Replacing the cabin air filter is easy now that I know the trick. Take a look Rok Doc’s photos before you start. Yoga practitioners will find this an easy procedure.
1) It’s not necessary to remove the glove box.
2) For left hand drive, slide the right front pax seat all the way back and recline the seat back as far as it will go.
3) Put a clean piece of scrap cardboard on the front cabin floor. Your head and shoulders will be resting on the floor shortly.
4) Climb into the right front pax seat. Your belly will be facing up and your knees will be bent back over the seat back. Your head and neck will slide down onto the floor so you can look up between the glovebox and the firewall. A small headlamp helps.
5) The bottom of the frame that holds the filter vertically has two clips on the sides which readily unsnap and allow a hinged plate to rotate, providing access to the filter.
Reach up and pull the filter down and out of the frame. I had trouble grasping the bottom edge of the filter so I used a curved pick to hook the bottom edge of the filter and it popped out immediately.
6) Slide the new filter in. Note that the arrow on the filter indicating air flow and which must be pointing towards the cabin, not the engine.
7) The second time I did this it took less time that it takes to read this. Bending my body into place is key.
Notes:
A) None of the after market filters I found on the major U.S. auto parts websites saying they fit so far actually fit. (This is the reason I have been able to practice my technique.) I would love to know if anyone has found one yet. Dimensions for my original cabin air filter Ineos # 100326881 (Sivento) are 8.5” x 7.75” x 1”. There has to be a standard aftermarket part that will fit. Let me know if you find one.
B) I removed my original Ineos cabin air filter to drive to a few parts stores looking for a replacement. I found none. While doing so in 15°F weather with the cabin air filter removed, I could get virtually no cabin heat. When I popped the old dirty filter back in, the heat came back in and worker perfectly.
