I have a 1999 3.0 Ranger, 5 speed. I have spend a tonne of money on it trying to figure out my problem. The problem is it smells. But nothing is strong. Faint rotten egg smell (replaced cat didn't help) Still gets a faint rotten egg smell under load or when I floor it off the line. Sometimes it smells like gas, sometimes it smells like a burnt match, sometimes I get a skunk type smell, sometimes it just has a burning smell, The smells are never at the same time, they are one time smells like this next time that. And it seems to come in through the vents. I have had the cat replaced, tune up, replaced the MAF, the battery checked out fine. The truck doesn't burn any oil, there is oil in the water, there is no water in the oil. I have heard maybe injectors, but the mechanic keeps telling me no. I am going insane from these smells. Can anybody help me???? PLEASE. All smells happen under load, especially if I am going up hill.

TIA

 

Was this a typo or is there oil in the coolant?

What is your mechanic telling you is causing it?

Is the check engine light coming on?
Have you had it checked for any stored codes?
Where are you buying your gas?

If you dont have any codes and the Check Engine light is not coming on, you might try buying your gas from a brand name supplier for a few tank fulls and see if the smell goes away.

 

yes that is a TYPO, there is NO oil in the coolant. The CEL has never come on. There is no codes that come up for the truck. The mechanic doesn't have any more suggestions. Everything that I replaced was because those are things that cause the problems. So I went with it knowing it could be a waste of money, and turns out it was. I am just stumped, the truck ran fine for a few months when I bought it last April, then it started having these smells, and a vibration/rumbling noise coming from under the drivers side dash area at 2500 RPM. And I know the 3.0 is underpowered, but I just don't seem to have alot. The truck is 99 with only 50,000 miles.

As for gas, I have put anywhere from 80 octane, to 92 octane, from stations such as Mohawk, Husky, Chevron. Esso. And it still does it.

I am just glad it isn't a constant smell, if I drive nice it seems to stay away. Just when I floor it hard or am going up hill

 

Could you have like a dead animal somewhere? lol i have no idea!

 

I wish it was a dead animal, that way I could clean it out.

I heard there was some kind of TSB on the fuel/injectors or something like that, but I can't seem to find it online anywhere or a list of TSB's for my truck than don't cost money to get. I have already had 3 things on the truck fixed that were TSB's the multi switch for the lights/wipers, the MAF and the clunking from the front end of speed bumps. I know there were a few more, just wish I could find them

 

check your battery, sometimes when a batt. goes bad, it will smell like rotten eggs, especially if you alternator is overcharging, which would make since if it smells when your under a load, it could be frying the battery. get the batt and alt. checked out.

EDIT: i work on cop cars, and the complaint is always that the smell is coming through the vent, and it almost 99% of the time the batt. the other 1% is a squirrel or rat or something dead in the vent

 

check your vents for something dead

 

Sounds like blow-by. Take out the vent hose from the valve cover and sniff around there. If it's coming out of there strong you have blow-by getting around the pistons or a cracked piston.

 

Thanks for all the replys. If it was blow by wouldn't it smell all the time? If it was blow by wouldn't it smell like oil. I will check the hose, but it doesn't smell all the time, just when the truck is underload, so it will be hard to check that while I am driving lol. I am just asking all these questions cause I am tired of spending money on it for no reason, and all the advice is great and hopefully it is stuff I can check so I dont go broke.

 

Another thing that I just remembered, and it does this all the time. When I am at a dead stop, and start to take off, so I let the foot off the clutch, the headlights dim down alot until I get it back up to RPM. So battery? alternator? Cause I have had a bad cat on a car before, and the sulphur smell from that was unbearable, this sulphur smell/rotten egg smell is faint and goes away after a couple of minutes

 

Blow by is not the oil blowing by -- it's the combustion gases. It always smells like you describe.

You would notice it more whenever it can make it out of the intake system. It would be intermittent unless your vent back to the intake leaks. In extreme cases the blowby pressurizes the crankcase so much that seals begin to leak if the PCV/vent can't release the pressure as fast as it builds up in the crankcase.

The problem would be at it's worst under load.

You can check for the presence of the smell at ilde, since it's happening all the time if it is happening. You could check it and then argue with me, lol. You asked for advice because you're going crazy, then you argue with it?

Have fun. Hope you find it.

 

Check the plugs, willing to bet one is dry and the others in that bank are soaking wet with fuel. Dead injector(s) causing the other two to make up for the lean condition by dumping fuel (fuel smell) and melting down the cats (sulfur/rotten egg smell), and since the injectors were not replaced, you are now burning up the NEW cats.

 

Sorry didn't want it too seem like I was agueing with you. I have spent lots of money on this POS (but hey, grew up driving Fords and this is my own personal 3rd Ford.) And I am just trying to learn and would like to know the cause of stuff when people suggest things. I really do appreciate the help. I checked what you suggested and couldn't smell anything out of the normal.
I guess I am off to check the plugs tonight and then have th ebatter and alt tested this weekend. Thanks again for everybodies help.

 

PM

 

Not sure what is meant by flex fuel, if you mean bi-fuel, then no, it just runs on regular gas.

 

does it have the little dreen leaf sticker on the back of your tailgate

 

Quote;And it seems to come in through the vents.
So it must be coming from somewhere in / around the engine compartment.

Quote: and a vibration/rumbling noise coming from under the drivers side dash area
Take a close look at the junction of the exaust manifold and pipe flange.Make sure it is tight and the gasket is intact.If it leaks due to being loose , the exaust can seep into the cab causing the odor and the pipe can vibrate .

 

Or you have a brain tumor.

 

You Should Check The Cabin Filter . That Could Be The Prob.

 

I know that sometimes when you're catalytic converter gets clogged it can cause significant power loss and smell horrible.
If so u can opt out buying a new one and just ram the old one out with a piece of rebar or something.
However it will require a welder to reattach it.
I'm not sure how good it will work on the ranger but I had a Chevy s10 a while back with similar issues and that seemed to do the trick.