When the restaurant maître d' refuses, Jerry and George lock him inside the car, not letting him out until he agrees to pay half of the $250 fee.
George discovers someone stole the video out of the car (they had left the window open because of the odor) while he and Jerry were inside the restaurant.
Kramer's relationship with Mona ends when she smells the odor on him - he had borrowed Jerry's jacket, which he wore in the car.
Out of all options to clean the car, Jerry tries abandoning it and deliberately drops the keys in plain view of a street hoodlum.
Amy McWilliams remarks that this is an example of many episodes that are "open-ended": it lacks "a traditional resolution completely, as the viewer is simply left with a final comic shot of a street hoodlum wrinkling his nose as he tries to steal 'The Smelly Car'.
"[2] Variety's contemporary review praised Larry David and Peter Mehlman's "witty script", highlighting George's storyline as taking numerous turns and "being filled with amusing detail.
Jerry attempts to recoup some of the damage by cleverly bargaining with the restaurant owner to cover the cost of cleaning the car.
In the end, the cleaning is not enough, and Jerry leaves the car and keys in plain sight hoping it will be stolen, in which case the insurance company will bear the loss.