UPDATE in Thread and OP. Burning eyes, really bad smell, and hard to breath

Good evening all,

My family and I are starting our last camper trip of the season and it started out great. About an hour and a half in we started having burning eyes, a little bit of cough, a really bad smell, and hard to breath.

My first thought was Carbon Monoxide, but that does not have a smell. The second thought was the exhaust, but I was not sure where to look. I tried to follow the manifold underneath the truck, but being on the side of the interstate was not the easiest.

We did talk to a few people and made it to our first stop for the night so I can at least get my family where they need to be. We are in Huntington, WV right now, and tomorrow I am going to try and schedule an emergency appointment at a mechanic. I was given the name of a reputable one by a local and there is a Toyota dealership nearby.

But I am at a loss of what we are dealing with. We were going over some hills and the truck was under load so I know that had something to do with it. But I am also not certain whether it was the hills, the issue I am dealing with or the camper being loaded down for a two week trip. Maybe all three, but I did not feel the truck was up to its fullest strength.

I have a 2010 Tundra TRD Crew Max 5.7. 185,000ish miles.

Any immediate help would be a great help! Thanks.

UPDATE:

I have a longer update in the thread, but quick update to say the smell seems to be coming from the AC unit itself. And the only time we have been smelling anything is when the truck is under load. This is my setup.

 

Exhaust leak maybe?

 

That is what I was thinking. Either that or the Carbon except the smell.

Would that be an entire exhaust replacement or just a seal? I am doing some research but not really finding an answer directly.

Some are also saying a header(s) as well, so I am lost.

Wouldn't there be a sound or something that would tell me exhaust issue? It sounds ok, but the exhaust has gotten fairly louder. Again, not sure if it is the mountains, weight, issue, or all three.

 

It's hard to tell until they look at it. It could be a manifold gasket, a flange gasket, a hole in a pipe or muffler, etc.

 

What does it smell like? Rotten eggs would be a clogged cat. If it smells sweet it would be coolant.

 

Thank you. Hopefully they will get me in quickly tomorrow.

I did reserve our spot in case we need to get another night where we are at.

 

It smelled like burning, smokey fire according to my wife.

She has a better sense of smell than I do.

 

Maybe something has collected on top of the exhaust and is burning. Climb under there and take a look.

 

^this, that many miles may be a clogged cat..
If you need new ones, try to go with OEM.
Aftermarket have an issue of turning on the check engine light after awhile..

 

If your eyes are burning it and you smell smoke, the top two issues are related to the exhaust or an electrical short that has burned through some wires.

 

Does the truck still smell like that?
Could it be possible you just drove thru an area that had something on fire?

Hope you get it figured out..

 

Thank you. I did do that on the side of the road. my muffler is rusty but I could not see anything on top. It was way too hot for me to touch...I do like to keep what fingers I have, LOL!

I do know the floor in the back seat area gets really hot and it looks like there should be a heat shield #5, but nothing I can find gives me a part number.

 

Thank you. I do to. I thought that at first, but nothing looked burnt. And even 20 miles down the road, against wind, we still smelled it. It only happens when the windows are up. I thought maybe it was the AC but that is newish (about a year or so old). But the smell builds until it becomes burning to the eyes.

My wife says suffocating.

It did start to affect me a little but then we rolled down the windows, and that helped a lot. Even then, we can still smell it to a small degree.

 

Ooof. That makes sense as well. Hope that electrical is an easy fix if that is what it is!

But this thread is helping me to get an idea because I don't want to go to the shop and have them try to sell me on a whole lot that has nothing to do with what I need.

 

Make sure a plastic bag or something didn’t get pulled up onto the heat shields or exhaust…..the melting plastic will create all of the symptoms you’re describing. Happened to my wife’s old Mazda wagon and lasted for days. Also, check for any fluid leaks. Any transmission or differential fluid making its way onto the exhaust and burning can also mimic the symptoms. Good luck

 

@dirtydeeds any idea what might be going on?

 

Electrical has a distinct smell and if something electrical burned it would be very broken and you would know it.

if the cat is clogged it will get HOT, really HOT.

 

I will crawl under tomorrow morning as well. This would be the ideal fix, if that is what it is.

I don't think I ran over anything, but then again, traveling at 65 in rain it is a lot to make sure I don't hit the cars around me, or be hit.

The fluid leaks have been fixed. I did have a transmission issue about two years ago but that was resolved and no issues to date. The Diff fluid was also checked at the last oil change and I am not seeing any leaks but will look again.

 

Then I am almost certain it is not electrical. My dash does not flash up anything and all the electronics and connections that I am running seem to be working fine.

I am wondering if the cat is clogged and that is generating the heat on the floor board in the backseat. I mean it gets very warm to the touch. I had a batter down there and it was very hot to almost dangerous.

ETA: Would that be a symptom? If so, I need to check and see how to unclog a cat.

ETAA: I did tap the cats when I was under it earlier to see if I could hear any rattling (to see if they were going bad). They all sounded solid from what I could tell.

 

You can’t really “unclog” the cat. The honeycomb inside melts and or breaks loose. You would want to replace it.

It would cause a lot of extra heat, yes.

 

What I really am bothered by is that everything was great when I was at home. But now when I am half way to my destination and away from home, we are having the issues.

 

Bummer. Hopefully not to long of a job...or too expensive. But I do not have high hopes.

 

Cats aren’t cheap, they have a bunch of precious metals in them.

 

I heard that. I guess I should have said I was half way sarcastic because I guess if something is going to go, why not make it expensive.

Perhaps I should just run a straight pipe?

 

It was $6K to replace my cats when they were stolen in 2021..

Hey @ZappBrannigan do you think he would get a check engine light if his cats were clogged up?
I had one immediately when my cats were cut off..

 

Depends on what is legal in your state with the straight pipe.

 

I would like to say yes but I’ve seen plenty get clogged and burn up without throwing a cel for whatever reason.

And OMG 6k… ouch.

 

It is illegal. .

Well, back to the drawing board.

 

Ick.

If this is it, would the Toyota dealership have these in stock? And I am assuming that is a whole new exhaust system?

 

They replaced my entire system, including the muffler since the thieves cut the muffler pipe.
Everything but the tailpipe.

Luckily since it was a theft, my insurance paid for it minus my decuctable.
I had an 8 month wait for parts, but that was the peak of Covid.
Toyota kept me in one of their loaners for the 8 months, that was a blessing.

Hopefully, your issue isn't as serious.
If you makes you feel any better I just paid $5K to get my tower cam oil leak fixed.
That was out of pocket...