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When I turn my heat on for the first few seconds it has a sweet smell to it. It doesn't seem to be the heater core as the smell doesn't last and there is no odd reading on the temp gauge.

I took the cowl off under the wipers and sprayed Lysol in there with the heat on and the smell came back. What could be the issue?

My Pontiac had this issue and there was antifreeze seaping from the heater. It just doesn't seem the same. [/list]

usually a sweet smell is a sign of a very small leak in the heater core. Since it only lasts a short time it would suggest there is a pin hole or a very small crack in the core. I doubt at this point it would show up on a pressure test. If it is a very small leak, the antifreeze would boil off very quickly and that is what the smell is. You could try checking the A/C drain on the firewall under the hood and see if there is evidence of coolant leakage, or remove the blower motor and use a mirror and flashlight to see if there is coolant pooled in the HVAC housing. Any coolant odor would be be present as well. An after thought is that it could even be an R134-A leak fron the A/C but my bet is the heater core is on it's way out. Check the carpet under the HVAC housing to see if it's wet or damp. Usually pools in the passenger floor but could be anywhere.