Why does Toyota cabin air filter replacement cost so much?

Why does Toyota cabin air filter replacement cost $65 and dealer says recommended every 10K - 15K miles? Nothing about special dusty environment etc.? One only has to pry the sides of the glove compartment toward the center to remove it. No big 'convoluted' secret here. The filter slides in and out like a drawer - no tools needed. Does it differ significantly from a house AC/heating filter. Could one just cut a new one to size ? RC

Reply to
RC
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You should be able to find a replacement cabin air filter for a much lower price (

Reply to
Ron Peterson

IMHO, the filter is too far back in the duct to do much good, anyway. I suspect that the duct itself collects much of the dirt that never makes it to the filter. Blow or vacuum the original filter and put it back in unless you drive in very dusty condtions with your vent and/or windows open.

My Corolla manual is full of recommendations for servicing that I have yet to do at over 100K. It's only been back to the dealer for needed body work after 2 accidents that screwed the back bumpers up. If I wanted to make my dealer's service department rich I would have bought a Chevy.

Reply to
Phxbrd

Did not see the small print "Charcoal cabin air filter slightly higher" - wtf How scientific is the air filtering in Toyotas? To the best of my knowledge - none of my previous cars including a Seville had ANY air filtering. What if one ran without? Any harm to anything?

RC

Reply to
RC

If your car is still under warranty you do have to replace it once a year and have a proof of purchase to prove it. Having said that you can buy any OE cabin air filter that has manufacturer approval. The two best are Wix (wix.com) sold throughout North America through places like CARQUEST (.ca for Canada, .com for USA) and many others. If you're Canadian someone recently mentioned in another thread that partsource.ca has Toyota cabin filters made by MicronAir for about $15 which is amazing as I could only find one for $24, the rest more. MicronAir and Wix both state in their guarantee that they have auto manufacturer approval so the car warranty will not be voided.

Install it yourself, like you elude to it is an easy job. Keep your proof of purchase in the unlikely event something goes wrong with your A/C or fan blower motor down the road.

Don't bother with the carbon filters, they're just more money for some extra odor killing.

Econo-cars

Reply to
Econo-cars

For consumable parts like filters, fluids, etc., Toyota's margin is about

300%. The dealer then tacks on a ~40% retail markup. It's no different than inkjet cartridges or oxygen-free HDMI cables at Best Buy. :-) Find the part number of the Toyota filter and search online for deals. Quick Google Shopping search found the charcoal version for $26:
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Your Seville probably also lacked a backup camera or tire pressure sensors. It's just progress. The filter is mostly a convenience item to improve the interior air quality. If you drive a lot in sandy conditions (desert, beach), enough sand particles could conceivably get in and harm the fan. Otherwise a missing filter won't make a difference.

Reply to
First of One

As mentioned in my previous post, a non carbon Micronaire filter can be found for around $15 and you can install it yourself.

I have found this filter to be a BIG help. I have to park my car under a birch tree and there are nearby farm fields. The seeds are like wheat germ, falling outside every nook and cranny of my Corolla. The cabin filter has done an excellent job stopping seeds and air borne dirt from entering the ventilation system. I purchased my car in the fall of 06 and the dashboard vents are still clean. So far I have replaced the filter twice. Every spring and fall I remove the filter and vacuum it out the as best I can. It's easy to judge when it's time to change the filter, it becomes dark grey with impregnated dirt that can no longer be removed.

My old Tercel that got passed along to a family member is still spitting out seeds when the the windshield circulation fan setting gets turned up.

Reply to
GM homepc

Because they want your money. And they're asking for it.

And they know that the answer is always "no" if they don't ask, so they ask.

Reply to
Elmo P. Shagnasty

Yes, you can.

It's not magic.

Reply to
Elmo P. Shagnasty

This is just so much bull.

Reply to
Elmo P. Shagnasty

The least expensive approach would be to replace the filter yourself, or use an aftermarket cabin air filter. You can try cutting a household AC filter to size, but I suspect that it is not as easy to make it fit and seal properly as it looks.

Reply to
Ray O

How does the DIY filter fit and work?

Reply to
Ray O

see:

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Reply to
Joe

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Interesting idea!

Reply to
Ray O

I've been thinking about trying it for the front cabin filter on the Lexus. The rear cabin filter is probably 3 or 4 times as thick and with a much larger square size and has charcoal media and is surprisingly less expensive than the front cabin filter. IIRC, the 2 combined were around $150, and that didn't include the mini-filters for the ventilated seats.

Reply to
Ray O

Cabin filters are around $17 at our local auto parts stores. I am replacing the cabin filters in both of my Avalons and adding a piece of metal screen on top as I just had to remove the fans to clean dog food and acorns from the fan housing after I discovered mice had chewed through the filter paper.

Reply to
Brian

Make your own, easy job, any nincompoop can do it even a liberal.

Reply to
dbu`

this reminds me of the reason, i won't buy a color printer [one is hostage to the manufacturers]

shop around for filter

i think i found a reasonably priced Fram at Walmart

marc

Reply to
marco

I buy mine at Auto Zone and they install it free. Total cost about $16.00

Reply to
matrixfrustrated

replying to RC, loye beene wrote: you can buy cabin air filters online for 7$ plus shipping,,,easy to install yourself as comes with instructions.....

Reply to
loye beene

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