How do you change cabin air filter on 2005 Acura RL?

Answer 1

This is so easy but the dealer charges you about $150 to do it. YOU can do this even if you have never seen a car before. It is that easy. First thing-----NO TOOLS NEEDED!!! If you are about to grab a screw driver or a pair of pliers then you are about to break something. NO TOOLS NEEDED. The job takes less than five minutes if you are doing it for the first time. Here we go: 1) Open the glove box; 2) At the back of the box you will see some fabric. It is held in place with Velcro. Push it down and pull it toward you flat so that you can see. You will see the hinges for the upper glove box (the one that holds the manuals). The upper glove box hinges are a snap in type. There are no screws. There are three approximately one half inch wide snap in type hinges. 3) Open the upper glove box and pull it toward you. It will unsnap out of its hinges. Don't twist or jerk it. Simply pull it forward and it will unsnap; 4) Directly behind the upper glove box is the housing that contains the cabin air filter. It is clearly marked with the words "AIR FLOW" and arrows pointing in the direction of the air flow. There is a tab on each side of the housing. Depress the tabs. DO NOT PRY THEM OUTWARD or you will break them off. Depress the tabs and pull toward you. The housing will slide out easily and it contains the filter. Be sure and watch for any thing that may fall into the air blower. My filter was full of leaves and I had to reach in and remove a couple that had fallen into the blower when I removed the filter housing. There is plenty of room for your hand and this is all VERY easy; 5) Replace the filter paying attention to the arrows on the filter showing the direction of the air flow. Also make sure that the edges of the filter slide over the plastic tabs in the filter housing. You will see what I mean once you take a look at way the old filter is inserted into the housing. Just take a moment to inspect before discarding the old filter; 6) Reverse the whole process. Slide the housing back into place. Snap in the upper glove box. Close it. Put the fabric back into place and close the large glove box. All done. Some people buy an original Acura filter for about $20. I bought an after market one for about $10. Looked the same to me and most of the forum commentators seem satisfied with the after market versions. But, with all the money you are saving on labor go ahead and buy the Acura filter if it makes you feel better! You just saved a bunch of time and money by doing this yourself. Remember---this takes five minutes and no tools. Don't grab a tool or you will be spending big money fixing what you are about to break. EASY, EASY, EASY job.