Cabin Air Filter

[kevinssf]

There was a really musty yucky smell coming from the pilot, i thought it might have been the cabin air filter because it hasn't been replaced since the pilot was bought brand new. (2003 with 96k miles lol). So i replaced the cabin air filter, and it seems that the smell wasn't coming from the cabin air filter...any place else i should check?


another thing, the right side of the center vent seems to not be blowing air as efficiently as the rest of the front vents

last thing, i only smell this nasty smell when i DONT use the fan and DONT use the a/c. (as well as just circulating the air inside the cabin) so it only happens when i leave it as is.

[rayjj]

Curious to see if anyone has an answer for this, regarding the smell at least. My wifes 07 just starting smelling real bad when the AC is on. It only has about 15k on it so far, and I am going to look into changing the cabin filter for the hell of it, but I cant see how just changing it will get rid of the horrid smell.

Also is the 07 the same procedure for changing the filter as in the DIY?

Sorry to ask lots of questions for my first post here, but my wife has been *****ing about the smell so I gotta do something soon!!!

[charly]

I don't know if it is the a/c gas or the material that the air vents are made of but mine has that bad smell after using the A/C... but if i don't use it it's ok.......But on this hot weather is har to drive w/o it... any thoughts.

[kevinssf]

Originally posted by rayjj
Curious to see if anyone has an answer for this, regarding the smell at least. My wifes 07 just starting smelling real bad when the AC is on. It only has about 15k on it so far, and I am going to look into changing the cabin filter for the hell of it, but I cant see how just changing it will get rid of the horrid smell.

Also is the 07 the same procedure for changing the filter as in the DIY?

Sorry to ask lots of questions for my first post here, but my wife has been *****ing about the smell so I gotta do something soon!!!

yea, its pretty simple, all you need is a philips scredriver and a 8mm socket...
the hardest part is probably removing the sill.

[rayjj]

Cool thanks, I have no problem changing the filter as long as the DIY is basically the same for the 07, I didnt see any year listed with that thread. Too bad the change isnt as easy as my Fit, open the glovebox and there it is, less than a 5 min job!

I'll probably spray some lysol in there when I have the filter out to kill any mold or mildew. THat is usually the culprit, moisture builds up in the air tubes and created mold and mildew, and thats usually the smell. Also good to check the AC drain plug, if its plugged up that will make things even worse. That is if there is acces to it on the Pilot. I havent done anything to the Pilot other than oil changes since it was new. If it was my DD then i;d have ripped into it all over the place by now

[kevinssf]

is there any way to check the vents themselves?
where is the air intake for the cabin air?

[ctobio]

There's actually specialty foams for killing mildew in automotive HVAC systems that are more effective than just spraying lysol around.

As for where the intake is, it's in the cowling at the base of the dashboard.

[hondacuraplanet]

Buy this. Guaranteed it will clean out the musty odor:

http://www.autogeek.net/wuachesytr.html

[ctobio]

Tim, that's exactly the stuff I was thinking of.

[rayjj]

There are other things like that product out there as well, I know I have something in my garage somewhere that was made for the same reason, and was supposed to work very well. If only I could find it or even remember the name of it!

[TJD]

Originally posted by hondacuraworld
Buy this. Guaranteed it will clean out the musty odor:

http://www.autogeek.net/wuachesytr.html

Do you sell this? If so, any chance of combining it with a filter order?

[rayjj]

Well thanks to the DIY I took the filter out over the weekend, real simple to do, took all of maybe 10 minutes. Looked almost brand new still after 18k miles. The box also looked very clean inside, had a few small leaves, but nothing near what I was expecting. Wife said the smell hasnt been as bad last few days, but it still baffles me as to where it came from. Still not totally gone either.

[pilot_man_dan]

the musty a/c smell is pretty common, not just in pilots, but in all vehicles. i have noticed it in my pilot as well.

try this next time you're in your pilot: a couple minutes before you reach your destination, turn the a/c off, but keep the fan on. if you keep the a/c running, then turn the car off, the cold air in the lines will condensate, and you will get that musty smell the next time you turn the fan on... however, if you turn the a/c compressor off but leave the fan running, the air in the vents isn't as cold when you turn the car off, and it won't condensate and cause the musty odor.

hope that helps! give it a try...

[rayjj]

Originally posted by pilot_man_dan
the musty a/c smell is pretty common, not just in pilots, but in all vehicles. i have noticed it in my pilot as well.

try this next time you're in your pilot: a couple minutes before you reach your destination, turn the a/c off, but keep the fan on. if you keep the a/c running, then turn the car off, the cold air in the lines will condensate, and you will get that musty smell the next time you turn the fan on... however, if you turn the a/c compressor off but leave the fan running, the air in the vents isn't as cold when you turn the car off, and it won't condensate and cause the musty odor.

hope that helps! give it a try...

I will give that a try, and I know it can happen in any vehicle, but this seemed like a different smell. My wife said it seems like someone threw up or something. Not sure it smells like that to me, but its definitely not a pleasant one! I did spray some Lysol around inside the car, and will probably spray some in the vents as well to see if it helps at all.