I've got 15.5k and the filter looks brand new-I've used A/C a lot too, maybe they replaced it already at an oil change.

I stuck a new car smell tree in there, now the A/C is scented awesomeness, I bet it won't last long haha.

 

god that scent has got to be way to intense with the A/C on

 

Let's just say it can get really smokey in there at times and I don't smoke cigarettes...the tree helps with that

 

great diy. it seems easy enough even for me

 

The smell is due to fungi (bacteria) growing on the air ducts in the moisture left by cold air condensation.

Look it up, you are suppose to dry it out before turning the fans off. Once the bacteria is there, it could be very hard to get rid of.

 

Yuup! So prior to shutting the car off completely after A/C use, turn the fan speed on to full w/ A/C off. If the smell is already there, you can get a vent cleaner from pretty much any automotive store.

 

Thanks StormSilverGD3 for the filter change pics. I was able to change my filter in 5 minutes. The most time consuming step for me was emptying the glove box. My filter was full with assorted seeds and other things from the trees in my neighborhood. I don't know if it is my imagination, but the airflow through the vents feels stronger. I also tend to think my car runs better after a thorough interior/exterior cleaning, so take it as you will. ;-)

I can't believe that my dealership charges $100 for this service. If you take into account the roughly $20 cost of the filter, the labor is $80 for 5 minutes of work, or a $960/hr labor rate!

 

Thank you SO SO much for this DIY! It took me less than five minutes to replace my cabin filter yesterday with no tools. Wonder why the dealer charges $80 for this? Thanks for saving me $60!

 

Why does
Honda and Acura Accessories dot com - Genuine Factory Honda and Acura Accessories at discount prices.

not have the cabin filter for the 2009 honda fit?

 

Call them and get a quote, they are a dealer so you should be able to obtain them. They may not sell it to you tho', they state all over the site that all the items they carry are online.

Otherwise try some of the other online dealers, San Leandro Honda on the west coast or Bernardi Honda on the east coast....Google might tell you even more.

 

Thanks for this! Finally changed mine at ~27k miles. pretty dirty filter, found a small bug lodged in one of the pleats.
now repalced with a nice clean white filter!

 

+ REP to OP. Thanks for the write up.


I get allergies pretty bad so its good to know i can do this myself for the cost of a part. Does anyone know if there is a HEPA filter available for this application?

 

WOW. This is what the dealer wants to charge $90 for?? whoa. Now I need to read up changing the air filter...

 

batman

the air filter (for the engine) will be easier to get to, but dirtier..cuz it's the engine

unless your glove box was like the death or something


and yea...i didn't catch my wife in time and she got her civic's cabin filter done...for $80....damn it...

 

Good to know...thanks. I'm trying to make sense of what to have the dealer do. I'm conflicted between what I'd regard as "preventative maintenance" and the philosophy I've seen on this board that you should only do what the maintenance minder tells you to.

 

Modern engines, filters, and lubricants work extremely well, much better than the stuff that was used by our fathers and grandfathers. A lot of the lore you hear about how often to change oil and so on were created by people who were using products inferior to what we have now. Also, warranties last a lot longer now than they used to; for example car manufacturers are responsible for emissions-related equipment for 5 years or 60,000 miles, by federal law. So there is much less incentive to try to make a car appear less expensive to own by stretching its maintenance intervals. In short, following the manufacturer's maintenance schedule should be fine for most people.

Did I say "most people"? Yep. If you do an extreme amount of cold starts, stop/go driving (think mail delivery here, not driving in city traffic), or if you regularly drive in extremely dusty, sandy, climes, then you may want to shorten the intervals.

Back on topic: cabin air filters are nice for us humans, but they are not a necessary item for the health or longevity of your car. Millions of vehicles have operated just fine for hundreds of millions of miles without them. If you want you can take the cabin air filter out, throw it away, and never spend a penny on that particular maintenance item ever again, and not hurt your car in any way whatsoever.

 

sticky!!!!!!!

 

hi, i'm new here and really happy to see how easy this is to change! I've had my Fit for exactly a year now.

i have one question though, in terms of the maintenance minder. does it get reset somehow when you put in a new filter? i just don't want light lit up when i've already changed something, or is this something the dealer has to do, in terms of the computer and stuff? they also recommended changing the air filter too which I'm assuming i can also do myself (will look up on this forum). thanks! -j

 

The MM uses an algorithm to monitor oil life..(It doesn't actually analyze anything). Then it tells the owner to perform other services when they are close to an oil change service, based on typical mileage.

and as we all know, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary)



So the answer is, NO, it doesn't reset when you put in a new cabin filter. In fact if you change it, the MM could tell you to change the cabin filter again at the next service! (You can't reset just the sub-codes in the MM)

 

ahhh, thats what i thought. thanks for the info! ink jet printers work this way, they just count how many cycles things have gone through, head cleanings, carriage returns, etc, in terms of maintenance lights. so i guess you just live with the light knowing that you've changed the filter? mine hasn't gone on yet, but when i went in for an oil change they told me next time i should get both air filters replaced (so much cheaper to do it on my own!)