I've known that my 2003 Tribute has a cabin air filter since I bought it, but I've never 'got around' to checking or changing it. Also, I hadn't found a normal parts store that actual carries cabin air filters.
I found a C-T that had Fram cabin air filters for my vehicle ($25, seems average), so I bought that and a regular engine air filter, and dug into the 'air filtration system' on my Tribute.
First up was the air filter, and it was too bad...had an average amount of dust and dirt in the Fram panel filter. The thing that concerned me more is that the seal around the filter was starting to dry and shrink, and the filter was starting to distort. So I put in the new one, and it obviously fit much better.
Then i did the cabin air filter. It was actually fairly straightfoward to get at it, but when I got to it, OMG, what a mess. Hadn't been changed in who knows how long, and was full of junk. What's worse, it hadn't been put in right last time, so it was sitting crooked in the housing.
The new Fram CAF I got for it was one of the charcoal ones, and it was very nicely made. Had a more solid frame, and what I really liked is it had a foam seal around the part that filts in the housing, so you can snug it in, and it won't move. I really liked this, made for a very secure-feeling fit.
All in all, a very good change to make in both cases!
I found a C-T that had Fram cabin air filters for my vehicle ($25, seems average), so I bought that and a regular engine air filter, and dug into the 'air filtration system' on my Tribute.
First up was the air filter, and it was too bad...had an average amount of dust and dirt in the Fram panel filter. The thing that concerned me more is that the seal around the filter was starting to dry and shrink, and the filter was starting to distort. So I put in the new one, and it obviously fit much better.
Then i did the cabin air filter. It was actually fairly straightfoward to get at it, but when I got to it, OMG, what a mess. Hadn't been changed in who knows how long, and was full of junk. What's worse, it hadn't been put in right last time, so it was sitting crooked in the housing.
The new Fram CAF I got for it was one of the charcoal ones, and it was very nicely made. Had a more solid frame, and what I really liked is it had a foam seal around the part that filts in the housing, so you can snug it in, and it won't move. I really liked this, made for a very secure-feeling fit.
All in all, a very good change to make in both cases!
