Weird smell from wheel well?

Hey guys, needing some help deciphering a funny smell my seems to just started making. It is there after driving for a while, more noticeable first on the passenger side but if driven longer is equal on both wheel wells. It has been strong enough to smell without sticking your head in the wheel well. I first noticed it after putting my snow tires on, almost like hot rubber, checked the tires and no signs of heat or hot spots. Popped the engine cover and can smell it there too, more down the sides vs the Center. Only other thing that changed in the last week and a half was the minus 10 weather. Any thouguths? Oh car is 2003 with 102225 kms on it if that's of any help.

Is it different than the normal "Porsche perfume" smell of burning rubber or Cosmoline that you typically smell after a spirited drive?

Hey Dennis not sure what either of those smells are but my car has made no smells like this in the two years of owning it. Tried an easy drive vs spirited, does it in both circumstances.

Sounds like your winter tires are just providing a more odorous Porsche perfume than your summer tires. Does it smell sweet like anti-freeze or just "smells like burning" ? If it is the latter than my guess is eau-de Porsche (unless you have oil or other fluid visibly leaking).

Please post the smell for a better diagnosis. -td

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Your smeller must be broken. If I care to hang around any after shutting of either of my cars' hot engines and sometimes even just walking around behind the car I can smell hot rubber, hot steel (exhaust), and sometimes if it is wet out the smell that arises from water being splashed on hot exhaust pipes. More recently I can smell hot oil but this is coming from in the case of the Boxster a known leaking camshaft cover and in the case of the Turbo a recently discovered suspected RMS leak. In both cases no oil is hitting the ground so leaks do not have to be severe to generate a hot oil smell all it takes is oil leaking a bit and getting hot. Then once in a great while there is a sort of burnt smell which I attribute to a piece of cellophane being blown against a hot exhaust pipe. Once I even found a piece of this with a charred edge on top of the engine. Since you put on new tires I'm going with them just out gassing from the heat of being used. Normal. But to be safe you should check vital fluids to make sure all levels are good. Then just to be doubly safe if the smell is truly foreign to your experience with the car and out of character for your car you need to get the car in the air and have an expert give it a thorough inspection for any fluid leaks, or even a cracked/damaged CV boot. Anything that might account for the presence of the odor.

It's a German car requiring a diet of sour kraut and bratwurst. There is a possible misalignment problem. Either the alignment from regular adjustment points or the transmission mounts are letting the alignment change while cornering or gassing it. Had that problem where the top trans mount was broken loose. Couldn’t figure out why I’d get a clunk flooring it most of the time while porsche and an indi would say the engine mounts are OK. It was the broken loose top mount probably sabotaged by the free Willie crowd trying to free the killer whale I’ve got under the hood. You might be able to detect the problem is you know how the car should act in turns. When the transmission is loose it changes the geometry of the wheels a little while cornering. It's a little unsettling if you are spoiled on entry speeds and accelrating out since it throws a monkey wrench in there the size on your own cars mass moving at a high rate of speed.

You ran over a skunk.

My gf bitches about the smell every time we take the car out and i get on it. Im sure going to miss her.

Come to think of it... I get a hint of burnt rubber smell. I might have to take a closer look.

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Or your girl left her panties under the floor mat.

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hahahaha, CLASSIC!

Have you tried Lysol?

Hi Guys, I have the same thing going on with my 02. Smells like race tires at the track but the tire temp is normal. I haven't noticed any handling quirks.

I also notice black powder on the rear bumper. No brake dust on the wheels. I am wondering if that is due to typical tire wear caused by the rear suspension geometry.