Oil Change and Free WiFi

When I was growing up(in the 80′s) back in a suburb of Pittsburgh, we always performed basic auto maintenance with my father.  We had a garage, a whole range of tools, and hot coffee or chocolate.  Plus bonding time with dad.  Sometimes the jobs were easy, sometimes it required several trips to the local auto parts store.  It was a good experience learning how automobiles worked, how to maintain them, and to understand what is being explained to you by the mechanic when jobs were too big for work at home.

Today I am having the oil changed and wiper blades replaced on my 2007 Subaru Outback. Since I don’t have a garage, all the tools needed, and time is always short, I bring my 2007 Subaru Outback to Matt Slap (where I purchased it) for basic maintenance.  I still get to have the cup of coffee, maybe watch TV, look at the new cars on the lot, but today I am trying out Linux Mint 7 (booting from my 16GB USB flash drive) on the free Wi-Fi while writing this blog entry.  With my coupon from Matt Slap my total will be $24.95.  I guess that is average price for our area.

How to Replace the Cabin Air Filter in a 2007 Subaru Outback

Well after getting back from vacation in Avalon, NJ, I had plenty of work to do.  One task was to replace the engine air filter and the cabin air filter in my 2007 Subaru Outback Sedan.  I was able to purchase the new filter for $28.00 at the local auto parts store.  The procedure should take about 15 minutes to complete (longer if your taking pictures of the process.)  Please note I am not an auto mechanic.  This post is more for my records than anything.  Subaru states the cabin air filter should be replaced yearly.  The filter in my car is 2 years old.  It should look pretty nasty.

• Open the glove-box and remove everything.  The filter is behind the glove-box.
• Open the passenger side door and remove the right end cover.  This piece pulls off.  I held onto the back while prying off the top and front.
• Unhook the small retracting cable and using a small Phillips head screwdriver, remove the screw which the glove-box door hinges on.  Careful, the clip which the screw is inserted is cheap plastic, no pressure is needed.  I was able to get the screw part way out and then pop out the pushpin clip.
• You need to pop out the two plastic “gliders” from the grooves on each side of the glove-box door.  One they are out, the glove-box door should be free.
• Remove the three screws on the right side of the glove-box compartment.
• Remove the box which holds the owners manual.
• Remove the three screws which holds an “L” shaped metal bracket.  The bracket helps keep the air filter in place and remember, the bracket is braced against three alignment stops.
• Pull up the  piece of fabric.
• Pull the carrier out by pushing the four clips (one on each side) towards the center.  For me it kept hanging up on the right side.  I had to force the opening a little.  Once the four clips cleared the beginning of the opening, the rest slid out with no problems.
• Once the filter is out and you see how nasty it looks, just replace it with the new filter you purchased.
• Follow the steps in reverse order and you should have everything back the way it should be.

On Monday July 13th I called the local Subaru dealer to see how much they would charge to replace the cabin air filter… the service desk representative said $90.00!  Glad I did this one on my own.