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914World.com _ 914World Garage _ vw - 914 smell
Posted by: mbl914 Jun 5 2012, 09:39 PM
what is it that makes the vw - 914 scent ? is it the German vinyl? or is it the horse hair in th production seats? if this does not sound too crazy. i remember a certain common smell common to the old bug and 914 which i would like to have in my resto 73 914 project.
Posted by: ConeDodger Jun 5 2012, 09:43 PM
Well, that tops the best first post ever prize! 
Posted by: jeffdon Jun 5 2012, 09:49 PM
Well, that tops the best first post ever prize!
Don't know, but my folks brought me home from the hospital in 1962 in a 54 356 coupe. That smell is in my blood.
Posted by: eg914 Jun 5 2012, 09:58 PM
I love the smell of VWs and 914s. My theory is that it is the result of years of cooked oil on the air cooled engine. We need "air fresheners" with this smell!
Posted by: kg6dxn Jun 5 2012, 09:58 PM
My old VW smelled like weed 
My 914 smells like dirty exhaust 
Posted by: silver74insocal Jun 5 2012, 10:00 PM
Well, that tops the best first post ever prize!
Posted by: abnrdo Jun 5 2012, 10:10 PM
Mine smells kinda like an ashtray....DAPO. I dont smoke.
I think the smell you refer to is aging vinyl and carpet. I would also think that the air comming from the heater boxes has something to do with it...
I am glad I am not the only one out there that recognizes this!
Posted by: Lennies914 Jun 5 2012, 10:11 PM
They do have a smell of their own.
Posted by: jsconst Jun 5 2012, 10:15 PM
It's funny you brought up this topic, I took my oldest daughter for a ride in my 914 the other day, first thing she said when she got in, I love that smell....smells just like my old bug. Then we talked about why they both smelled the same all the way to the store. 
Jeff
Posted by: championgt1 Jun 5 2012, 10:19 PM
Gas and oil! 
Posted by: markb Jun 5 2012, 10:26 PM
Posted by: ThinAir Jun 5 2012, 10:46 PM
My wife just smells burned oil. I don't smell anything when I'm driving - it's just normal. When I get out I can smell some oil on the heat exchanger, but I haven't found the source yet.
Great question!
Posted by: r3dplanet Jun 5 2012, 10:55 PM
Its probably formaldehyde. Seeping out of the carpet, glue, and vinyl with age.
Posted by: SLITS Jun 6 2012, 07:38 AM
40+ years of pharting in the seats .....
Posted by: rmital Jun 6 2012, 07:53 AM
It's funny you brought up this topic, I took my oldest daughter for a ride in my 914 the other day, first thing she said when she got in, I love that smell....smells just like my old bug. Then we talked about why they both smelled the same all the way to the store.
Jeff
...one of my favorite 914/daughter moments. She walks into the garage and says, "it smells like Porsche out here". I never asked her why she would think that, cause she was right....everytime I walk into my garage I get the same feeling.
Posted by: benalishhero Jun 6 2012, 09:35 AM
They do have a smell all their own. I think British cars are worse though.....
Posted by: jasons Jun 6 2012, 09:38 AM
I actually think it is the horse hair. Now whether they sell air fresheners to inject that into your car....
Posted by: Katmanken Jun 6 2012, 10:27 AM
Welcome!
The smell is 100% wool carpeting that has been gotten wet a few times too many.
Posted by: Joe Sharp Jun 6 2012, 10:39 AM
Yeah, what they said....
Posted by: mbl914 Jun 6 2012, 10:47 AM
this is awesome! i am still laughing while typing this. the really funny thing was purchasing a seat kit from ebay and then complaining to the vendor that it didnt have the smell of Greman vinyl. ide share the responses of going back and forth but i think it would make me even a greater fool!
Posted by: underthetire Jun 6 2012, 10:49 AM
Horse hair in 914 seats? Thats gotta be the only thing that hasn't come out of my torn up seats yet.
Posted by: wndsnd Jun 6 2012, 11:17 AM
Mice droppings.........
Posted by: jsayre914 Jun 6 2012, 11:28 AM
I also think it is a combination of cooked oil from the engine, and water that has evaporated from the carpet again and again for 30 years. Its like it has its own ecosystem inside there.
"its 914world"
lol
Posted by: Black22 Jun 6 2012, 11:46 AM
When my uncle and I took my first test drive in my 914, we both looked at each other and said, "It smells like a bug!"
No doubt, it is part of my DNA, whatever causes it. My family has owned every type of VW ever made. I'm the second to venture into the Porsche/VW side of things. My uncle had a '66 912. I'm glad the smell is familiar.
Posted by: Pat Garvey Jun 6 2012, 04:09 PM
Its probably formaldehyde. Seeping out of the carpet, glue, and vinyl with age.
There were small amounts of phenolic formaldehyde ued in the glues and seat foam, as well as the vinyl pieces. That usually explains the incessant film on the insides of the windshield/windows. But it has a relatively minor odor, if any at all, particularly after all these years.
Extreme amounts of F can lead to negative health effects, though these are limited to clinical/analytical exposure. However, this compund along with benzene and MEK led me to change careers in the mid 70's. I was exposed to all three as a QC chemist for Kodak & feared for my long-term health. That's why I became a bean counter.
The concentration of F in 914's does not produce the scent we all love. It's an old car (horsehair?), and they didn't have many hydrocarbon restrictions then.
Just be the last guy in a string of 50's thru 70's cars! Opening the windows won't help. But that gorgeous smell of unburned fuel will (literally) bring tears to your eyes, and take you back to the glory days!
Posted by: Mikey914 Jun 6 2012, 04:14 PM
Kind of reminded me on gun oil
Posted by: TargaToy Jun 7 2012, 05:43 PM
Was JUST having this conversation with my boss on Monday of this week. He's restoring his grandfather's 66 Mercedes. We both agreed the cars' smells bring back great memories. He learned to drive in that car and my 914 was my dad's DD and autocross car when I was a kid. The smells conjure up great memories.
My interior has been gutted the last few years while I'm making body repairs and when I open a door, it STILL smells all 914ey.
Posted by: 6freak Jun 7 2012, 07:50 PM
Ya`ll missed it ! and if you listen real closely you can hear it as well. Its the faint scent of rust
Posted by: potomacmidget Jun 7 2012, 08:18 PM
Kind of reminded me on gun oil
Like Hoppes#9 - good gun cleaning smell!
My 914 smells like my old ghia from college....but my MG has an even more distintive smell which is mostly cooked oil and old vinyl....but the VW/porsche smell is better...
Posted by: Zundfolge Jun 7 2012, 09:01 PM
Old BMWs have a similar scent ... but its different enough that I can tell whether I'm sitting in a 914 or a 2002.
Posted by: Travis Neff Jun 7 2012, 09:07 PM
Oil & Sweat...
Posted by: Series9 Jun 7 2012, 09:17 PM
what is it that makes the vw - 914 scent ? is it the German vinyl? or is it the horse hair in th production seats? if this does not sound too crazy. i remember a certain common smell common to the old bug and 914 which i would like to have in my resto 73 914 project.
I totally agree. If you sit down in any old VW/Porsche with any part of the original interior, it has THE smell of the progenitor. I love that smell.
It's rare now in my shop, because they've all been highly modified.
Posted by: balljoint Jun 7 2012, 09:43 PM
The scent actually has a part number. Starts with 914- something something something. I'm pretty sure there is a VAG number that is for the same part but is less expensive though. Someone here has done the cross referencing with VW and Porsche parts I'm sure. I have also seen some NOS 914 stink go for pretty high dollars on eBay.
Posted by: plays with cars Jun 7 2012, 09:48 PM
Ya`ll missed it ! and if you listen real closely you can hear it as well. Its the faint scent of rust
Awesome!!!
Posted by: smj Jun 8 2012, 12:05 AM
I've had that conversation with a few people when I gave them a ride. Of course one friend has to give me grief, refering to it as "the stench of burning oil brought in through the (air quotes) heating system (air quotes)."
That's alright, he's just jealous because his '68 Camaro just sits there, rarely driven, with more rust than either of my teeners...
Posted by: bembry Jun 8 2012, 06:36 PM
Welcome!
The smell is 100% wool carpeting that has been gotten wet a few times too many.
I don't know--mine hasn't had carpet for 14 years, and still smells like Porsche. I'm thinking oil and whatever they use for vinyl and plastics. What is bad, is that I smell like that for hours after driving the 914.
Posted by: Nozzle Jun 9 2012, 01:15 PM
Well I have to tell you folks that as cool as the interiors smell, in my opinion the engine compartment after a good run smells even better. Part VW, part Porsche; totally great. 
I don't consider my drives to be complete until I've opened the engine bay and basked in all that air-cooled glory...
Posted by: ape914 Jun 10 2012, 12:55 PM
its the coconut matting in the upolstery, did you know you can get milk from the seat cushions if you drill a hole in them? Great survival tip!
Posted by: ape914 Jun 10 2012, 01:26 PM
Its probably formaldehyde. Seeping out of the carpet, glue, and vinyl with age.
There were small amounts of phenolic formaldehyde ued in the glues and seat foam, as well as the vinyl pieces. That usually explains the incessant film on the insides of the windshield/windows. But it has a relatively minor odor, if any at all, particularly after all these years.
Extreme amounts of F can lead to negative health effects, though these are limited to clinical/analytical exposure. However, this compund along with benzene and MEK led me to change careers in the mid 70's. I was exposed to all three as a QC chemist for Kodak & feared for my long-term health. That's why I became a bean counter.The concentration of F in 914's does not produce the scent we all love. It's an old car (horsehair?), and they didn't have many hydrocarbon restrictions then.
Just be the last guy in a string of 50's thru 70's cars! Opening the windows won't help. But that gorgeous smell of unburned fuel will (literally) bring tears to your eyes, and take you back to the glory days!
Won"t all those beans give you terrible gas?
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