Stinky Charge

I'm sure others with Primes will chime in, but it seems to me you need to check out the traction battery cooling system, esp. the filter. It will be under the rear seats, vents accessible in the rear seat foot area. It would make sense that the battery cooling system would operate during a charge to keep the battery cool, circulating air and pushing the odor around the cabin. Probably was never cleaned. Maybe previous owner had a pet, whose fur got sucked into the cooling vent (filter?) and stayed there. Humidity in your region would exacerbate it. Might require some disassembly to get to all the components: fan, ducting, filter(s).

 

Over-charging a lead acid battery can produce hydrogen-sulfide. I didn’t know this until I looked it up. Take your car to your dealer and have him check out the charging system. Maybe the software too. I hope this helps. And welcome to PriusChat! ❤️ Randi

 

True, but the traction battery is not lead-acid, only the 12V battery in the engine compartment. This and plugging the Prime into the wall charger does not charge the 12V. The 12V battery is only charged when the car is in READY mode, and powered by the traction battery.

 

Sounds to me like some critter might have gotten into the charger itself, which is under the rear seat. The battery cooling fans pull air through enclosed ductwork from the cabin, through the battery, and discharge it outside the car, so there's not much chance for odors coming from that system to get into the cabin, but you'd for sure smell it outside the car. And it would be more prominent when driving than when charging anyway if it was the battery. The battery charger, though, has a separate cooling system so anything that's cooking in there would release odors into the cabin.

If it was me, I'd remove the back seat and see if there's some kind of nest under there. On that note, you do NOT want vermin in a Prius or most any modern car because the wiring insulation is made with soy byproducts and mice love that stuff.

FYI, Professor John, talks about venting here & there throughout this detailed video about the Prime's battery, but at about the 50 minute point he shows some of how it all works.

Here's a still shot of the external ducting.

 

Likely it won't help because the HV battery is NOT lead-acid.
But there is an outside chance that it isn't handling the 12 V right during "charging from the wall".
Definitely should get it checked out.

 

Yes you’re correct on both counts. My bad.

 

It’s likely your HVAC AC smell. Turn OFF AC for 5 mins before you arrive home and park for long periods.
It’s moistures build up from using the AC.

 

And maybe try to "taper off" AC use in general. Especially when it's not suffering hot, just run ventilation without AC, and/or crack the windows.

 

Possible, yes. Likely......maybe not.
Easier to NOT charge it one night or two to see if charging is the critical factor.

 

Yeah AC might be a red herring. One that's going off...