Hello all,

I have a 2005 Ford Five Hundred SEL AWD with the CVT transmission, 117k miles. Purchased used from a dealership w/ no previous maintenance records and the local Ford dealership here won't give me any information on if it has been serviced there before or not.
Anywho, I am getting a gross burning rubber smell. I don't smell it until the car has been driven around a good 10 or 15 minutes in traffic, it does not smell when vehicle has just been started. I only notice the smell when I come to a stoplight (or anytime I'm sitting still) the air in my vents start smelling of burning rubber. Once I start moving again the smell goes away, I assume because I am moving. I have done a handful of walk-arounds; I have checked for brakes locking up, checked to see if tires were rubbing, checked the serpentine belt and pulleys, CV axle boots are in tact, no rips or seepage, checked the exhaust for any sort of funky debris, checked the ground for any sort of fluid spots. I have even removed the outside window cowling and dropped the blower motor and resistor to check for burns or any sort of funky debris in either places. I have found nothing!! There is no smoke coming from the engine bay, but I do smell the burning rubber smell near the driver side of the vehicle under the hood and slightly when kneeling down to sniff in the front left wheel well. The car is running fine and driving fine. No strange noises or anything. I am completely puzzled by this. I've tried to find someone with the same issue on the web, but I am having no luck. I keep the air on recirculation, so I don't have to deal with a headache and my nose burning from the terrible smell this thing is omitting when I drive it. Please, if you have a solution, recommendation or advice I'd love to hear it because this is driving me nutty. Thanks in advance

 

Sometimes oil will seep out from a valve cover seal/gasket and burn off before it can be located. If you see any crusty deposits on the exhaust manifold where it bolts to the engine head assy that might provide an answer. Sometimes you need to do a little detective work and search under things that you would not always be glancing at. Look for anything that is made with/of rubber on that side of the engine and if possible feel for something warm/hot that could be the cause. It could be a piece of rubber hose contacting a part of the exhaust manifold or exhaust pipe.

 

I'm going to get it up on some car ramps tomorrow and take a peeksy underneath to see if I can see any sort of minor seepage coming from anyplace near the exhaust system. I don't know if these cars originally were equipped with skid plates or engine covers underneath, but mine has nothing protecting itself from underneath - it's all exposed to the road. I did to a recent drive that was about 150 miles away, the roads were sanded and I wonder if I'm getting burn off from the deposits from the road sanding? I didn't see anything burning on the exhaust though. Someone mentioned a Mechatronix unit? I suppose it is similar to a typical transmission valve body, only this is electronic and bolts to the top of the CVT transmission? I hear a lot of bad reviews regarding the design of this CVT, so it throws a red flag up. Today, the roads are dry and I notice the smell isn't as potent as it has been when the roads are wet.