Cabin Filter Question

[Kabish]

So I finally took the good old Mach E in for service about a month ago. Ended up catching a screw in a tire and I had just hit 30k so I went ahead and replaced them. Which... was interesting.. More on that later.

While there though I had them replace the cabin filter. Its been "cold" and I've not ran the AC since the car was in. Today however it was pretty warm when I got into the car. Started it up, HVAC was set to 71 and I was roasting my butt off... Normally when I get in and the car is hot it will blast me with the AC. So I manually turned it up to like 4 which is normally pretty strong. Hardly any air was coming out, I had to verify that it was actually set to come out of the vents. So I went ahead and cranked it to full blast. Typically this results in a good amount of air along with a good amount of noise. Thing was hardly making any noise and was probably half of the normal airflow. When it was turned on high you could hear a "revers vac" sound under the dash. Like the system was trying to suck air in from places its not supposed too, never heard this before.

Not sure how the Mach-E works, but if they put the cabin filter in wrong, or left plastic on it would it effect the airflow that the HVAC has available?

Now about the tire thing.... Dude was like "oh these are truck tires, you don't want truck tires they will cause you to have a rougher ride"..... I told him that EVs require a stronger side wall for the weight and that I can't run just any plain jane tire. After like 15 minutes of trying to explain it he finally looked up the OEM tire and said "Oh it says XL on it"... He then asked me "do you want just the OEM then"... Like common Dealers, that could make someone have a real F'ed up day.

Sponsored

 

[mkhuffman]

The cabin filter should be easy to check. Most filters I have put in come naked in a box (no plastic cover) but I suppose that could be the cause. Or they used the wrong filter which could restrict airflow. Your theory makes sense.

 

[Neil4Real]

If the filter housing isn’t closed. Easy to check, there’s plenty of YouTube videos. Super easy.

But make sure your vents are OPEN you should see the arrows on the vent dials. If there are no arrows, the vents are closed.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

Not sure how the Mach-E works, but if they put the cabin filter in wrong, or left plastic on it would it effect the airflow that the HVAC has available?

If plastic was left on, it would block airflow through the filter, blocking off the whole system.
The filters are supposedly directional, but I believe that is for the filter to catch particulates properly. I don’t think it will stop airflow all together.
The cabin filter is reasonably accessible behind the glove box if you want to check it out. There’s a thread here somewhere on how to get to it.

 

[Mach-Lee]

New Mach-E’s come with all the vents closed so double check. Otherwise they could have installed a filter wrapped in plastic (yes that has happened before).

 

[Kabish]

Thanks all, I'll do some research and see if I can find where the cabin filter is. My F150's cabin filter was not really hard to get to, but it was a huge pain in the arse...

And yes, my physical vents are opened. I use these clip on air fresheners that are basically invisible that slide inside so I can't have them closed

 

[Mach-Lee]

Thanks all, I'll do some research and see if I can find where the cabin filter is. My F150's cabin filter was not really hard to get to, but it was a huge pain in the arse...

And yes, my physical vents are opened. I use these clip on air fresheners that are basically invisible that slide inside so I can't have them closed

It's behind the glove compartment, and really easy to get to compared to most cars I've worked on. Just be careful not to bend the door retention tabs out too far because they will break off.

 

[Mike_Hawk]

While on the topic, I'd like to add that if you're looking to "upgrade" your cabin filter, I recommend the Pureflow PC99542X. It's a 4-stage filter and can be had on Amazon for about $25. I put it in a week after getting the car and it does a great job at filtering outside smells.

It is indeed relatively easy to replace.

 

[mkhuffman]

New Mach-E’s come with all the vents closed so double check. Otherwise they could have installed a filter wrapped in plastic (yes that has happened before).

I am curious if restricting the flow through the air filter could help cold temperature heater performance? I guess just turning the fan on low will do a similar thing but blocking some of the air from the outside would be like an even slower fan speed. Just a thought. Half baked, I admit. ?

 

[DR.J56]

Could also be a damper issue. Maybe it wasn’t positioned in the right place. Maybe the setting you had it on? Was air coming from the defrost vents too? This definitely makes some noise on high.

 

[Mach-Lee]

I am curious if restricting the flow through the air filter could help cold temperature heater performance? I guess just turning the fan on low will do a similar thing but blocking some of the air from the outside would be like an even slower fan speed. Just a thought. Half baked, I admit. ?

No, if you block too much airflow you reduce heating performance. Blower speed should be adjusted to target about 85-105ºF vent temps. AUTO 1 or 2 does a pretty good job with the fan speed. Blocking airflow will increase the vent temps but reduce the CFMs. Total heat is the product of vent temp X CFMs so you want a balance of both for max output.

 

[Arthur]

Wish I saw this comment earlier today when I went to replace my air filter. Sure enough I broke one of the tabs. It didn't take much force and the tab fell off. It was brittle so just be careful.

It's behind the glove compartment, and really easy to get to compared to most cars I've worked on. Just be careful not to bend the door retention tabs out too far because they will break off.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Wish I saw this comment earlier today when I went to replace my air filter. Sure enough I broke one of the tabs. It didn't take much force and the tab fell off. It was brittle so just be careful.

The fix for that is a screw.

 

[Arthur]

Thanks for the suggestion. Just used a small screw to keep the door plate in place. Easy fix.

The fix for that is a screw.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

Thanks all, I'll do some research and see if I can find where the cabin filter is. My F150's cabin filter was not really hard to get to, but it was a huge pain in the arse...

And yes, my physical vents are opened. I use these clip on air fresheners that are basically invisible that slide inside so I can't have them closed

I just checked my cabin filter on my F-150 last week. PITA is correct. The Mach-E makes it super simple comparatively.

Sponsored