PortAh

1. on the '00 RX300, does the air filtration work
only on recirculated mode?
Because I do smell polluted air when it is not
recirculating and driving near polluted areas of course.

2. I seem to recall the dealer was mentioning
activated charcoal filter in the system to remove
toxic stuff, is that the white filter near the CD changer
inside the glove compartment?
I took it out to inspect, and it looks just like a plain cellulose filter.

3. Where is the best place to order filter replacment?

Thanks.

Jonnystan

I just replaced that same filter abput 2 weeks ago. I went to Advance Auto Parts and they had it. The filter registered on their computer is not the right filter, I had to get the IS300 cabin air filter, and it fit perfectly. Cost me around $17.

Daddy-O

Yup...The IS 300 filter is is the same size as the RX 300 filter.

They sure are pretty flimsy/cheesy.

$17 is cheaper than the OEM. I've seen OEM for $21 from irontoad.com.

Johnnystan, who makes the filter from Advance Auto?

IS, RX Interior cabin a/c filter, Toyota OEM Code: 87139-48020

Jonnystan

I dont know who made it i threw the box away , but it was a cheap paper one. I couldnt find any good companies that made this filter.

BTW...for all of you who havent checked this filter, I highly recommend doing so! Mine was so full of gunk that the filter was ripped in the middle, and it clogged my vacuum when I cleaned it out. The previous owner had a pet, and there were PILES of loose animal hair...so for all of you with pets.....CHECK THE FILTER!

PortAh

yes, mine has lot of debris and insects trapped.
Pretty much blackened.

Can some kind souls enlighten me on these questions:

1. on the '00 RX300, does the air filtration work
only on recirculated mode?
Because I do smell polluted air when it is not
recirculating and driving near polluted areas of course.

2. I seem to recall the dealer was mentioning
activated charcoal filter in the system to remove
toxic stuff, is that the white filter near the CD changer
inside the glove compartment?
I took it out to inspect, and it looks just like a plain cellulose filter.

salimshah

RX does not have the outside air quality sensor to engage re-circ automatically.

Cabin air filer is in the glove comp is under the CD.

Some one else can confirm that that the carbon on the filter is in the form of coating as I have not seen carbon granules.


Salim

LexRX

It is my understanding that all the air passes through the filter whether it is coming from inside (recycled) or outside. The air will still smell bad if it is coming from outside, but the particles (like pollen, dust, etc) are caught in the filter.

One way to check for yourself is to open the glovebox and take the filter out. With it open, turn on the HVAC system and see what happens in the vented and recycled settings. Check the airflow in the filter area.

RX300_ATL

I've gotten in the habit recently of hitting the recirculation button whenever it's smoggy outside... we've been having a lot of days like that in ATL, as I'm sure LexRx can attest to. It would be nice though if the car could sense the air quality on its own and know when to recirculate vs. let outside air in.

wwest

On the RX300 ALL HVAC airflow, fresh and/or recirc, is through the flimsy paper filter that Lexus provides. It is a Pollen, or LARGE particle filter, NOT a smog or odor filter of any kind.

You can make a (three actually) much more efficient filter, very much like the one Porsche provides for the 996, from a 3M filtrete furnace filter purchased at home depot for $15.

The bad news is that as the filter efficiency goes up, its useful life declines. The 996 filter lasts about 8k miles.

The most common odor people are complaining about in modern day vehicles is the mold and mildew, dirty gym sock odor caused by the growth of bacterial spores resulting from the prolonged dampness of the A/C evaporator core.

See

http://www.airsept.com/eed.html

for a good explanation and a possible solution.

My solution was to always, religiously, leave the sunroof and the windows open slightly in the garage each night to let the condensate accumulated from that day's A/C operations evaporate "up, up, and away" every night.

And be really careful, CAUTIOUS, about using the recirc mode too much or too often, especially in the wintertime and/or as the number of passengers in the vehicle increases. People contribute a LOT of moisture to the cabin atmosphere and you may soon find yourself staring at a completely fogged over windshield. In a Lexus (or most Japanese vehicles and even american ones with a Denso US climate control design) that can be very hazardous since the Lexus windshield defog/demist system is abmost totally non-functional.

In cold or cooler climates when there is a greater danger for the windshield interior surface to decline to the cabin atmoisphere's dewpoint it wouldn't hurt to always remember to put the system in full defog/demist mode simultaneously with activating the recirc mode.

The Lexus defog/demist system is much better (head and shoulders) at preventing windshield and/or window fogging than it is at removing it (forcing a "state change", condensate to gaseous water).

LexRX

Wow, from filters RIGHT to mold/mildew smell. No segway needed. I saw that one coming a MILE away

PortAh

Wwest,

There are 3 types of filtrete filters with MPR rating
600,1000,1250 respectively. The higher the number,
the more efficient it is. The more common one
selling in HW stores is the 1000(red packaging).
However, 1250(purple packaging) does available
at Lowe's.

I would like to try the best but
I am concerned if the 1250 would restrict air-flow
too much that it can cause AC to malfunction.
Any comment?

Someone also mentioned about adding carbon pre-filter
(cut to fit) which is selling at Lowe for $10.
It is less than 1/4" thick and each pack
can cut out 10 pieces for use.

Thanks.

Daddy-O

Nick, couldn't you smell it coming before you saw it?

You see, mildewman is a counterpuncher. Counterpunchers are, by nature, reactive. In this case, unoriginal and myopic, too...

Won't start a thread, because of some bizarre desire to repeatedly:

A. attempt to prove he's right
B. attempt to prove others wrong
C. attempt to foist his opinions on others
D. slam Lexus for whipping his *** in court

I expect that if he were to start a thread, based on his particular biases, he'd come off even more single-(simple)-minded, if that's possible.

He actually believes that he's not a problem, revealing a twisted value system. Here's one quote after getting spanked in CL:

"If you would be so kind as to take the time to check the number of times I have initiated a thread vs simply responding to questioners, I think you might come to the realization that I am not using CL as a "soapbox" or "pulpit". "

Hah...Over in Edmunds, more than one person has written in the last week that his "credibility is limited".

Goncookoo

hey guys,

a while back some people were talking about makign air filters themselves. im not sure how much you guys are paying for it but the dealer was going to charge me $50 for the replacement.

so i went ahead and went to home depot and got a really low resistance furnace filter that had the same thickness as the oems ones, and cut out a piece that would fit into the plastic housing. i made sure i picked the one that said it captures pollen and other allergen particles.

it works great. havent had any problems (yet). i am a little worried that the car a/c filter had a lower air resistance than the one i put in and im putting extra strain on my a/c compressor(??), or the filter i put in is actually not as good as the oem ones and is letting too much air to get through and thus not capture as many of the smaller particles.

does anyone know if furnace filters are better worse than oem car filters... in terms of air flow resistance and the ability to prevent small particles from penetrating.

-paul

Goncookoo

oops i think i skipped over portah's post and i think hes asking the same question as me.

wwest

Pollen filter airflow resistance.

Lexus goes to extreme measures in order to operate the A/C blower predominantly at low, quiet, speeds, double and triple door sealing, excellent insulation and heavily restricted exhauster outflow (the refrigerator door is ALWAYS closed). So the clear majority of the time pollen filter resistance will not be an issue.

Obviously it could be at higher and maximum blower speeds.

But the results are...

The time it takes to cool the interior down or heat it up simply gets longer, in the same manner it will as the Lexus standard filter gets dirtier and dirtier.

The A/C compressor operates on a Bang-Bang (Full "on", or off)servo manner. The resulting liquid refrigerant is "metered" into the evaporator core such that it is maintained at 33F

If the filter is clogged then the result will actually be a lower load than normal on the A/C compressor.

The blower. Lexus uses a squirrel cage type blower/fan which will actually "unload" the drive motor as/if the filter becomes clogged. Much like happens with an airplane wing, the vanes of a squirrel cage blower "stall" if airflow is somehow restricted and the results of that "stall" is a lower load factor on the blower motor.

I use the home depot solution myself but I compress the accordion filter "folds" beyond their "native" construction. More folds per inch results in a lower flow resistance.

There can be no doubt that the 3M filter will be much more efficient than the rather expensive and flimsy one provided by Lexus. Therefore you may need to replace it more often. My Porsche 996 factory pollen filter is virtually a replica of the 3M and it was completely clogged at about 8k miles.