bgambino Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 the local stealership wanted my mom to spend $80 to change them Anyone know where they are? What's the frequency for changing? thanks 06 forester Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 i would imagine frequency varies wildly and the number they recommend is just some huge averaged value, but i'm sure it's in the owners manual. my 02 has a small sticker on the drivers side door sill with a date/mileage on it for the cabin filter. i priced them at NAPA today $30 for my 2002 OBW. i think it's down by the drivers side kick panel, seems like there may have even been a sticker/note there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron917 Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 I change them every 30,000 miles. My '07 Outback and my '03 Pontiac Montana have them. 15,000 is too soon, but by 30,000 they are quite dirty and full of leaves and junk. For my '07 Outback, a new WIX cabin air filter cost $12.42 at Rock Auto. Changing it required disassembling the glove compartment. It was a royal pain, but not difficult, working in an uncomfortable position. I'm glad I had the FSM to guide me, as some things it wanted me to remove made no sense until I got it apart and saw they were in the way of getting to the filter. My sticker "warning" of a Cabin Air Filter (why a warning?) is also on the driver's side, but the filter itself is nowhere near there. Maybe in Japanese RHD cars it's on that side, but not for North America. But your '06 Forester may be different. Best to check the owner's manual or FSM. A google search may turn up detailed instructions, maybe on a Forester specific forum. By the way, in the Pontiac, changing that filter is a 5 minute job. There's an access door in the glove comparment, no need to disassemble anything and no tools required. Most of the time is spent trying to figure out how the wife fit all that crap in the glove compartment and getting it closed again. But the filter itself costs more than twice as much as the one for the Outback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVOthis Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 You can get those cabin filters on Ebay for under $10.00...They are extremely simple to change yourself...located right behind the glove box its a couple of phillips head screws...Ive pulled cabin filters out at 15k mile intervals that look absolutely atrocious covered with dirt,leaves,dust you name it...Personally I would prob change it once a year except neither of my subarus have them...Just think of it this way that is the air your breathing...AH I just noticed you have a Forester...They are the easiest to change believe me Ive done dozens and dozens of them...glove box should pop right out...Now the ones for the Tribeca are a little bit of a bear... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgambino Posted June 2, 2009 Author Share Posted June 2, 2009 You can get those cabin filters on Ebay for under $10.00...They are extremely simple to change yourself...located right behind the glove box its a couple of phillips head screws...Ive pulled cabin filters out at 15k mile intervals that look absolutely atrocious covered with dirt,leaves,dust you name it...Personally I would prob change it once a year except neither of my subarus have them...Just think of it this way that is the air your breathing...AH I just noticed you have a Forester...They are the easiest to change believe me Ive done dozens and dozens of them...glove box should pop right out...Now the ones for the Tribeca are a little bit of a bear... thanks all! (finally something that is easy to change/replace! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericem Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 What about us guys with older cars that don't have cabin filters? Do our car's have a bit of a different design not allowing as much dust to enter the cabin or something Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 What about us guys with older cars that don't have cabin filters? Do our car's have a bit of a different design not allowing as much dust to enter the cabin or something We are left to wallow in our own filth haha. Same idea with houses, some people have air filters or stuff like that and some don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericem Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 In a house you need the filter though. if you don't run a filter you will blow out the motor alot sooner. i guess with our cars the motors are sealed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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