Battery smell solved!

Bought on e bay , replaced and after a month there is no smell at all.

 

OMG what a great post. Thank you. I just bought a 2008 with 100k for cheap because the owner wanted out. I know its a big risk as main battery has not been replaced, but at $1,000 I thought it worth the risk.

He raised two little kids in the car and it was pretty dirty and smelly. I pulled the back seat out and scrapped off the layer of dried soda and milkshakes that had been spilled on the back seat and dripped to the the underside to slowly harden. I vacuumed and then washed the entire interior. But still an intermittent smell. I found it coming from the battery vent. Yikes. Rolling down my windows sometimes made it worse. I guess that is because having the windows down while driving creates a vacuum draw that pulls air backwards through the battery compartment. ??

I decided to leave windows shut, whith the air on using outside air. I figured that would pressurize the car and force the bad smell back out the battery vents in the fender wells. It worked, but I was worried about the danger of the smell. Good to know it's just crappy rubber hosing.

Anyone have a link to cheap replacement hoses that don't stink?

Anyway, thank you for the very well written discussion with photos. The one photo of you smelling the battery was useful, though I felt maybe I was invading your privacy a little.

Thanks again.

 

Also clean AC system
How to Get Rid of Musty Smell From Car Air Conditioner - Consumer Reports

 

Try this source for HV battery hoses
https://parts.lakelandtoyota.com/p/TOYOTA__PRIUS/Battery-Vent-Tube/4073381/G929A47010.html

 

Could you just use clear-plastic tubing (hardware store item), with holes along it's length.

 

Seriously, the battery modules stayed identical from Gen 2 to Gen3, including the vents where the rubber tubes connect. The majority of the Gen 3s don't even have the rubber tubes installed from the factory, so it seems they really aren't required. The Gen 4 modules have the vent fitting but if you look into the vent, the bottom is just solid plastic, there's no valving for pressure relief.