I have a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. I have not had AC working since June 1st, but prior to that the floor on the passenger side would be soaked when I would run the AC. Now, I have a bad odor in my vents and fog/steam/smoke blows out of my vents at various times. My windshield also fogs up badly. I was wondering if you knew anything about this, and whether or not this was all related. Suggestions?

 

It sounds like your AC evaporator and/or your heater core. I have a 2000 GC Laredo and had same exact problem. the fog and smell are due to your coolant leaking from your heater core. Of course, Im not a mechanic but as I said I just had the same problem...

 

Welcome to CF!

Are you loosing coolant in your radiator overflow reservoir? If so, your heater core is leaking. If not, the A/C condensate drain is plugged. The smell is either coolant or mold in the water on the floor and in the heater box. It doesn't matter that you've not run the A/C in a while, because rain water can't drain out either.

If the windshield's fog feels slippery or greasy, it's coolant. Coolant is either ethylene glycol (green) or propylene glycol (yellow), neither of which is good to breathe. Enough of either can cause lung problems or even death. Yes, I am trying to scare you because this is important.

Fixing a leaking heater core is a major surgery type of thing. Basically, the entire dash assembly has to be removed. This is not a problem for someone who's done it before, but for someone who HASN'T, it's intense. If it's coolant, the carpets need to be removed and cleaned as well.

If it's just water, the A/C drain is a rubber neck sticking out of the bottom of the heater box on the engine side of the firewall. It can be plugged with leaves, pine needles and seed pod debris, anything that can get thru the openings in the hood grill by the wipers. The smell can be removed with Fabreeze or Clorox Clean-up. You can dry the carpets by pressing paper towels onto them repeatedly, then using a heated fan blowing on them with the windows open.

I went thru this same thing several times with my wife's Dodge Caravan. Our house is in dense pine trees and the needles are pervasive, getting into everything. I also had a ruptured heater core in her Dodge K-car, requiring the entire dash to be ripped out and the carpets washed. This was a problem because it was -5* outside and I didn't have a garage! I put up a tarp with a kerosene heater under it to help. The only way I got it done was by heating the tools! I put the carpet in the bathtub which really annoyed my wife and she drove around for several days without them while they dried.

PLEASE get this taken care of soon. Good luck.