Ford is trying to get rid of the well-known new car smell in some of its vehicles because many people in China hate it so much, according to a Reuters report published Thursday.
The American automaker employs 18 people as smell assessors, who are colloquially referred to as “golden noses,” to filter out any scents that contribute to the highly recognizable fresh car odor. Ford apparently believes such tests are necessary since many people in China, the world’s largest automobile market, are becoming very skeptical of chemical smells. Studies reportedly show that the distinctive odor is one of the biggest issues for would-be buyers, according to Reuters.
The aversion stems from a growing concern of pollution, which is possibly being conflated into a distaste, and perhaps distrust, of interesting smelling vehicle fabric.
The aroma researchers at Ford are not just trying to rid of the new car smell in general, but are also attempting to decipher which particular scents people like and dislike. While there are hundreds of experiments, certain scents that are tested include moth balls (small pieces of chemical pesticide) and burnt tire (rubber). (RELATED: Employees Did The Unthinkable To Save Ford From Bankruptcy, Chairman Says)
There are several products that promise to get rid of many different chemical smells, but ironically some are composed of certain chemicals and are advertised as a tool to retain or regain the new car smell. There are also many products, like air fresheners, with the purpose of reestablishing the new car smell, showing that many people around the world have extremely different viewpoints of the unique odor.
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