Why Do Riding Lawn Mowers Occasionally Smell Like Burning Rubber?

As you ride on your mower, you probably expect to smell the slightly sweet scent of freshly cut grass, undercut by gasoline and a faint metallic tang. But occasionally, you may find these smells overpowered by burnt rubber. What's up with that, and should you be concerned? Not a stranger to such occurrences, Bryan Clayton, the CEO of GreenPal, advises that if you smell burning rubber while driving your riding lawn mower, you shouldn't ignore it or expect it to go away on its own. 

In an exclusive interview with Hunker, Clayton says to stop mowing right away, as it's a worrisome situation. "If you smell burning rubber, it means one of two things: a belt is stuck and rubbing against a pulley, or a hose is touching the muffler or another hot part of the engine," he explains. "Either way," Clayton adds, "it's not good, and you'll be stuck out in the middle of the yard or field in about 60 seconds or less." In other words, the clock is ticking; as soon as you sense the acrid whiff of singed rubber, stop mowing and put on your Sherlock Holmes cap (or imagine your sun hat has magically turned into one).

First things first, turn off your mower the moment you smell scorched rubber. Bryan Clayton also advises letting the equipment cool before playing detective, as mower components can run hot and cause injury. Afterwards, examine the machine closely. "Do you see any liquids coming out? Literally use your nose to try to smell where the burning smell is coming from," suggests Clayton. According to him, in most cases, the belt is to blame, as it can get stuck on the pulley and scorch as a result of the friction. This typically happens when it is too worn out, misaligned, rerouted poorly, or has snagged on a bolt.

Trace its condition across the system and check for tension. "Sometimes you can fix this by turning the belt, grabbing one end, and pulling it free from where it is stuck," advises our lawn care expert. However, if that fails, you need to figure out why the belt is stuck in the first place.

If pulling at the belt doesn't help, Bryan Clayton says a seized pulley is likely to blame. Try spinning the pulley with your hand; if it's locked up, you've found the issue. Luckily, according to him, you can likely sort it out yourself. "If you're handy and have a good socket set and a decent set of tools, you can usually fix this problem in 2 to 3 hours," he says. 

For further guidance, Clayton recommends searching for seized pulley tutorials and plugging in your mower model number on YouTube for further guidance. "You'll find a dozen guys showing you how to fix it," he explains. Sometimes, it could be a simple procedure like spraying WD-40 to release the pulley — one of the 21 clever uses for WD-40 that your lawn mower needs. And if you need to replace the belt, you can order it online from Amazon or get it at a lawnmower supply shop.

However, if the DIY rescue mission flops, or you feel overwhelmed working on the mechanics, take your machine to a lawnmower repair shop. But be prepared to wait out an entire month before you see it, unless it's the offseason, warns Clayton. "The reason is that residential lawnmowers always get put to the bottom of the stack, and these lawnmower repair shops will fix the commercial guys' stuff before any residential stuff, and that's just the way it goes." While you wait it out, Clayton recommends switching to a push mower in the meantime — electric and gas-powered models can be expensive, so you might want to give an eco-friendly manual mower a spin.