Clutch or brakes burning smell from doing donuts in snow?

[StingerOwner]

I have an AWD Kia Stinger GT. I tried doing some donuts in the snow. I did it in SPORT+ mode while being manually shifted to either 1st or 2nd gear (tried both). Keep it mind that SPORT+ only disables traction control but leaves stability control on.

Once I had enough, I stopped the car and stepped outside and could smell a distinctive burning smell - perhaps similar to methane or sulfur or something like that. I remembered this smell from one time when I was a passenger and the driver burnt the clutch in a manual transmission car.

These are the thoughts I have what burning smell it could have been:

1. Clutch for some unknown reason - as I wrote I recognized this smell from past. But I don't quite understand how I could have damaged the clutch. I was literally just going in circles and moderately rapidly switching between pressing gas/letting go of gas.
2. Brakes - I had traction control off but stability control was on. I believe stability control automatically applies brakes as it sees fit. Maybe brakes were being applied a lot?
3. Clutch due to doing this in 2nd gear. Maybe doing donuts in 2nd gear is not good? Or could clutch be damaged if I accidentally take off from a stop in 2nd gear instead of 1st? Pretty sure I always started in 1st from a stop, but maybe mistakenly did it in 2nd.
4. Tyres - tarmac was visible in a few places and could have eaten the tyres a bit but the burning smell didn't seem like from rubber.

Any ideas what this burning smell could have been from?

Thanks.

 

[Kodiack]

Probably brake pads and rotors getting hot, even in manual shift the transmission uses wet clutches that assist in gear changes. There is no clutch like a true manual gear box..manual clutches slipping produce almost the same smell as brakes. They are made of very similar materials.
Can I get your VIN so I can make sure I never buy your car used....lol

 

[D.J.]

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[D.J.]

It was undoubtedly, your rear brake pads that you are smelling.

Your stability control will use independently your left and right rear brakes to try to establish and maintain stability.

I'm sure if you put your hand near your rear rotors, you would have easily been able to warm your hands.


From the sounds of what you described, you were being extremely gentle on your transmission wet clutches, they were hardly being used.

There is also a clutch pack in your transfer case, this gets used significantly more in sport mode versus comfort or Eco. But the transfer case also uses a multi-plate wet clutch which you are likely to never smell unless you are giving it some extreme abuse.

 

[rtv900]

is there really a sport PLUS mode?
Not just Sport?
how does one get into that mode?

 

[D.J.]

is there really a sport PLUS mode?
Not just Sport?
how does one get into that mode?

Some years have Sport+, instead of custom - in some geographies.

 

[Grump]

Could also be the cat if you were hanging out at high RPMs for a while, especially if you don't normally run high RPM. You can go straight down a highway (no stability control in use) at high RPM and smell it when you park it.