2003 4.0L strong exhaust smell at idle

[beefed88]

My 2003 4.0L has a strong exhaust smell at idle with no CEL on. 85K miles properly maintained. It has been like this for a while but has only become a concern this winter because my wife sits in it at idle with my son while watching soccer practice.

I was planning on replacing the upstream oxy sensors but does anyone have suggestions?

 

[wnelax04sr5]

check the piping for holes. if you smell exhaust at idle its indicative of a leak thats allowing gases to come up into the cabin

 

[beefed88]

It is not coming into the cabin unless you crack a window, straight from the tailpipe. I am not worried about holes in the exhaust the truck is near mint.

 

[wnelax04sr5]

if its mint enough to not have holes in the exhaust i doubt a sensor or cat has gone bad

 

[radlynx]

it depends on the wind direction. if she's idling and the wind is going from the back to the front and she's running the AC or fan without the recirculation turned on, those exhaust can get in the cabin and she will smell it.

if you're not getting a code, it means you are running fine. if you notice that your MPG is very low, then the Air/Fuel sensor might not be working properly anymore. the sensor before your CAT converter is the Air/Fuel sensor and after the CAT, it's the oxygen sensor. you might need to replace the A/F sensor. let us know what you end up doing. ok.

My 2003 4.0L has a strong exhaust smell at idle with no CEL on. 85K miles properly maintained. It has been like this for a while but has only become a concern this winter because my wife sits in it at idle with my son while watching soccer practice.

I was planning on replacing the upstream oxy sensors but does anyone have suggestions?