It's Spring! That means: longer periods of sunlight, warmer weather, yard work, painting projects, and POLLEN.

Many of us suffer from allergies. The dust and pollen can be quite a nuisance. Ever notice that the runny nose gets better when you are in the car? Many newer cars and light trucks (less than 10 years old) have a fresh air intake or cabin filter. When you set the air in your car to come in from outside, these filters help reduce dust and pollen in the passenger cabin area. Some even use carbon technology to help with odors.

If you have one of these filters, it should be inspected and in most cases replaced at least 1 time per year or every 12-15,000 miles.

Have odors in your car when you turn the fan on? This filter could be restricted like the attached picture shows above. It could even be worse, mice and rodents will commonly get into the filter box and make a nest. Sometimes (this part is just gross, sorry about that) the rodent will die. I wont go into any more detail, but you get the picture. Once the nest (and bodies) are removed, there are vent sanitizers that can help remove the odor and clean out the duct works.  Then the filter will need to be replaced.

These rodents can do damage to electrical wiring and hoses by chewing on them. It happens a lot.

Those repairs can be expensive, depending on the amount of damage to the car. It can cause your check engine light to come on. It can cause your car to run poorly or even stall. The external signs are visible when you look under the hood. Sometimes the damage is hidden under the engine cover. If you see signs of rodents, it should go to your mechanic for an inspection.

If you see signs of rodents, give us a call to schedule an inspection and possibly replace the cabin air filter. Mention this blog post and receive $5.00 off of any rodent preventative service or cabin air filter replacement.



This blog post is brought to you by Andy from Hockett & Olsen Automotive & Tire. He can be reached via email at hoauto@msn.com or by phone 206-842-2484

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