What really does cause induction contamination? - TAT - The ...

Jason
Smith Don’t ignore the
hidden pollen filter
have seen a lot of changes in the
I automotive industry in the past 20
years, most of them in electronics.
But there is one big change that has
nothing to do with electronics, but
which nevertheless has become a daily
servicing task. It’s the often quite hidden
pollen filter, or cabin air filter, which
filters the air delivered to the passenger
compartment.
 
Pollen filters are fitted
to a lot of HVAC systems and because
of the job they do, they need to be
checked, cleaned or replaced regularly,
depending on the type of filter.
It’s a service essential in many parts
of Australia that suffer from drought
conditions. Clouds of dirt and dust are
the by-products of drought. In some
areas, pollen filters
will need to be
replaced more than
the service schedule
recommends.
 
On
most cars, the pollen
filters are located
inside the dash and
on many models
the glove box has Old dirty pollen filter
to be removed or
dropped, and cover
or blanking panels
have to be removed
before you can get
to the filter.
On some vehicles,
checking and
New pollen filter
replacing pollen
filters can be a time
consuming job.
On this model of the Mazda 3, it
became almost major and time
consuming surgery to get to the filter.
On later models, it gets easier and the
glove box doesn’t need to be extracted.
The top glove box garnish is rather
tricky to remove and could easily be
broken. The fuse box had to be moved
out of the way. This vehicle has two
pollen filters stacked one on top of the
other, because of the tight space in the
center at the bottom of the dash. It takes
about half an hour to do this job.
 
Other
vehicles have pollen filters under the
bonnet below the windscreen.
The moral of this story is:
Get to know where the pollen filters
are on the cars your customers bring
in, because the task of checking and
replacing the humble pollen filter can
make you money or cost you time and
money, and you don’t want the latter.
A few tips:
Be careful with the glove box retaining
clips, they are mostly made out of
plastic and are easily broken.
 
An old
piece of wire or stainless steel rail from
an old wiper blade with a 90 degree
bend can be a useful tool to help slide
the old pollen filter out enough so you
can then reach it with your fingers, but
be careful not to scratch the dash with
the makeshift tool.
Check for and remove any leaves in
and around the pollen filter. This applies
particularly when replacing Ford BA
to FG models and the Territory. Stray
leaves can fall into the heater fan and
cause an annoying noise. Also with
Fords, make sure the heater fan is
turned off, or you
may end up with
sore fingers.
Make sure you
put the new
pollen filter in the
right way. Most
of them have an
arrow, indicating
direction of air
flow.
 Recheck
that you have
fitted all parts.
Some glove
boxes have a
damper (like a
little shocker) and
they are easy to
forget to refit.
On BA through FG Falcons and
Territories, pollen filters are similar to a
high efficiency particulate air type filter
which can mostly be cleaned, washed
out, dried and re-used, just like the filter
in the domestic split system aircon.
My final tip is to remember to put the
cost of the new pollen filter and the
associated labour in the job estimate.
It’s one of those jobs easily forgotten,
especially if it is not already on your
routine service schedule list.
Customers don’t mind paying for a new
pollen filter if you go to a little trouble to
explain what it does.
I find most customers are surprised
that their car is even fitted with a pollen
filter and when I show them the old
contaminated filter, they can’t believe
how dirty and potentially unhealthy it is.
I have even had customers ask to take
the old pollen filter home for a show and
tell.
Be careful of the top garnish removal
Glove box removed to access pollen filter
Location of pollen filter
Old filter removed
Fitting the first ot the two new filters
The Automotive Technician 21