Subaru Mysterious Burning Smell

[glock19]

I noticed a mysterious burning smell when I turned my 2013 Legacy off tonight. I checked the CV joints and the rest of the engine compartment and I don't see any leaks. The car is slightly overfilled from the dealer but it isn't burning any oil (although it smells pretty strongly of gas). The car isn't pulling at all on the road so I don't think the brakes are dragging. I don't use the e-brake so it's not that. I'm sort of at a loss. The only suggestion I got that I haven't ruled out yet is that the AWD is very sensitive to alignment and it could be the tires overheating. I guess I'll check tomorrow when I get to work to see if the tires are hot but this seems unlikely to me.

Any other ideas? Any help is appreciated.

 

[Eddie]

Plastic bag on the exhaust from the road? This is a new smell that was not there before?

 

[Rob_Roy]

Did the dealer change the oil? If so they were probably too lazy to remove the plastic shield under the exhaust and oil filter. The oil spilled from changing the filter gets on a sound dampening pad and cooks for a few days.

 

[glock19]

Originally Posted By: Eddie
Plastic bag on the exhaust from the road? This is a new smell that was not there before?


That could be I suppose. I didn't see anything after poking around the engine compartment for about 10 minutes. I'll check again tomorrow for any foreign debris.

It's definitely the first time I've smelled it so I'm hoping it's some sort of anomaly. The strong odor of gas in the oil concerns me a bit though.

 

[glock19]

Originally Posted By: Rob_Roy
Did the dealer change the oil? If so they were probably too lazy to remove the plastic shield under the exhaust and oil filter. The oil spilled from changing the filter gets on a sound dampening pad and cooks for a few days.


I like this theory but this is the first time I've smelled it. The oil was changed about 1,500 miles ago so I think I would've smelled it sooner.

 

[silverrat]

You should use your e brake

 

[Rob_Roy]

Check the oil filter to see if it is loose...it happened 3wks after I bought my 2012.

 

[Tosh]

Originally Posted By: silverrat
You should use your e brake


Why?

 

[NothingNew]

Originally Posted By: Tosh
Originally Posted By: silverrat
You should use your e brake


Why?


Linky Link

 

[glock19]

Originally Posted By: Rob_Roy
Check the oil filter to see if it is loose...it happened 3wks after I bought my 2012.


Thanks, I'll give that a shot.

 

[glock19]

I never figured out what is causing this smell. I don't smell it all the time but occasionally when I get home and get out of the car I smell the burning.

Cruising Subaru forums I've learned that it's a pretty common problem. However, I haven't been able to find a single thread where they were able to identify what was causing the smell.