Cabin Filter - never knew I had one

In all my years of owning and driving cars, I had never heard of a cabin filter.

A friend of mine who works for an oil company does my oil changes. At the last one I asked him about a problem I had with the inside of my windshield getting a light film on it that needed to be cleaned with Windex etc and was very hard to clean.

He mentioned a cabin filter and told me to check my owner's manual.

Well, there it was - behind the glove compartment. It had been in there since 2008, when the car was new. Needless to say it was packed with dust, bits of grass, seed and whatever else was in the air.

I could not believe the increase in air flow when I replaced it!

Just something to check if you did not know about this item.:)

It is your cabin air filter - most modern vehicles have one!

The film on the windshield is often a combination of things, including the plastics in your car off-gassing! I periodically wipe mine off hard with a tissue, no streaking or Windex (which makes me sneeze if I use it much) necessary.

I highly recommend that everyone join an online forum for their car - make and model. You learn SO much on there and many things are posted with step by step photos for DIY.

You will also find links to lower cost replacement items -- we can get the 2008 Prius cabin air filter for half price at one dealership in Georgia, and they offer free shipping! The local dealership charges $75 to replace your cabin air filter (filter included), when I can buy it for $10 and do it myself in less than 5 minutes. :eek:

And there are many tips on increasing gas mileage, explanations of what tires to get, after market improvements to your vehicle, just terrific stuff. Also a great place to go, to post if you are having a problem, they can narrow it down for you.

Glad you found and changed your filter, Candace!

I knew it was a type of air filter, but seems to be referred to as just a 'cabin filter' around here. NO mechanic had ever mentioned it to me - I didn't know they existed!

And yes, Googling a car problem or joining a forum is a great idea. There are many things that are easily DIY!

I never knew about that, either; it very well may help with the windshield film issue! Thanks!

I knew about the cabin air filter. But I didn't know it was the cause, or could help with the film on the inside of the windshield. I'll have to ask the boyfriend about that. Or figure it out myself. Because I just had a big issue with the inside of the window. If the sun hit it just right I was blind for a moment. I cleaned it with vinegar and water mixed together in a spray bottle. Worked great! But now I see a small triangle where I missed a spot. :p

Yes, the Scion XB has two. After the first two "free" oil changes, I got charged $80 to replace both of them. The service manager showed me this rectangle covered in gray dust and stuff like a hundred cats had shed on it. 1 year later, the filters got changed again. And then again. Upon reading the owners manual, I discovered the filters are replaced every 15, 000 miles.

That pissed me off.

So a friend showed me how to changed the filter. He pulled it out, and except for having a few leaves, it was remarkably clean. Was I annoyed? We dusted it off and replaced it.

But after six years I can imagine yours was dirty, Candace. <grin> :D

I never heard of it either.
I looked it up and my Jeep Cherokee does not have a filter.
The Grand Cherokees do but the sport does not.
But thanks for the info :D

My husband does 98% of the maintenance on my Jeep.
He has learned A-LOT from the Jeep forum. and utube.

I just typed in my husbands truck and his has one!!
I will have to ask him if he knew of this.
He bought the truck used so it probably needs to be changed.
Thank you:D

A dirty cabin filter can cause cabin fever.......;)

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One thing that I have found to be a wonderful investment is buying a 'shadetree manual' for your vehicle. It's a book with valuable info about your car, the maintanence schedules and how you can keep your car running.

That will help you see what fixes you can do yourself and what you can't do - like changing cabin filters?

Clymer's and Chilton publish the manuals and you can get them online or at an autoparts store.

The are worth the investment....