Exhaust fumes smell like CRAP after 85 90 mph

[nimski62]

Smells like straight up SULFER, rotten egg smell after i get over 85. Ive heard this could be a sign of running rich, but with no codes, i dont know how to diagnose this... its NASTY.. and also my exhaust tips turn black..

[2PUTT]

are you chipped? which one?

[ChronicTeutonic]

when was your last air filter change?

[nimski62]

Never chipped, dont rem. changing airfilter.should i do that? it looked clean 2k ago when i visually inspected it.

[iconoclast]

smell of sulfur or eggs, is typical of a faulty catalytic converter... although there are other factors to look into as well.

[nimski62]

smell of sulfur or eggs, is typical of a faulty catalytic converter... although there are other factors to look into as well.

been burning oil too... like 2 quarts every 500 miles. car has 20k on it/no warranty flood damage.

[ieatfishburitos]

Sulfur is normally faulty converter. Maybe during the flood damage your cat got hosed..

[nimski62]

but isnt the burning oil related? carbon deposits cause loose seal on piston rings due to running rich = burning oil+rotten egg smell from excess fuel going into cat?

[ieatfishburitos]

but isnt the burning oil related? carbon deposits cause loose seal on piston rings due to running rich = burning oil+rotten egg smell from excess fuel going into cat?

Not sure about that.. I've seen a lot of cars burn oil but they don't smell like sulfur. I could be wrong though..

[ChronicTeutonic]

I mentioned the air filter because that cleared up my sulfer smell. A dirty air filter will cause a rich condition that leads to the sulfer smell because the converter can't burn off the excess fuel completely.

[whartung]

Drive faster to outrun the sulfur smell... Problem solved...

[B6_Rakete]

been burning oil too... like 2 quarts every 500 miles

Sounds like you have bigger problems than a stinky exhaust. Probably time for a compression test, head gasket/pressure test, etc.

2 quarts per 500 miles reminds me of an '81 Honda Accord I had with 250K miles on it. Smoked like a mofo when it started up :)

[nimski62]

Sounds like you have bigger problems than a stinky exhaust. Probably time for a compression test, head gasket/pressure test, etc.

2 quarts per 500 miles reminds me of an '81 Honda Accord I had with 250K miles on it. Smoked like a mofo when it started up :)

Weird thing is i have 0 smoke.. NONE. idk how it burns it like that.

[B6_Rakete]

Still sounds like worn rings to me...you sure the car wasn't flood damaged?

[GarbatyA4]

Hey Brotha, check your shoes mon!

[ZONAWILDCATS4]

I would guess that the car burning more oil than normal may not be related to the exhaust smelling like rotten eggs. These cars are known to burn oil...there are many members who have had similar issues and don't have the rotten egg smell.

Can't believe the car has no codes. From what I've heard/read, the smell comes from the fact that gas contains sulfur and you are running rich/not burning all of the fuel and the cat is not able to perform properly. Could be a faulty injector, fuel pressure regulator...

[nimski62]

I would guess that the car burning more oil than normal may not be related to the exhaust smelling like rotten eggs. These cars are known to burn oil...there are many members who have had similar issues and don't have the rotten egg smell.

Can't believe the car has no codes. From what I've heard/read, the smell comes from the fact that gas contains sulfur and you are running rich/not burning all of the fuel and the cat is not able to perform properly. Could be a faulty injector, fuel pressure regulator...

OKAY. Finally got a code today.. the reason i say that it may be related to the burning oil is because if i drive it sanely, i dont burn oil, and i dont smell the smell.. a day of driving when im ON the car = half qt low on the dipstick.. and that nasty smell

Code - p2196 O2 sensor stuck rich, bank one

[Rodknock]

sulfer/rotten eggs smell is a sign of running rich.. The only reason why people put it together with a cat is that running rich will destroy your cat.

You exhaust tips are black because of the soot put off by your car running to rich. After you check your O2 sensor it would be a good idea to pull your spark plugs and clean them up a bit. They are my likely to foul out now that they are covered in soot as well.

[ZONAWILDCATS4]

After you check your O2 sensor it would be a good idea to pull your spark plugs and clean them up a bit. They are my likely to foul out now that they are covered in soot as well.

This wouldn't be a bad idea...real quick fix to replace spark plugs if need be. I did mine in about 30 minutes. Could be a reason why fuel is not being burned properly...although it usually provides other symptoms like stumbling idle/running rough.

Replacing the O2 sensor if bad should pull the a/f mixture back in line.

[nimski62]

I mentioned the air filter because that cleared up my sulfer smell. A dirty air filter will cause a rich condition that leads to the sulfer smell because the converter can't burn off the excess fuel completely.

RIGHT ON!!!!!!!

It was filter. I feel like sueing audi... the car was serviced 5k miles ago. can you believe that shit?
Do you think because the car has less than 20k, they didnt check it?

[ChronicTeutonic]

I would at least mention it to who ever serviced the car. Filters clog for a lot of reasons besides normal use. I always check mine after we have a large wildfire since ash can get into everything.

At the very least the dealer should check the screen in the intake snorkle... Time for a new mechanic?

[nimski62]

I would at least mention it to who ever serviced the car. Filters clog for a lot of reasons besides normal use. I always check mine after we have a large wildfire since ash can get into everything.

At the very least the dealer should check the screen in the intake snorkle... Time for a new mechanic?

Yes i will deff mention it to them. Thats crap. That filter is likely the reason for the smell right?.. had to order a new one(k&n) since so many ppl have it in their sigs as a mod. lol.

edit: hahah didnt even see you had it in your sig.. no offense =P

[B6_Rakete]

I'm curious if your oil consumption drops now that you've replaced the filter. Maybe the extra vacuum in the cylinder caused by the backed up filter caused oil to be sucked past the rings?

[ChronicTeutonic]

a contributing factor at least. Your oil consumption could have fouled both the o2 sensor and cat. Do you know what oil has been used? VW/Audi is very specific about what should be used, I even got a letter from them about it after I bought my CPO S4.

[nimski62]

I'm curious if your oil consumption drops now that you've replaced the filter. Maybe the extra vacuum in the cylinder caused by the backed up filter caused oil to be sucked past the rings?

I hope so man, because it only burnt oil when i was hard on it.. never smoked either. I think the ECU has to readapt somehow though for the a/f ratio to get back to normal.

[nimski62]

a contributing factor at least. Your oil consumption could have fouled both the o2 sensor and cat. Do you know what oil has been used? VW/Audi is very specific about what should be used, I even got a letter from them about it after I bought my CPO S4.

Someone told me if i run high octane gas and stay in the higher rpms for a while, the o2s should clear pretty well. Hopefully the cat isnt that bad, it has only been doing this for 3k miles =(

[Papachristou]

Drive faster to outrun the sulfur smell... Problem solved...

thats the common sense solution for me! even my 1.8T can go fast enough to outrun my test pipe smell!

[ChronicTeutonic]

High octane gas usually has more solvents in it (you know, cleans your valves blah blah blah) so I'd run that for sure. You could also add a can of Seafoam to your tank at the next fill up see if it will clean up any deposits in the cats.

I'd really look into the oil issue though. At the very least do one more oil change and make sure it's VW 502/505 rated 5W-40 synthetic oil. The VW 502/505 rating is important and you can usually find it printed somewhere on the label. 5W-40 is thicker when warm so you'll get less oil going past the rings.

Here is the latest list from Audi of approved oils: http://www.audiusa.com/etc/medialib/....0023.File.pdf

I use this kit http://www.purems.com/products/product.php/II=2514

[nimski62]

High octane gas usually has more solvents in it (you know, cleans your valves blah blah blah) so I'd run that for sure. You could also add a can of Seafoam to your tank at the next fill up see if it will clean up any deposits in the cats.

I'd really look into the oil issue though. At the very least do one more oil change and make sure it's VW 502/505 rated 5W-40 synthetic oil. The VW 502/505 rating is important and you can usually find it printed somewhere on the label. 5W-40 is thicker when warm so you'll get less oil going past the rings.

Here is the latest list from Audi of approved oils: http://www.audiusa.com/etc/medialib/....0023.File.pdf

I use this kit http://www.purems.com/products/product.php/II=2514

I ordered new plugs (stock), new fuel filter, 1 coil(to put in my trunk) K&N drop in, and an oil filter.

I will def. change oil, but ill just put the stuff i get for free now, but im fairly confident that its going to stop burning oil slowly, possibly right away or after all the carbon deposits from it running rich are exited. After i know its gonna stop burning oil, ill invest in some expensive stuff, but for now, the castrol 5w40 is going to have to suffice, because its free through dads shop.

[ChronicTeutonic]

Castrol Syntec 5-40 is on the list if you can get it.