Looking between the pleats of the original filter is a good indication of it's condition. It's pretty much plugged.
Mine was a little worse after almost 70 k miles.

 

Maybe it's because you live on Long Island, and you're getting all the pollution coming off Manhattan.

You see, I live Upstate... where the beer flows like wine, and beautiful women instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano.

 

lol...I guess the few times I drove through the city area, the stink got stuck up in the original filter and THAT was the smell...haha who knows.

Same state, MUCH different environments. Good stuff. Though I know the time that I went to Lake George, the air smelled a whole lot cleaner. Maybe it was a mental thing, but I really don't think it was. So nice up there!

 

just installed a set of oem filters and noticed my car never came with any? all well at least i have filtered air now... paid $39 at the dealer

 

Your car '00 or '01?

The in cabin filter became standard in 2002 apparently.

 

Why would you spend $39+ at a dealership, with all the discussion here about replacement filters at less than half that?

 

I replaced my filters today, but i can't get the right side of the glove box to line up correctly. Do you guys have any hints that might help me get the glove box on correctly? Thanks

 

u should change that at like 60k miles

 

The tab @ the lower right side goes in first. Get that lined up b4 you push the left side into place.

 

i got it to slide in, thanks spock

 

Good look on the ebay filter. I need to replace mine and those prices are awesome. I just ordered 4 of them.....I haven't replaced mine in 2 years.......

 

It's been 2 weeks since I replaced my cabin filter. I just wanted to say that I was thinking about cabin airflow this morning, and realizing that it was... different. It's hard to explain, but the air is just better than I'm used to, both in smell and feel coming out of the vents on my face.

I know this is all subjective and kind of a dumb thing to hover over, but I'm glad I did this. Only wish I'd done it every 2 years instead of every 8. And I appreciate threads like this that come around every now and then, reminding you of the basics in car care.

 

I took the glove box out to see if my 2k1 had a filter and it didn't but was able to buy 2ea on ebay for $27 shipping included. You can see in the pic what 9years will collect. the only thing I recommend to anyone who is planning on doing this for the first time disconnect you battery first or just don't disconnect the yellow wire and yellow connector. this is for you airbags. I did not disconnect the battery and got the airbag light blinking at me while driving. I then found on the org site how to reset it with turning the key to acc and back 3 times. but this is worth the work.

 

just ordered one from aircabinman, thanks a bunch
Total: US $15.65

 

Just bought a 2k2 and it was one of the first things I did. 8 years and 145k later I don't think the filter was ever changed. Filter area was filled with bugs, leaves, small branch pieces. Took pics but can't post them yet. Bought filter (2 pcs) at NAPA best $30 spent so far

 

I really need to do this. It's one of those things that takes hardly any time, and it's been on "the list" forever, just haven't gotten around to it yet.

 

just did mine. washed my oem one as instructed.
heres how dirty it was




it was dirty. the actual housing in car wasnt bad at all.

 

I'm telling you....don't waste time and energy washing the "oem." Mine looked just like yours and I don't think it is oem. If it is, then it is cheaply made. As indicated in an earlier post, my filter was fully dry and held it's shape, even when re-installing. However, when I decided to go ahead and replace it with these new ones, I found the thing had began to fall apart and actually callapsed. So, it wasn't filtering hardly anything!

Just a suggestion...in 30-45 days, re-check that cleaned filter and see if it's still intact. This is simply from first hand experience!

 

thanks chris. i will recheck my filter to see how its holding up month or two later.
i am positive its oem, had nissan written all over it.

 

Keeping that filter clean and/or replaced on a regular basis should extend the life of the blower motor (which are a heckuva lot more expensive than the cabin filter) by allowing more airflow and thus less resistance to move air. My mother has a 2002 GLE and her blower motor went out at 74K miles. I bought cabin filters when I got a blower motor for her and replaced them at the same time. I've replaced my 2003 SE filters once a year since the car was new in July 02 and have 105K miles and my blower motor hasn't even squeaked once like hers did for months before I fixed it. Just wondering... I went with the Frams from WalMart, $28 if I remember correctly. Her filter was the factory original, 9 years old... DOH!!! Dirty as hell, brown as dirt and quite probably, a health hazard just touching the filthy thing.

 

I recently changed the in-cabin filter on my 2000 maxima and a 2000 I30, but now on both vehicles the glove box light will not light up. I tried messing around with the glove box on the maxima to see if there was a switch or something. I know the headlights need to be on, so that isnt the problem. When I am moving around the glove box light wire it will light up momentarily and then go out. Does any one have any ideas on what might be the problem?

 

If moving the wire lights it up, there's a short in the wire... When you removed it off the top of the glove box, did you slide it out or pull it? Those are pretty thin wires attached to it, not designed for much force. The bulb isn't loose at all in it's socket is it?

 

What should I vacuum? When I opened mine...there are no filter at all, and I can only see a big hole underneath....not sure what it is.

 

I pulled the glove box light out. The bulb is really tight into the socket, I actually tried to remove but was unable too. I have to take a look at the wires. thanks

 

Not sure if that wire is attached all the way to full harness or if it is blocked on the other end into a harness receptacle, I've never bothered to follow it backwards to it's origin. Besides, probably a full dash removal just to get to where it goes. If all else fails, you can keep a small flashlight in the glove box... Sorry. Just don't fiddle around too much around that wiring in there, especially with the battery connected, setting off the airbag would be an expensive "OOPS!"

 

Thanks. Change it two years ago and think it's time to change it again.

 

FYI...in case you guys didn't know you can actually clean and reuse the filters. I did this last time and it worked well.

I just pounded out all the dust and debris, then soaked in a warm solution of simple green and water, rinsed them clean, then stuck them in the oven to dry them out. Make sure you set the temp on the oven as low as possible, around 150 if you can. The lowest I could set my oven was 170 and I put them on the bottom rack.

 

i definatley +1 to this, they becom saggy and do not hold their shape after being washed and cleaned etc.

I would say wash it once to get another 1/2 life out of it, and get a new one after that.

 

There were two filter styles offered by Nissan. One washable and the other not. I don't believe they sell the washables anymore. This may be the discrepancy. If you're not the original owner with the original cabin filters, bite the bullet and replace them. Local vendor importrp has them for a few Lincolns under ten bucks/pair.

 

I really need to just order one and replace it. I removed the oem unit and washed it but it was still dirty. So i never put it back in.

 

I've got an aftermarket one in the garage, but have never installed it. Looked like a real PITA to do it, but you guys give me hope, so maybe next week...

 

Just remove the glovebox to install it. It is not a PITA in any way.

 

Agreed. Cake.

 

I just did mine today (first time in six years..) lol. One of the easiest fixes for the car.

 

Use the guide from Shift Ice. It's stupid easy. 4 screw across the top of the glove box and two more on the bottom corners under the dash. The glove box may need a little persuasion to unclip the two spring clips when pulling out. Once unclipped, use needle nose pliers to pop out the holder for the airbag connector (DO NOT UNPLUG the airbag connector).

The air cleaner is under the long flat metal clip. Pop it out with a flat blade screwdriver or needle nose pliers. Then just remove the filter and replace. I took a few extra minutes and cleaned out the area. Saw some leaves and junk in there.

When reattaching the glove box back to the dash, make sure to slip the lower right corner in fist and then it should fall into place easily.

For your first time, it should take 20 minutes.

http://www.shiftice.com/cabin_filter.html

 

This.

This.

And this.

But not this. Don't ever mess with live harness connectors to your airbags. Just disconnect your battery.

 

you should rephrase this statement as it could cause alot of people alot of problems !

Never disconect the airbag plugs, just the clips that hold it back

 

^^^exactly. Use a set of needle nose pliers to squeeze the plastic tabs that hold the air bag plug to the glove box housing to remove it. Do Not disconnect the plug! Following this method does not require disconnecting the battery and the hassles that go with it.

 

vacuumed mine out and washed with soap water then let sit in linens freshener..... sniff sniff smells.... .. . good

 

Yeah sorry bout that , I meant the clips-not the plugs.