I have bought quite a few cars with 150K plus miles without any odor problems. Some of them look like new cars and some don't. Some of them smell like they are only a few years old..my 87 300D smells like its off the assembly line..However none of them have given more of a "smell" problem than my 85 300D...its okay with me, but my Daughter refuses to drive the car until I solve it... I have taken ou the carpets and washed them and cleaned the seats and removed the rear seat. I have scrubbed and scrubbed, but this car is definitely a smeller..

Does anyone have any hints, ideas, secret solutions? I have removed the door panels, and the souce isnt there either-- I think its imbedded in the seats....

What, exactly, does it "smell" like, if I may ask?

Scented dryer sheets will sometimes do the trick

Try Fabreze for auto's. I saw some in Walmart

Carrameow.

You might want to try this stuff.

http://www.lubegard.com/automotive/radiator_foam.html

Louis

Ozone generator. The one I have is from LivingAir, I think that is the name. They are used for beauty salons and bars. Works like a charm. I bought a van that smelled like cig. smoke. No amount of cleaning would work. Put the unit in, closed up the van, let run for 5 hours, and then aired it out, not a trace of stink left.

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79 240D (no name yet) 203K Miles Maple Yellow
98 2500 4x4 HD Dodge 24 Valve Cummins TD
83 Chevy Van (Dead-Trans. shot)

What does it smell like?

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

My guess is a wet sheeps hind end......................

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

...Mildew,,its not really that bad, maybe it smells like the compartment of what a Piper Cub cabin or John Deere tractor smells like..kind of like what the Pick Up trucks I used to drive at a Power Generation plant site smells like...you are saying, maybe the problem is me, but i do bathe regularly and I may not smell or look like Brittany Spears but I do dress well and maintain myself...

is what I will do...

or the drain hose is broken = draining on the floors causing mildew.

If the car is a W126 body, the areas marked in blue tend to fill with leaf and such = rotting mulch smell and fire hazard, use a vacuum and garden hose to clean out.
Note:
There is a drain hole on driver and passenger side, probably plugged with mulch.

Click the picture to make it larger.

Attached Thumbnails

   

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ASE Master Mechanic
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Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
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Technical Quality Auditor.
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1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

Since it smells like mildew, I'll give some advice based upon my experiences with the 123. I had the same issues and it seemed that mildew was growing in the ventilation system ducts. I took some diluted bleach (4:1) and put in in a sprayer. Turned the blower on high with the vents open and sprayed the entire bottle down the intakes on the cowl. Cured the problem for a about a year and then had to treat it again.

All of the above solutions will work for the air inside the vehicle, however, if the problem is in the ductwork, then you need to attack it from outside the vehicle.

Whunter I cleaned a lot of crap out of their when I got my car! W126 owners you need to look in their and clean it out a few times a year. Fall is coming.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

NO KIDDING!
wow I got my car and I could have planted seeds in there..
luckily most of it was dry...shoudl have seen the windshield after I got done :-D
Still some in there but atleast the drains are working..
now I just have to figure out why I have water drips (very occasionally) coming down the inside of my windshield.

Time to re seal the windshield or replace it, if it is pitted.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200