I have a 2012 Jeep Wrangler JKU (4 door) with the 3.6 liter Pentastar engine and 6-speed manual transmission. The only engine related modifications I have is a cat-back exhaust with a Magnaflow muffler.
Lately I have noticed a very strong smell of ammonia coming from the Jeep. Not sure if is coming from the engine bay or the exhaust. I normally smell it at very low speed when crawling through tight canyons. By tight, I mean the canyon wall is a few feet/inches from each side of the Jeep. I've never smelled it when driving on the streets, at highway speed, or even when idling in the garage, so it seems only to happen when wheeling/crawling at low speeds with high RPMs for extended periods. At first I thought it was the clutch but after slipping the clutch a bit too much, it's definitely not a clutch smell - it's ammonia. Even my wife knew it as ammonia when she smelled it.
I've done some searches and it seems that a lot of other people have this same smell, but so far nobody know what causes it. It guess it's "normal", but it does not seem right.
Does anybody know what causes this stink?
I have the same smell! Even put in a new clutch but I still smell the ammonia smell from time to time after getting up a difficult rocky section. It must be the clutch, but it's very different from the "normal" clutch-burning smell.
I have 2019 Jeep Cherokee and the ammonia smell is very strong at slow speeds . I asked the dealer about it and they said it would go away after a few thousand miles. I have 7,800 miles on the Cherokee now and the smell is still there . It is more common in hot weather but still there in Winter too. It is coming from under the hood and gets into the cabin with windows down or up. I have a v6 engine and it gets good gas mileage. If you ever find out how to eliminate that smell let me know. The dealership mechanic said most people just get use to it. That is just BS it stinks and they know it but they don't know how to fix it or maybe they do and don't want to address the problem. It is time to write to Chrysler and see if they have a fix for it . It seem to be a common complaint form Jeep owners. So it is a real problem and they need to fix it.
That smell is 1 of 2 things... It's your catalytic converter (as mentioned earlier) or it's battery acid coming out of the battery. Even"maintenance free" batteries can pop at the seams when over charged. To investigate an over charge fault, check the voltage regulator (if equipped) and all the ground circuits, which keeps are infamous for.
This is the second time the jeep has been to the dealership without a fix for the ammonia odor. I called Jeepcare and have been assigned a case manger to help solve the problem. Well today the case manager called and told me they are still working on the problem but can not duplicate the ammonia odor. I had a friend drive by the dealership and my jeep was sitting in back of the dealership today so I guess they are not still working on the problem. Anyone else having this problem and have you found out what is causing the smell? Well let me thank the folks that have replied with some possible cures for the problem. When I go to the dealership to pick up the jeep I will ask them if they checked the items mentioned here . Thanks for the ideas I will keep you posted. Thanks
it's probably your clutch
Add new comment