Fair enough, I will bow to your good judgement. Thanks for the input.

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hlg

OK, I changed the "dust" filters on my 1998 E320 sedan today. Sorry, I forgot my digital camera so I don't have any pictures.

But I can say this. There are EIGHT screws to remote the glove box. There are 4 that are clearly visible in the upper right and left sides of the front of the glove box. There are 2 that are on the "floor" of the inside of the glove box that are covered by plastic covers. And finally there are 2 more on the "ceiling" of the inside of the glove box that require a short screwdriver to get to. All screws are phillips head.

So I take all eight screws off and with one hard tug I snapped the glovebox out. The filters were VERY dirty and there were about 200 pine needles all over the place back there. BLAH!!! I got the parts from my local dealership, both filters come in a package. Price was like $18.50 since my friend works at a repair shop.

I slid the filters in and that was that.

NOW, where is the charcoal filter? I looked at the parts diagram and it seems like it's to the left of the glovebox and you must take apart the dash or get under the dash to get to them.

My '98 E320 only has 37k miles on it and the previous owner (original owner) never used the charcoal filter so I am not even going to bother checking how clean it is unless it's easy to get to.

Thanks to everyone on this forum who posted part #s, photos, and tips and tricks, it was helpful! :-)

Cheers!

Old thread again. I didn't see a corection to this. There are six screws. Of the four visible on the upper right and left sides, only remove the top two. The lower two (still near the top) are door stops. Don't remove them.

I was on holidays, I read this post and since I didn't see any pics, I decided to take a few while doing the job.

Attached Thumbnails

         

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BigBen

'98 E300 Turbodiesel 244 000km
RIP '92 300D 2,5 Turbo 632 859,4km due to engine failure

Particular instructions are included in the file names... hope they will appear!

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BigBen

'98 E300 Turbodiesel 244 000km
RIP '92 300D 2,5 Turbo 632 859,4km due to engine failure

Ok, I don't see the file names the way I uploaded the pictures.

So, basically, everything has been said here about that job, I'm just confirming everything with the pictures.

If someone could include them in the DIY, please feel free. I have better resolution ones as well.

I would add here that, to remove the light in the glove box, start by pruing off on the right hand side, it's the way to go.

I agree with the good strength it takes to pull the glove box out, just a little more than we'd like it to take.

I included one picture about the glove box door openning damper. On mine, the little white retaining link was broken. I tied up with some fishing wire (guess where I was!).

Finally, I would add that mine were extremely dirty. No idea if they had ever been replaced by PO. I can now "feel" the wind speed out from the vents to be much higher for the same control position, so now quieter as well (I run the fan slower for same "wind blow").

Bye,

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BigBen

'98 E300 Turbodiesel 244 000km
RIP '92 300D 2,5 Turbo 632 859,4km due to engine failure

Technique, The charcoa filters are under the passenger side dash and can be reached by removing the underneat cover. It is pretty simple from there, and they are (two of them) pulled down to remove after the covers are removed. You cannot clean them. However, if what you say is so, I wouldn't replace them either, since I did not. Cost is about 165+ and not worth it. Unfortunately you cannot tell if a charcoal filter is full of smells or not, except if it does not work. Therefore I left mine in as they are still working. Since they are not main line, they will not obstruct the flow of air unless turned on when they are full. However, WTHDIK. See the comment of Gilleybenztech. I will send you a copy of the manual for this. I will need your email since it won't attach. Regards, Harvey

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hlg

Hmmmm, I have no way of knowing if the filters are working unless I drive by a smelly area and then turn the filter on. I tend to drive with the charcoal on 100% of the time since I am in the washington DC area now and don't like pollen or pollution. I wish there was a way to visually look at the filters and see if they are "good" or not... Is there any quantitative way to test it? Or qualitative way to inspect them?

Thanks!

PS - I emailed you a message with my email.

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2001 Acura CL 3.2 Type-S (Silver)
2005 Jaguar S-Type 4.2 (Black)
1998 Mercedes E320 Sedan (Black)
http://www.backwardshat.com/mb/trio_small.jpg

I really don't know of any other way to test. The dust filters pretty well keep any particulate material, pollens, etc out. As for charcoal, it is an adsorbent, not absorbent. It chemically binds to molecules, such as in odors, fumes, non-odorous toxins, gases. If you use it all the time, then you best change it. MB recommends every 60k, but more often I would suspect if you use in constantly.

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hlg

Ok,
I've been through this post three or four times since my A/C is a bit smelly unless I use the charcoal filter. I ordered the filters, and an air filter, from our host and marched out to the car this morning ready for a tug of war with the glove box.

First I noticed that the screws had been removed before by the scratches in the green primer on the heads. I removed all eight and the glovebox almost fell out in my hands. It took zero effort to pull it out. After removing the black door/white latch assembly, the pollen filters themselves go in really easily. I reinstalled the black door/white latch assembly and put the glovebox and screws back in. The nasty odor is gone. The old filters didn't really look very dirty, but they sure smelled up the A/C. Anyway it was really easy and the air filter was too. Sure hope it remains odorless for a while; time will tell.

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David
Tucson, AZ

98 E320 Wagon 66K
00 BMW 323i Sedan 38K
93 Volvo 945T 100K DECEASED 4/18/03 R.I.P.

just followed the instructions on this thread the changed the cabin filters. took me about 30 minutes. but for the next time, i can probably do it in 10 min. thank you all for the tips.

I have a 1995 E320 coupe. Can anyone tell me where the filters are located so I can R&R them?? Where can I get replacement filters? Does this vehicle have a charcoal filter??

Ok, folks, I amin the same boat. Finally I decided on changing cabin air filter myself on my w210 E320 1999. When I bought them, they came in a 2 pack.. Both go in the same spot? I am yet to pull my glove box out.

Also, for those of you who are not fanatics.. please don't change your cabin filter unless its dripping dirty ! These are 110 dollars (not 200 as claimed, or some delaers charge). Yes, 110 dollars! for a filter? What they put gold in it?

By the way, HELP ME OUT. Can anybody spare me a USED CHARCOAL FILTER? I wanto get my office lab guy determine the 'particle laoding' , basically how dirty it was testing done. Its free for me to get done! May be we will get some insight. Typically, charcoal filters ahve a 'breakdown point' on loading and after that, they stop being functional.. Basically, hydrocarbons, like gas fumes (not emissions unless you are parked behind a cold start engine of another car) is the most likely culprit to kill the charcoal filters. Also, I must say PERFUMEs! do kill your chaorcoal filter. So, those of you who are leaving a 'freshener' in your , check out if that is a petroleum product based. I can say that if you load a activated carbon filter with cooking grease (chinese food in the passenger seat any one?) or one of those evaporating room fresheners, you may be reducing the life! Ofcourse, if you use them while not operating the charcoal filter, it would be no biggie!


Anyway, coming back to my air filter replacement, what's the deal with 2 pack of filters?I bought the 2 pack for 16 dollars by the way!

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I am an enthusiast but you can't pry money outta my hands... Help me to get to full throttle on the Harmonic Balancer Crank Shaft Pulley RECALL!

logikman, Been there done that, wanna hear it, here goes;
There are 6 screws; two on the top of the glove box facing you, two on the bottom inside facing down (under the little rubber plugs) and two on top inside next the the light fixture. (you will have to look up with a flash to see them. Don't remove the ones holding the light. After you remove all of them, then pull down on the top (grab the lock tongue) and look carefully along the upper edge of the box on each side, and you will find a notch on each side. Take a small flat blade screw driver and wedge it in one of those notches and then grab the door (which is attached) and pull firmly out. If you twist the screw driver slightly, it will release the drawer on that side, you may then try the same on the other side. It may take two people, one to twist the screw driver blade, and one pulling firmly on the door. Dont be afraid, you should not break it even with major effort. It will pop loose and then slide out easily. You will then see that there are two plastic notches that were holding it in. Most people just report that pulling firmly on the door will do the trick, but when I discovered the notches it made it easier. Once out, then you will see a plastic slide cover over the front of the filter space. Slide it off and you will see the filters. You must pull the left one out and then slide the right one to the left to get it out. I would then vacuum the space and mess that you find. Then. Reverse the whole process and you are done.
The charcoals, I have not replaced, but you must remove the bottom cover under the dash to get to them. I plan to do this sometime soon and will publish my results. Good Luck, Harvey

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hlg

Sometimes when the condesation hose from the A/C unit gets blocked, the musty odor stays put. That would be by far the most likely cause for post of our interiors to smell bad. Also, if you switch off A/c atleast 15 seconds to 30 seconds before actually turning off car, the condensations tays minimal. My automotive climate controls design engineer friend told me these tips.


Anyway, FOLKS! Does anyone have a spare USED CHARCOAL FILTER to send me? I WANT TO GET SOME ANALYSIS DONE on it in our lab and AM LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS WHO ARE WILLING TO DONATE USED CHARCOAL FILTERS. I DON't MID WHAT MODEL car it is, JUST LET ME know what year and model it is. I Will pay for the SHIPPING AND HANDLING and appreciate your help!

Thanks

Logikman

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I am an enthusiast but you can't pry money outta my hands... Help me to get to full throttle on the Harmonic Balancer Crank Shaft Pulley RECALL!