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I'm having multi-day urinary problems after smelling old car interior, what is this?

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a40255
a40255

This is a weird one - after sitting in a 40-year-old car and smelling the interior for even just 1-2 minutes, I get the following reactions for multiple days:

  • Frequent need to urinate
  • Feeling of pressure in my lower abdomen
  • Slight numbness in genitals
  • Slightly darker than usual urine colour, and slightly more urine-like smell

It goes away in 2-3 days if I don't get near the car, but consistently comes back every time I drive the car or even sit in it. I'm a healthy 38 year old male otherwise.

This is the second old car I've owned that this happens with, so it's not a one-off (one car was a 30-year-old Japanese car, this one a 40-year-old German car). The cars' interiors are clean, and the reaction happens even when the cars are not running. I don't get this reaction with newer cars.

I went to the doctor for this and they've done UTI tests (negative), urine analysis (fine), and prostate exam (fine). I'm out of ideas and concerned what this these urinary issues are and their impact to my health-long term.

Any ideas what's going on?

1 like, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • Marina_Dee
    Marina_Dee a40255

    Edited

    How odd. I can only come up with a couple of very tentative suggestions.

    1]Is it the position of the seat?May be pressing on a nerve? so you get numbness of genitals?

    2] Possible chemical from old leather??

    What can you actually smell when you get in the car?

    Dark urine usually means you need to drink more. The chemicals are more concentrated in dark urine so your bladder is irritated and you need to pee more.

    Does this happen to any other males who sit in the car? or females?

    • a40255
      a40255 Marina_Dee

      Posted

      Good question - this happens even when not sitting in the car, just smelling the interior without sitting in it, so I don't think it's related to the seating position or pressing on a nerve.

      The old leather or seat materials may indeed have something to do with it - that's what I'm going to try next I guess, swap out the seats for new ones and see if that fixes it.

      Doesn't happen for others in as far as I can tell, no.

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