Stinky Jeep Cherokee, any suggestions as to why?

Factual Questions
1

Hello Everyone,
Once again I find myself turning to the SD boards in search of an answer that I cannot figure out myself. We own a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee that has served us well for the last 8 years. Recently a very strong and disgusting odor has made itself present in the cabin. It smells of death and since all of the children and dogs are accounted for I have to think it isn’t from our family.

I have done a very detailed examination of the cabin, under the seats, etc… and have found nothing that would cause the smell. I let the Jeep sit priot to looking with the windows down to air it out a bit. While looking I noticed that the smell had pretty much gone away, leading me to think that the source isn’t in the cabin. Sure enough, I start the Jeep turn on the AC where I am greeted to the stench of death. So, it appears to be in the AC system somewhere. So, I think that the AC probably draws it’s fresh air somewhere near the engine compartment and think that something must have crawled up in the engine and died. A detailed look in there finds nothing amiss. No dead cats, snakes or rodents.

So, what next? Where should I look now for the incriminating source of this foul odor? What could cause such a thing to come through the AC? I asked my wife if she remembers possibly running over a skunk, but she doesn’t. I am thinking that whatever the smell is might be in some sort of filter for the cabin air system, but unsure if the Jeep has such a filter and if it does, where it might be located at.

At this point, I am going to go with the skunk therory as I can’t think of anything else that would hang around without a carcass. Can a skunk be hit by or spray a car and the odor hand around for a week or so? Could it find it’s way into the AC system and if so how do I get it out? Thanks in advance for any advice, and yes, it is hilarious so feel free to laugh at our problem!:smack:

2

I’m not familiar with the model, but looking at pics on google leads me to believe that the cabin air comes in through the slats just below the windscreen, at the back edge of the bonnet. It’s not usual to intake air directly from the engine compartment.
There may be a panel at the back of the engine compartment which can be removed to gain access to the air intake, or the scuttle panel (bit between bonnet and windscreen) may come off.
I’m not sure how anything big enough to make a smell that lingers for days could have got in there though, have you tried having a mechanically minded friend look at it?

3

Ex mother-in-law had a similar problem. They took apart the entire dash and found a critter had died back by the firewall.

I guess the bright side is that eventually it’ll dessicate and not stink?

4

I found a video on YouTube showing how to replace the cabin filter in the Jeep. I was hoping that the smell might be trapped in the cabin filter, but sadly no Grand Cherokees came from the factory with the filter in place, it has to be added on by the customer. However it did show me how to access the space underneath the windshield where fresh air is drawn by the ac. Access is somewhat limited, but the space is big enough for a critter the size of a squirel or such. I will dive into that soon.

5

Yes, on any car.

Correct, no one does this.

Mice are capable of squeezing through amazingly small openings. A dead mouse can smell for days.

6

What I would do first is remove the blower motor, then search through the available ductwork. It’s a bit easier than removing the cowl plenum at the base of the windshield, plus gravity may assist you in removing debris.

7

Going to remove the wiper cowling after dinner. That gives access to AC intake and area that would be big enough for a critter. Will update in a few hours.