I thought this looked interesting, so I gave it a shot. It's a cabin filter with activated charcoal layer. This one has the honeycomb filled with carbon. The charcoal side looks a lot like the filters that go in my home air purifiers.
But were they on sale though?Tried a couple of those because the other half has issues with asthma the only notable difference was it made my wallet a little lighter.
Most modern engines have the air intake roughly horizontal while the cabin air intake is usually in the cowl area between the wipers and the hood. It's more vertical so stuff can just fall in.I can tell you from my own experience, the last time I changed the filters on my wifes car, the cabin filter was way dirtier than the engine filter. That had me scratching my head, but it did prove they do work at keeping the cabin air clean.,,
Looks like Harbor Freight branding