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I feel compelled to issue a PSA on this. Since I’m quite handy with tools and want my $3K investment in a used car to go for 6+ years, I tend to look over EVERYTHING in my car and fix minor things. Today, I finally got around to pulling the Cabin Air Filter, and this is what I found.
Yes, thats the cabin air filter, not the engine. Engine one is clean, that one…. wow. I’m fairly certain thats the original filter and it has 157K miles on it
Please dont neglect your filters, even if its the cabin. If your car has one, change it every so often, probably every 12K-24K miles.
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I will add that the cabin filter gets dirtier a lot faster than the engine filter. I’ve been changing these disgusting things for years and a engine filter is rarely as dirty as cabin. When you stop to think about it, the HVAC system actually consumes a lot more than the engine does. Think about how many cars you see with all the windows up while accelerating like a granny.
I’ve noticed that the climate control system can heat or cool the cabin much faster with a new filter. I usually clean out or replace the filter in late fall after a bulk of the leaves have fallen.
I AM noticing a higher amount of air flowing so yeah, and this might solve my window fog problem as my new Impala loves to fog up the windshield, but my Regal didnt. All that dirt was probably trapping moisture and when I start running air through it, well, yeah.
What gets me is the price of these things. And, they look like something some kid made in kindergarten.
Barney, thank you for that. I thought I was the only one who ever thought, “They want HOW MUCH for this POS?”
I need to look at mine eventually. I would be tempted to just leave it out but I used to have an 81 that had no filter and every so often, a dead leaf would blow out of the vents. Sometimes it would hang up in the fan and just make noise.
EDIT – I just looked up the price for my 97 acura CL and neither rockauto nor autozone had one listed. Makes me wonder why.
Mine wasnt bad, about $15, but yeah, some get pricy. as far as the acura, you sure there is one? usually when one isnt listed it means the car never came with one, and CAF’s were somewhat uncommon back then.
[quote=”Sovek” post=121111]Mine wasnt bad, about $15, but yeah, some get pricy. as far as the acura, you sure there is one? usually when one isnt listed it means the car never came with one, and CAF’s were somewhat uncommon back then.[/quote]
My wife’s Subaru didn’t come with one. It has the little door where you insert it. I got on the Subaru forum and asked about it. They explained that that’s how Subaru keeps down the price of the car – you furnish the filter.
[quote=”barneyb” post=121195]My wife’s Subaru didn’t come with one. It has the little door where you insert it. I got on the Subaru forum and asked about it. They explained that that’s how Subaru keeps down the price of the car – you furnish the filter.[/quote]
Mitsubishi Endeavor, Galant, and Eclipse that share the same platform (2006-2012) are the same deal.
I might pull the glove box to see if there is a door. I looked up 98 accord and it has one. I am going to imagine maybe the 98 accord filter would work.
Funny thing though – 1995 ford contour I drove had one. Yet the 1997 acura CL lacks? Acura is a “luxury” car and a Contour is a deprivation car.Funny the corners they will cut to keep costs down. I don;t really care about a cabin filter though, I smoke cigarettes so not like I am worried about breathing quality air in the first place. :whistle: I do roll down the window though. Ehh hell I will quit digging my grave with my tongue now.
[quote=”barneyb” post=121195][quote=”Sovek” post=121111]Mine wasnt bad, about $15, but yeah, some get pricy. as far as the acura, you sure there is one? usually when one isnt listed it means the car never came with one, and CAF’s were somewhat uncommon back then.[/quote]
My wife’s Subaru didn’t come with one. It has the little door where you insert it. I got on the Subaru forum and asked about it. They explained that that’s how Subaru keeps down the price of the car – you furnish the filter.[/quote]
Depending on how the heater box is designed and also depending whether you park under trees, the doors in the heater box can get stuck due to debris. In a vehicle like this you need a cabin filter. How do you know your car is one of these and needs a cabin filter? The temperature knob is stuck on cool and it is winter.
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