Burning smell after a snowy drive

[Tictaktoe]

I recently drove from DC to NYC in Monday's snow. My LR3 rode like a king while I saw few suvs slipping every now and then. I used snow mode throughout and when I finally parked in garage on arriving, I thought I had the smell of something burning, like rubber. Opened the hood but everything seems fine. No heated area . No warnings as well. I recently changed tires to OE size duratrac all weather. Didn't smell this before post tires change. Though it was on grass and snow mode throughout this drive, the front was blocked by ice, which may have blocked some air going in. See picture.

Any idea what's going on?

PS: Also noticed that mpg was around 17.1 while on the older tires it used to be 19-20 on highways (summer)..

 

[whydahdvr]

On my LR3 and other SUVs I've driven I've gotten a burning/heated metal smell after something similar and determined it's the road salt and water boiling off of the exhaust pipes and heated engine block.
I'm not sure I would drive the highway at high speeds using the snow-mode but I admit I haven't checked the owners manual on that. I've used it for around town driving but don't usually bother, including the horrendous mush snow we had a week ago this past Friday in MA.
Looking at the picture, you have a lot of road salt and crud crusted on the front. Get it cleaned off and see if you have the same smells....

 

[catman]

When it snows here my wife puts her RR in snow mode and leaves it there until well after all issues are gone. She will do 90+mph (she is a lead foot) in that mode on the highway and there have never been any issues that I am aware of...

I have a brand new squeal in my LR3 engine this morning after driving in snow and ice last night. I am hoping it is just dried road salt causing it and that it will fade away with fresh moisture or a quick wash when it warms up....

PS the squeal did go away, so it must have been road salt buildup on the pulleys and/or belts

 

[Tictaktoe]

Anyone knows if there is a restriction on how long and speed at which to drive these terrain settings ??

 

[toddjb122]

Agree with whydahdvr on the burning smell. Don't worry about it unless you smell it again once everything dries out.

On SNOW mode, does anyone know what it really does other than slowing down the shifting and keeping me in low gears longer so I'm less likely so spin out? While I do use it for peace of mind, I'm thinking it is more for people with less experience driving in the snow as it tempers your throttle input to the conditions.

However, the only reason I use it is because I have some blind hope that if I were to start to have an accident (slide, spin, hit ice) the LR3 brain would react differently because it has already been informed that it is driving on loose terrain. Is there any merit to that?

I've read here in the past that you can just leave the rover in normal mode all the time and it's 4WD brain is smart enough to get you through anything you'll encounter. I'd send my wife out in the snow mode, though.

 

[Houm_WA]

There is no speed restriction for Snow Mode.

 

[cmb6s]

I smell the same thing in deep snow when I'm pushing it, but haven't been able to determine whether it's spinning tires (don't think so), the transfer case or differential, or something else. I was thinking perhaps the transfer case or rear diff because they contain the clutch packs and that's kind of what the smell reminds me of, but I need to pay more attention to it and see if I can pinpoint what area the burning smell is coming from.

 

[toddjb122]

There is no speed restriction for Snow Mode.

Not sure if you were replying to my comment or another.

No speed restriction on my end, but my '05 has a very noticeable restriction on when it down shifts in snow mode. It seems to tread lightly, which is what I'd expect.

That said, I always drive on Normal/Sport mode and special programs cancel Sport mode. So for me the difference is greater.

In any case. I really like driving in snow. That's the only important thing here to note.

 

[Tictaktoe]

Everyone, thnx for chipping in. On my next drive, I didnt get that smell though the drive wasnt too long. Will check whenever I goto dealer the next time though for now, it seems fine.

 

[Houm_WA]

Nahhh, I was responding to this comment:

"I'm not sure I would drive the highway at high speeds using the snow-mode but I admit I haven't checked the owners manual on that."

I am not saying that Snow mode doesn't restrict things (like throttle input) I'm saying that there is no limitation in terms of when you can/can't use it.