I hate to say it...... but, Optima are not that good of a battery. They have tons of "come backs" where they are junk, right off the shelf! I did the Optima 1 time and learned....... Interstate only now. Good luck!
Rotten Eggs
- Thread starter Traakon
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #22
Thanks for that. I have used Optima's for years and never had a bad experience. I suppose as always "...your mileage may vary".
Please don't take that as me trying to "slam" you. I just had really bad luck with them, and my bro-in-law actually quit selling them at his shop because they had so many "come backs".
I wish you luck with finding the culprit. I love wrenching on vehicles, but it's a pita when things like this happen, and you end up just "throwing parts" at it. Good luck though!
- Thread starter
- #24
I did not take it as a slam at all. Everyone has differing experiences with products. I use the red top because I have had really good luck with them. I have one in my Bronco that has survived 10 years in Arizona temps. I am sure it could not possibly last much longer but it still cranks the 351W over and turns the lights on.
Do you have any additives in your cooling system? I know there is a product that removes rust in your cooling system and when you go to drain it the smell of rotton eggs is very strong. I think its called thermorust.
Wouldnt hurt to just put a voltmeter on your battery while your truck is running and smelling just to see if the alternator is charging the battery to 14 volts or not...
Wouldnt hurt to just put a voltmeter on your battery while your truck is running and smelling just to see if the alternator is charging the battery to 14 volts or not...
- Thread starter
- #26
No no additives.
Does your passenger have emissions they are blaming on the truck?? 
As @Marine7 said, for future reference - Optima was a good battery for awhile but fell victim to production moves & such. I liked my Optimas in the early years, but the last 4-5yrs have not seen them as smart money. There are much better AGM batteries like Odyssey.
My testament to Odyssey is they are what's in the boat, a inboard V8 I take in the ocean. Don't want to try calling AAA there.
Your 10yr old one is from the era when they were still good. Sadly new ones now don't survive 3yrs in WA (cool, not frigid) where a 80* day is "some heat" people talk about.
As to the original issue, it almost seems some replacement part has failed at this point, there's little else to fail in such a manner - all your bad actors have seen a R&R it seems.
Is this intense enough you have a "stink zone" others would notice or is this a faint thing you just occasionally get?
If routine, have you stood around & tried to track the area is originates? At this point that's about all you could do.
My testament to Odyssey is they are what's in the boat, a inboard V8 I take in the ocean. Don't want to try calling AAA there.
Your 10yr old one is from the era when they were still good. Sadly new ones now don't survive 3yrs in WA (cool, not frigid) where a 80* day is "some heat" people talk about.
As to the original issue, it almost seems some replacement part has failed at this point, there's little else to fail in such a manner - all your bad actors have seen a R&R it seems.
Is this intense enough you have a "stink zone" others would notice or is this a faint thing you just occasionally get?
If routine, have you stood around & tried to track the area is originates? At this point that's about all you could do.
As far as I can tell there are two sources for a rotten egg or sulfur smell in a car, battery and fuel, or more accurately the sulfur not getting burned off in the catalytic converter. If you're sure the smell is coming from the exhaust then it's a problem with fuel or cats. You're either dumping in too much fuel that isn't being burned off completely or the cats are toast. Someone with more technical info can probably chime in as to the cause, but possibly bad o2 sensors or even a problem with fuel mapping or Ecu. it makes sense that when you stop it's running poorly, flooding and sulfur isn't burned out in cats. Maybe also an electrical problem, connection or bad intermittent ground on a sensor?
Sulfur smell is Hydrogen Sulfide (H2 S) - the bulk is removed in making gas, enough so a moderate size refinery makes 5-6 tractor trailer loads of elemental sulfer as a waste stream in 24hr period.
It's possible the FPR is the issue which almost always is because of a bad fuel filter. The fuel pump is a good / bad thing, so from there the fuel injectors themselves or the sock in the tank (never heard anyone say they plugged one).
That or you get gas routinely at a place with leaking fuel storage & you're buying dirty gas, maybe have that fuel filter plugging.
If you buy gas at the same place every time you fill, switch the location for awhile.
It's not the storage tank leaking into the dirt that causes issues, it would be ground water/dirt getting in when the tank is lower level that gets you dirty gas.
It's possible the FPR is the issue which almost always is because of a bad fuel filter. The fuel pump is a good / bad thing, so from there the fuel injectors themselves or the sock in the tank (never heard anyone say they plugged one).
That or you get gas routinely at a place with leaking fuel storage & you're buying dirty gas, maybe have that fuel filter plugging.
If you buy gas at the same place every time you fill, switch the location for awhile.
It's not the storage tank leaking into the dirt that causes issues, it would be ground water/dirt getting in when the tank is lower level that gets you dirty gas.
I would be pretty sure that it is fuel related.
I had a coworker that had a similar issue and it was figured out that she had taken a drive up into Ohio (from Kansas City) and the fuel up in that area was still on winter fuel and was a higher sulfur content. After 4-5 tanks of fuel, the smell went away again.
I am guessing you had a bad tank of gas along the way and it has "contaminated" (for lack of a better word) your cats. Over time, it will burn out and the smell will go away.
Good Luck!
I had a coworker that had a similar issue and it was figured out that she had taken a drive up into Ohio (from Kansas City) and the fuel up in that area was still on winter fuel and was a higher sulfur content. After 4-5 tanks of fuel, the smell went away again.
I am guessing you had a bad tank of gas along the way and it has "contaminated" (for lack of a better word) your cats. Over time, it will burn out and the smell will go away.
Good Luck!
What about the wiring by the EGR? Doesn't this wiring control the injectors and if it is dumping too much fuel it could be running too rich and get this smell.
Or is it the wiring by the ECU that is this problem?!
Have you pulled the plugs to see what they look like? They will tell you if you are burning rich/lean.
Or is it the wiring by the ECU that is this problem?!
Have you pulled the plugs to see what they look like? They will tell you if you are burning rich/lean.
- Thread starter
- #33
Thanks for all the input guys.
I do suspect it is fuel but more on the fuel delivery side than the quality of fuel. As indicated, I fuel her up at the same Chevron with the same 91 octane every tank and the station is only 3 years old so the odds of a contaminated in ground tank there are next to nil. Tampering is out so that leavers me with how the fuel is getting into the engine.
Clean tank, new fuel pump complete with "sock", fuel filter, relay and resistor last year. Soooo now I am looking at possibly a bad injector or something telling the computer (which is also a replacement as of last year) to fatten up the mix.
I went over all the wiring again this weekend and checked all the grounds and found nothing. I have read where the coolant temp sensor that is in the block , high and right of the oil filter, can cause some fuel delivery issues and since I happen to have a new one I am going to put it in.
If that has no result I will have to address the injectors I suppose.
I do suspect it is fuel but more on the fuel delivery side than the quality of fuel. As indicated, I fuel her up at the same Chevron with the same 91 octane every tank and the station is only 3 years old so the odds of a contaminated in ground tank there are next to nil. Tampering is out so that leavers me with how the fuel is getting into the engine.
Clean tank, new fuel pump complete with "sock", fuel filter, relay and resistor last year. Soooo now I am looking at possibly a bad injector or something telling the computer (which is also a replacement as of last year) to fatten up the mix.
I went over all the wiring again this weekend and checked all the grounds and found nothing. I have read where the coolant temp sensor that is in the block , high and right of the oil filter, can cause some fuel delivery issues and since I happen to have a new one I am going to put it in.
If that has no result I will have to address the injectors I suppose.
- Thread starter
- #34
As indicated, this thing has had an EGR CEL from the day I bought it. I have been through the entire EGR/vacuum system and wiring and found nothing. I have pretty much given up on getting it resolved without more intelligent outside help. It has always run just fine with the code but that is not to say that things have not degraded to where now it is not.
Plugs do show signs of running fat but since it is not consistent (i.e. it will clear up and run perfect for a week then act out again suddenly) I have only found fuel fouling of the plugs once.
Easy to check the rubber air hose between the air cleaner and intake manifold for cracks. If it is leaking and allowing in unfiltered air the ECU may be be malfunctioning and dumping in too much gas, etc. That would cause it to idle erratically and to stall. It might cause it to stink also.
Sounds like you either have a bankroll or are familiar with wrenches - with all the $$ on parts to date, what's the deal with resistance to the $75 for injector cleaning?
That's something I'd be looking at, that & the switching gas thing. IDK about AZ gas stations, or the local Chevron (mine runs on 91 Chevron too, but I know every tank it sits in from fractionation to my tank - refinery I worked in supplies the local market via a trucking company that's also local).
You have alot more labor in the parts than simply switching over to a different vendor for a bit, and injectors are damn near the last thing you haven't touched.
That's something I'd be looking at, that & the switching gas thing. IDK about AZ gas stations, or the local Chevron (mine runs on 91 Chevron too, but I know every tank it sits in from fractionation to my tank - refinery I worked in supplies the local market via a trucking company that's also local).
You have alot more labor in the parts than simply switching over to a different vendor for a bit, and injectors are damn near the last thing you haven't touched.
Seems to me verifying fuel source would be too easy. Would it be that hard to switch stations for a couple tanks? Unless, as stated above.... you love blowing cash, or own the gas station!
- Thread starter
- #38
I am afraid to put all the receipts in one pile since I started chasing this problem in it's various versions the last year nor do I want to contemplate the hours of work. I do know that the frustration with every cycle of new parts, running well then falling back on the problem once more is getting to me.
When I started chasing this white rabbit my first thoughts were that it was bad fuel, I switched from the old station we were using and moved to the NEW Chevron that opened near by. I prefer the Chevron fuel with it's Techron and you can't go wrong with 91 octane. I emptied and flushed the tank (found nothing during the process but a really pristine tank inside), ran Fresh 91 Octane w/ additional bottles of Techron in it. Changed all the stuff related to the fuel delivery to the motor which left no place for residual "bad gas" to hide. I knew the cats were toast (they rattled like a pissed off baby) so began chasing the things that could effect the sensors (as well as the sensors) that determine getting the fuel into the motor. New cats, new exhaust, new O2 sensors new TPS, new IAC, two different ECU's and with every step, it would run fine for a couple weeks and then act up again. The rotten egg smell is a recent addition to the old symptoms. It has gone from seemingly starving for fuel causing the stalling to now choking on it. That is why now I am wondering if while it is an old dance the tune has changed and got me looking at the injectors themselves.
I am not resisting a specific injector cleaning I just have not seen anything until recently that pointed to injectors. Now that I am looking that direction I would rather put the "75.00" toward replacing the 25 year old injectors than just cleaning. I haven't fallen either side of that yet; it's still a new concept.
The "Mud" knowledge base is amazing, and the ideas and support are great and since I hate "Not knowing why", I will eventually find out what is the core to all this.
- Thread starter
- #39
I suppose what has me standing off about the "fuel source" is that the station is by far newer than any of the options in a 5 mile radius and I have two other vehicles that run the same gas from the same pumps in the same octane and they have shown no signs of problems.
Would it hurt to go elsewhere, no, and for the sake of a baseline I will do so.
I'm big on the Techron myself (could give a long answer why, but bottom line we made all the "brands" of gasoline for the local region, I choose Chevron too).
Yeah, just to isolate variables you need to knock this one off the list - either a totally different location Chevron, or better yet swap brands for 2-4 tanks, dump real Techron concentrate in with the X variable brand - 2little bottles to a fillup. Hit it full strength.
Yeah, just to isolate variables you need to knock this one off the list - either a totally different location Chevron, or better yet swap brands for 2-4 tanks, dump real Techron concentrate in with the X variable brand - 2little bottles to a fillup. Hit it full strength.