Back to all

Cabin Air Filter From Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Aurora

August 28, 2022

Here is a questions for Aurora drivers: What is a cabin air filter?

Is it:

  1. A filter for a house in the middle of the woods?
  2. A fresh, piney scent?
  3. A filter for the passenger compartment of your car?

Clever you, it's 3.

A cabin air filter cleans the outside air before it comes into the passenger compartment. It filters out dust, pollen, spores, bacteria, pollutants, sparrows, exhaust gas and odors.

These high tech filters can block particles larger than 3 microns. By contrast, a grain of sand is about 200 microns.

Now not all vehicles in the Aurora area have cabin filters. They are fairly new on the scene in Illinois. About 40 percent of new vehicles come with cabin air filters, but the number is growing every year.

Cabin air filters can make for a very nice driving environment for Aurora. Your car can be a haven during Illinois allergy season with very little dust and pollen getting into the cabin. However, like all filters, your cabin air filter eventually gets clogged. When this happens, your heating and air conditioning flow can become restricted. The filter can even get kind of smelly.

Check your vehicle's owner's manual for recommended replacement intervals. Often, the owner's manual forgets about the cabin air filter, so ask your friendly and knowledgeable Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Aurora service advisor for a recommendation. It's usually every year or 12,000 miles/19,000 kilometers. Change it sooner if you drive in dusty Aurora conditions or if you start to notice an odor from your ventilation system.

So, Aurora drivers, keep your cabin air filter clean. It may not help with your brother-in-law in the backseat, but it will make your driving experience more enjoyable.

Tuffy Tire & Auto Service Aurora
3190 N. Aurora Rd.
Aurora, Illinois 60502
630-898-6688

More articles from Tuffy Aurora

Growing Old Together (Maintaining an Older Vehicle)

November 23, 2025

More and more of us are hanging on to our vehicles longer. A company by the name of HIS Markit recently released a report that shows the average age of light vehicles in the U.S. is now 11.8 years. Light vehicles are cars, SUVs (sport utility vehicles) and CUVs (compact utility vehicles). In C... More

Steer Clear (Power Steering Pump Replacement)

November 16, 2025

When it comes to ease and precision of steering, todays vehicles are engineering marvels. One of the keys to just how good steering is lies in the refinement of power-assisted steering which we know simply as power steering. At the heart of the system is an electrically or belt-driven power ste... More

Before You Buy a Used Vehicle (Car Inspection before Buying a Used Vehicle)

November 9, 2025

Before You Buy a Used Vehicle (Car Inspection before Buying a Used Vehicle) Perhaps this sounds familiar. Your vehicle seems like its been around forever, and youve decided its time to move on. But when you check the price of new vehicles, the sky-high price tags have you considering a nice, pre... More