I was wondering if it's really necessary to change the cabin air filter. I know the owners manual says that it should be changed every 15,000 miles but other than having clean air inside the car, does it affect any other warranty parts that could fail due to not changing the filter or can it affect the performance of the car? I have an 05x that I'm leasing so I'm not concerned with any long term affects, just what it could affect for the first 3 years of the cars life. I've had other cars in the past that had the cabin filter and I've never change it and never had any problems so I wanted to find out what the true need to replace this was. It seems like a lot of work for me to just change the filter and didn't want to do it if it wasn't absolutely necessary.

Thanks

 

I would strongly recommend you change it. You'll be suprised at what you'll find when you do change it.

 

Have you ever had a window A/C unit?? The number one reason for the filter is cleaner air. The number one reason to replace it at scheduled intervals is to maintain that clean air. Not changing it could result in the filter becoming so clogged that you lose airflow and the environment inside the cabin would become very uncomfortable. The engine air filter is replaced at regular intervals for the same reasons. Not changing the engine air filter would result in poor performance/drivability issues as well as a possible collapsed filter medium.

 

Depends on where you live and the kind of driving you do. But I have 22k of miles on my InCabin Filter and it still looks new. So I am gonna hold off to replace mine till 30k probably.

You can easily look at it without taking apart everything by removing botht he battery cover and the shroud around the windshield wiper on the passenger side with 2-3 plastic clips. You can see your filter easily right through that area.

 

I went for 30 k and it wasn't that messy still.

 

Def check it out.

I had an old mouse nest in mine.
I suspect it was delivered that way.

 

Have you ever owned a car that didn't require you to change an a/c filter? I bet you have. Did it make you ill? I bet not.
I don't see how this filter is going to make our lives any better. The few minutes you spend driving with clean air won't help you any. I drive with the windows down most of the time anyway. If a clogged filter starts to block airflow then I'll just remove it, not replace it. I think Nissan put them in to fool people into thinking they need them.

I wonder how many of the people who change those little filters light up a cigarette as soon as they're done driving.

 

for the little amount the micro filter costs it's well worth it. mine was filthy with all the dust for a year

 

If I'm not mistaken, this filter only filters air when the AC is on. Not when fresh air is blowing through the vents. And of course, is useless any time the windows are opened.

So if you use your AC all the time, it may be worth looking at.

 

It's inlet air for the whole system.

 

dude if you look at your filter and it is filthy, that means all that dirt would've been in the air had it not been for the filter, clean it and it will pick up more dirt, everything little bit counts, even if you do smoke




isn't it a weird placement for a in cabin filter? right under the battery? what happens if battery leaks? i know its a sealed battery but still could happen, then you have toxic battery acid in the cabin to breath or burn passengers.

 

Sounds to me like you can't afford the car because: a) you are leasing it which either means you have money to burn on getting new models every 3 or 4 years (unlikely in light of this thread), or you don't have enough money to just purchase the vehicle and needed a lower payment; and b) you are asking about whether or not you should perform basic maintenance.

Any filter keeps dirt out. There is very little dust where I live, yet the filter is very dirty at 15K miles. I replace my own filter and actually use the factory charcoal HEPA model which is 2.5 times more costly because I enjoy clean air. Yeah some people say they drive with the windows rolled down, but just think of all the pollution you're inhaling versus using the filter and HVAC system.

 

You could have gotten a charcoal Hepa filter from Gordgee for less than that crap stock nissan filter - I got 2 for 83 bucks or something shipped. The air smells clean. I don't see how fresh air bypasses the filter either. All fanned air is going past the filter box.

 

+1

There are many lower end/economy cars out there now that still don't come with in cabin air filters.

If you want clean air, then change it. If you don't care, then don't. It's that simple. There's 50k miles on my wife's 01 Accord and we have never changed the filter. I'm too lazy to rip the dash apart myself to do it and too cheap to pay the dealer $100 dollars for the routine maintenance. No big deal.

 

i don't get why people are so scared to take apart the dash on the G, it is pretty ****ing easy despite how much work it looks like. After taking my whole dash apart like 5 times I can do it in less than 10 minutes, and that is the whole dash. to access the cabin filter probably takes like 3 minuntes man. like 7 screws. really easy and there are lots of DIY guides with very descriptive instructions for audio installs.