Cose to deciding on a 2012 Limited - Question

CO-Cygnus

CO-Cygnus

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Close to deciding on a 2012 Limited - Question

Good evening all, long time lurker and first time poster (tl;dr warning)

So my 2005 Subaru Outback XT seems to be on its last legs after only 130K miles. I pretty much considered myself a Subaru guy for life but they really lost me after the last Outback re-design (I mistook the new Outback for a Tribeca the first time I saw it).

My search for a replacement drew me to the 4Runner and Jeep GC Overland. I test drove the JGC and loved everything about it, but I know that I'd likely regret buying a Chrysler product.

I toyed with the idea of getting a Trail model but I'm used to full time 4WD from driving Subarus since I was 16. I'm also not likely to take advantage of the Trail's capabilites while stuck in Maryland. This led me to look at the Limited model. I finally had a chance to test drive a 4Runner limited today and about the only thing I remember from the experience is the smell of truck.

It's hard to describe but there was an overpowering sickly-sweet/rubber garden hose odor that gave me an instant migraine headache (I haven't had one in years before today). I know the new car smell is toxic and the ones on the lot have been buttoned up since they were put together, but this is the first time the smell of a new car effected me at all. Even hours later I'm still feeling it and I'm afraid this could turn in to a deal-breaker for me.

Cliff Notes: Anyone else notice a strong, unpleasant, smell from their new 4Runner? Did it take long to vent or did it mellow out fairly quick? Thanks.
 
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If nothing else you are the winner of the most original first post ever. No smell issues for me. Well, not from the truck.
 
phillyd2 said:
If nothing else you are the winner of the most original first post ever. No smell issues for me. Well, not from the truck.
Click to expand...

and no one can complain about lack of searching.


Sorry, CO-Cygnus, my Trail Edition just had the normal new car smell.
 
You know... I admit that I was thinking to myself as I typed: "Do I really want my first post on this forum to be about noxious odors?"

But that's all I had to go with.
 
:welcome:Mine smelled great when new!

Certain smells give me an instant headache too, but no issues with my truck.

Go smell another one. I believe that's the first time I've ever typed that...
 
Just to be clear.... Was this the smell inside the truck before you drove it? Or was it while driving? I if you drive with the rear window down and punch it, you will smell exhaust.

Mine smelled fine when I got it.

Okki
 
Thanks for the replies.

I know how very, very odd this entire thread probably sounds but I'm not trying to troll anyone. I used to get some pretty epic migraines as a kid but I have not had one in a long time. Something in the truck's new car chemical soup triggered one and it's kind of bugging me, because I really like it otherwise.

Does the new car smell vent pretty quickly?
 
CO-Cygnus said:
Good evening all, long time lurker and first time poster (tl;dr warning)

So my 2005 Subaru Outback XT seems to be on its last legs after only 130K miles. I pretty much considered myself a Subaru guy for life but they really lost me after the last Outback re-design (I mistook the new Outback for a Tribeca the first time I saw it).

My search for a replacement drew me to the 4Runner and Jeep GC Overland. I test drove the JGC and loved everything about it, but I know that I'd likely regret buying a Chrysler product.

I toyed with the idea of getting a Trail model but I'm used to full time 4WD from driving Subarus since I was 16. I'm also not likely to take advantage of the Trail's capabilites while stuck in Maryland. This led me to look at the Limited model. I finally had a chance to test drive a 4Runner limited today and about the only thing I remember from the experience is the smell of truck.

It's hard to describe but there was an overpowering sickly-sweet/rubber garden hose odor that gave me an instant migraine headache (I haven't had one in years before today). I know the new car smell is toxic and the ones on the lot have been buttoned up since they were put together, but this is the first time the smell of a new car effected me at all. Even hours later I'm still feeling it and I'm afraid this could turn in to a deal-breaker for me.

Cliff Notes: Anyone else notice a strong, unpleasant, smell from their new 4Runner? Did it take long to vent or did it mellow out fairly quick? Thanks.
Click to expand...

What dealership did you go to? Looking at a TE 4Runner Monday in Westminster, a long drive for me but it seems like all the dealers local don't want to give me a deal. Koons in Westminster is the only dealership ready to get something done as well as have what I want in stock.
 
fdmstng99 said:
What dealership did you go to? Looking at a TE 4Runner Monday in Westminster, a long drive for me but it seems like all the dealers local don't want to give me a deal. Koons in Westminster is the only dealership ready to get something done as well as have what I want in stock.
Click to expand...

Bill Kidd's in Cockeysville, Right off of I-83. I told them I was interested in a Magnetic Gray Limited, no running boards or 3rd row. The sales guy tried to talk me in to the colors/options he had in stock but in the end he checked the computer and found what I was looking for on a boat due in to port later in May.

They seemed to be pretty willing to help me find what I wanted.

Edit-

Okki said:
Just to be clear.... Was this the smell inside the truck before you drove it? Or was it while driving? I if you drive with the rear window down and punch it, you will smell exhaust.
Click to expand...

It was the smell in the truck. I was with the dealer to test drive and it started shortly after I got in and shut the door. I had to open every window and the moon roof to vent it, and that helped.
 
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CO-Cygnus said:
Bill Kidd's in Cockeysville, Right off of I-83. I told them I was interested in a Magnetic Gray Limited, no running boards or 3rd row. The sales guy tried to talk me in to the colors/options he had in stock but in the end he checked the computer and found what I was looking for on a boat due in to port later in May.

They seemed to be pretty willing to help me find what I wanted.
Click to expand...

Thanks, will contact them if I can't get something done Monday.
 
no smell in mine! sounds like you are making the right choice!! i LOVE my limited!!! and this forum is addicting (and expensive!! hahah)
 
No smell in mine, not that I remember, basic new car smell. Air fresheners?

Maybe someone farted in it prior to you getting in. :D
 
I had the same thing happen to me one time. Do a goggle search on the noxious fumes given off by plastic. And our 4runners interiors have a lot of plastic. So if this vehicle had been buttoned up for a while, especially in the sun, I can imagine the gases you walked into.

I am surprised more people do not grow horns or the like, let alone headaches!

The good news is yes, it will fade in time and use. I always park my vehicle's in the garage, with a window down, just for that reason. I put window visors on my vehicles, so when I have to park outside in the sun, at least I can crack the windows, allowing the built up gases to vent.

Buying now, with the weather getting better is good, you can open windows as you drive and vent it out that much faster and easier. Good luck on your new purchase, be safe.
 
No unusual smell in mine either.

You didn't say, have you driven any others? You should. Perhaps the one you drove has a dead zombie in it.

Last thing in the world you want is a new vehicle that gives you a migrain - ouch.
 
You may want to sit in a cloth SR5 and see if you get the same reaction. When I picked up my '12 Limited, my friend (who has a '10 SR5 with cloth) noted that the smell of the new leather was overpowering.

I would also note that my Venza (with leather) had a different "new car" smell than both the '05 4Runner (cloth) it replaced and the '12 4Runner that replaced it.
 
Yeah... typo. Tried to change it with an edit but oh well.

Thanks for the replies, I'm going for a 2nd round of test driving later and I'll see if I have the same reaction to a cloth interior.
 
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