How to Replace Your Cabin Air Filter in 5 Easy Steps #FRAMfresh

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FRAMFreshBreeze Air Filters
How to Replace Your Cabin Air Filter in 5 Easy Steps

We are not fancy car people.  Well, I’m not.  I’m sure if my husband had his way and we had the money we would have two very fancy cars that were detailed once a week.  They would be pristine and no child would be able to put their messy snow boots inside the car and no dog would be able to ride in the back seat.  I’m pretty sure that is my hubby’s fantasy expensive car world.  That may be the world that other car owners live in but its not our world.

We had young children (they are teens now) and we have a dog.  We may have older cars (but never dirty ones).  We bought the minivan brand spanking new over a decade ago and the SUV a few years later.  It did have a previous owner but it was new to us!

Through the years, both cars have been good solid investments that have transported us to soccer games, vacations in other provinces and cottages, dance competitions, grocery stores, schools and work. Everywhere.  Every. Single. Day.  They are both serviced regularly and with the exception of having brakes replaced, we’ve never had any big issues with either car.  Part of why they still do their jobs is that we invest in the maintenance of each one.  Although this was not part of our regular routine, replacing an engine and cabin air filter should be something we do consistently.

A cabin air filter cleans the air entering the car and helps reduce dust, dirt and allergens. During the spring and fall when allergy season is at its worst, having a nice new filter should be helpful. The other reason you want a clean filter is that a clogged one could prevent the flow of fresh air coming into the car and block the air going out of the car. You know that will be an invitation for problems with your air conditioning, heating and defrost system.  A blocked filter could affect the efficiency of the whole system.

So it is very important to maintain these two filters.  This small servicing task can be done by you (yup, I said you…).  Consider changing your cabin and engine air filters once a year or every 24,000 km. That may change if you drive on dirt roads or if you drive in traffic or long distances. For best results, follow the recommended change intervals as noted in your vehicles owner’s manual.

With that in mind, I asked hubby this weekend to change both the cabin and engine air filters for me. After a little research,  I went to my local Canadian Tire store and found the right FRAM filter for my car.  I checked with the sales associate and she confirmed that I had chosen the correct Cabin Air Filter but that I needed a different engine filter. Phew… thank goodness I checked!

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Canadian Tire FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Canadian Tire_Auto Parts

I first went to the Canadian Tire Website to find the FRAM filters.  With thousands of types of cars, there are a large number of filters to choose from.  The website will prompt you for your car model, make and year. Once your answers are submitted, you are told which filter is compatible with your car. As it is 80% of cars since 2000 have a cabin filter installed to protect you from dirt, allergens and air pollution. FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Compatability Test

Once you have determined which FRAM Fresh Breeze filters you need.  Proceed to your local Canadian Tire and head to the car parts aisle with the car filters.

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Canadian Tire_1

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Canadian Tire_2 You will see there are two types (1) cabin air filters and (2) engine air filters.

How to replace a Cabin Air Filter Installation Directions:

Step 1

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Instructors Manual

Check your owner’s manual on how to locate and install a cabin air filter. In our Ford Freestar, the filter is located under the hood in front of the passenger seat.  In our other Mazda, it was also under the hood but some are located in the front dash.

Step 2

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Open hood

Open the hood to access the filter.

Step 3

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Find Filter cover

  FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Open Cover

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Remove filter

Locate filter cover and open to access the used filter.  Remove the filter and discard.

Step 4

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Retrieve New Filter

Remove the filter from the box. Follow directions on how to replace the filter and place into the compartment.

Step 5

FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_Place new filter in  FRAM Cabin Air Filter Tutorial_#cbias @DownshiftingPRO_place filter in

Replace the filter and slide it back in. Close the cover. Shut the hood.

YOU ARE DONE

It’s that easy!

The best thing about FRAM Fresh Breeze® is they are the only cabin air filter that uses the natural deodorizing qualities of Arm & Hammer baking soda and activated carbon to absorb and eliminate odours. That keeps the inside 98%  free of dirt, allergens and dust from passing through the car’s air conditioning and heating ventilation system to help with driving comfort.  The car engine air filter helps dirt and dust to keep the engine stay clean.

Although I have only illustrated how to install the cabin air filter, the engine air filter is just as important and just as easy to install.  You need to replace this filter because it will help with the overall function of the car.  In turn it may increase acceleration, horsepower and improve engine performance.  You can install the engine air filter in 5 minutes or less.  So take the 20 minutes that it will take to install both!

Don’t you think you could do this yourself? Check out other tips and tricks for changing out your filters here!

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Margarita Ibbott is a travel and lifestyle blogger. She blogs about travel in Canada, the United States and Europe giving practical advice through restaurant, hotel and attraction reviews. She writes for DownshiftingPRO.com and other online media outlets.

9 thoughts on “How to Replace Your Cabin Air Filter in 5 Easy Steps #FRAMfresh”

  1. Wow I have never though of changing this!! I am gonna have to check into this on my van!! Thanks for the heads up!

  2. This is pretty embarrassing but I had no idea there was even an air filter to change. With all of the dirt roads that I drive on, I should definitely have done this a few times by now! I love that it’s easy enough that I can do it myself now that I know.

    • I have to say, I didn’t really know either. We have always had them changed when we got a tune up or changed the oil. Now that I know how to do it myself, I’ll be saving money for sure!

  3. Regular maintenance on cars is so important. I always try to keep mine in tip-top shape! Funny, I have never thought about the in cabin filter until now!

  4. This is a handy tutorial for replacing an air filter. Honestly, my air filter probably hasn’t been changed in over a year. I’ve always liked Arm & Hammer baking soda products. That makes this product a need-to-buy item.

  5. Replacing the engine air filter is almost as easy in most cases. But in my 2008 civic to get to the engine air filter you have to unplug the MAF sensor. Which causes the diagostic computer to log a fault and turn on the MIL light. There is no real problem with that but you’ll need to clear the diagnostic code with an obd tool to turn the warning light off…. or by disconnecting the battery to do a hard reset of the diagnostics…

  6. I am a horrible car owner! I’ve always been one that doesn’t think a whole lot about the workings of the car. As long as I can get in it, start it and get to where I’m going, I’m good. I didn’t even know about a Cabin Air Filter!

  7. This is a great way to learn how to do these kinds of things for myself. I love learning new ways to work on my own car instead of having to pay someone else to do it. I will have to pick one of these up and try this out!

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