Nissan Motors is taking a page straight out of Audi’s playbook by hiring its own team of “certified smellers.”
The Japanese automaker just released a video detailing its efforts to ensure that every new Nissan smells good and even retains its “new car smell.” They primarily do this by hiring and training an odor panel, who hop from car to car sniffing and rating their many interior components.
Tori Keerl, a materials engineer at Nissan Technical Center in Michigan, works as one of Nissan’s certified smellers. In the video, she explains the automaker’s high standards and what it takes to pass its strict odor requirements.
“In order to become certified to be an odor tester, you go through this process where there are multiple different smells and you have to be able to smell each one. Once you’re tested and you pass all five smells, you get to be on the odor panel,” she said.
“In order to keep our noses calibrated, we retest our nose every couple of years,” Keerl added.
As for the toxicity of “new car smell” — especially from vinyls, plastics and glues — Keerl says that automakers are adapting.
“I think the smell of the vehicle will change over time, as the trend is more towards natural products — so like water-based paints and solvents, and those types of things. So that’s really reducing kind of those types of smells in the vehicle,” she said. “And also with more sustainable materials, maybe like bio-based type things, a lot of those do not have very much of a smell compared to like traditional plastics. So there’s a lot of a difference in the smell in the vehicles.”
Weird job. But hey, I guess everyone has to work for a living.
I’ve got the best nose for scents!
How can I apply to work for Nissan??
I can smell every scent in a room ask my husband. How can I apply to work for Nissan as a smeller? Please let me know! I would love to work for you.
I have a hightened sense of smell. My co workers and anyone that knows me knows this. They say I have a K-9 nose and many other funny names. Everyone says I need to be in a field that deals with smelling as I can name perfumes, colognes, detergents, as long as I have smelled them associated with the name then .y brain stores that smell and name. Even food and many other material and non material things.
My co worker made a joke but is serious, he would say normal people smell just a normal burger where I smell the lettuce, tomatoe, onion, ketchup, salt and pepper.
Everyone wonders what their gift is and even though I wish mine was singing or dancing it’s my heighten sense of smell! So if anyone is looking for a smeller if you will I am highly recommended!
Hi, I just want to say that your article was incredibly fascinating to me. I associate the “new” car smell with those cheap paper scented ornaments that you hung around your mirror. I was astounded that a company would release a product that was so poorly engineered and awful those smelled. They were so off I just couldn’t believe it. I have an incredibly keen nose. I remember smells that still create nostalgia for me.. I know, not to be overly confident, that I can identify any smell pit in front of me. I am proud of this quality, though it can be not the greatest at times either. Had I known their were Jobs like this I would have completely changes directions in college. There is nothin, I mean nothing, that smells better than a new care smell. I buy new cars exactly for this reason. And your article is correct. The smell does dissipate after a year or so and I have to admit, it’s sad. I am going as far as begging you to let me give this a try. I promise that I was become a very good asset as well as a great team mate. Please consider me as a candidate. Smelling is one of five senses we have as human being, it’s absolutely fascinating to me how much I truly love to smell things. I smell everything. Brand new high quality leather shoes, for example, is a similar thing. They are each unique. But everyone. Smells so good I almost was to eat it. Of course, I never would, but that is how much I love things that smell good, or can tell if something smells bad as well. The smell of a brand new house is incredible. But honestly, nothing beats the smell of a brand new car, nothing. Please consider me as a candidate. Thank you very much for your time
Regards,
Ben H