini paint roller and make a few up at a time and store the flex seal until next need.
Project Farm of Tesla issues. Love these videos. Please keep coming.. Subscribed to your channel. Hope it grows immensely.
Before I owned my 2021 Model 3, I owned a 2008 BMW 328i, and a 2018 Audi A3, and a 2018 Audi A4. This smell happened in all of the vehicles. It's definitely not restricted to only Tesla.
So fricken fun to watch you problem solve. You’re a fricken rock star. I want so badly for Tesla to connect with your for a collab with a commitment from them that they won’t quit until it’s fixed. You deserve it for all your effort, and we Tesla owners deserve it because it’s a fricken gross pain in the ass.
BTW… your video was the first-ever UA-cam video that I’ve watched where I was forced to watch full-length commercials, which normally annoy me to no end, but I literally said out loud, “Dude, you deserve any payment you get from an ad slot.” I surprised myself by saying, “He’ll, bring on another one. You’re a bad ass.” Super impressive deductive thought processing and testing rationale. Be proud, dude. You’re good!
@@stanschultz2455 thank you so much! Means a lot that my efforts are appreciated so much that you'd take the time to write out so many kind words! I appreciate watching the ads but this video gives me 1.2¢ per view so by all means feel free to skip when you can lol
You know this guy is dedicated to the cause when that HVAC is unboxed. A true engineer on a mission.
This intense test done on the cabin filter is the amazing job that you did. I had a similar scenario and wanted to know the root cause of the smell that I was smelling in the cabin. I actually just purchased those cabin air filters that you showed in the video and installed them today. Hopefully that will be the root cause and solution to my problem that I was having. Thanks for this video
Fantastic work here Adam, so friggin' inspiring to see what lengths you went to get to the bottom of this matter that affects >1M EVs. Looking forward to Tesla's reaction to this!
(I'm forwarding this video and PART1 to the few folks at Tesla that I've gotten to know, many of them from Tesla Solar so it's a bit of a longshot)
Unfortunately I doubt Tesla will react, unless people like Sandy Munro do a video about the problem.
I am so impressed with your approach to this. Spending so much time to get DATA, and such an in-depth investigation. KUDOS TO YOU AND THANK YOU!!!
Following up after a few months on a Model Y with HEPA.
Background: Live in the Southeast and the stank was unbearable during the spring/summer/fall. I'd change filters, and clean the evaporator every few weeks, but i never got much respite. Tesla was no help either. Watched your videos, inspected my filters and figured switching out the bottom cabin filter for the XTechnor would make sense.
Results: Early spring, as the stank returned, I cleaned the evaporator, switched out the existing OEM filters with one Xtechnor on the bottom and one OEM on the top. 2 months later, still zero smell.
Thank you so much for doing these videos! It's truly been a lifesaver.
Thanks for the update! Feel free to put something on your calendar and let me know 6 months or a year later too!
@@adamdport Will do! I was ready to light my car on fire it was so bad and so frustrating. A true breath of fresh air!
I love your dedication man. Just yesterday, finally had a chance to put in the solution you landed on in the last video. This makes me convinced that it will at least help a little!
Your dedication to this is incredible!
this is dedication! I have a 18 Model 3 with on again / off again stank and I definitely plan to utilize your tips! Seems like it mostly comes down to keeping that bottom filter edge from getting wet. Easy enough to try next time I'm in there
The funky smell is probably the worst part of my model three. Thank you for this, very impressive what you have done here.
I installed this 3D printed part in April with new filters (and cleaned coils) and now in early July it’s smells bad again. So this fix didn’t work for me in Colorado where we do not get a lot of rain. Bummer, I thought this would have helped.
@@DaveDugdaleColorado do you have a 3 or a Y? Did you either remove the duct or install the gasket from the part 1 video? Did you recently wash your car or drive in the rain?
@@adamdport 2023 model y. I did not remove the duct or install the gasket. The car spends most of the time in the garage and we have received about a normal amount of rain since April which is not much here in the Boulder area. I can’t remember the last time I drove in the rain, perhaps a month ago? Also, when I installed the 3-D part, I was extremely precise on the placement. Another piece of information I can give you as I drove down to Texas about a week after I installed the new filters, I was super charging, and I left the air conditioning running, when I return to the car I could smell the smell which to me smells like vinegar and it was very dry and about 85° outside.
@@DaveDugdaleColorado I'm guessing that you either washed the car or drove in rain or somehow got water into the air intake under the hood. Your Y has a big hepa filter under the hood that I haven't had the ability to investigate yet but I'd guess that the gasket would prevent issues like this. Sorry you're experiencing this!
@@adamdport thanks to you for all the effort you put into this.
Dude you are an absolute monster - fantastic work!
Thanks so much for all the information you provided! I made all the changes you suggested in January and have gotten through all of Spring and the wettest part of Summer in Florida with absolutely no A/C smell. Thank you so very much.
@@FoamyDave that's great to hear! I also haven't had a smell since. Thanks for sharing, and feel free to report back in another year!
Tesla, please watch these. Fantastic work!
Could be that Tesla knew about this and just wanted to sell us more filters.