mleskovar

I'm disappointed with the effectiveness of the cabin filter. My C320 cabin filter worked great and filtered out almost all odors. Is there a filter available that works better than the rest?

rufmb

Is yours a longer term observation or just recently with all the rain and temperatures rapidly changing from warm to cold in a week?

KHARBAT1

Do you have one or two filters ? I assume that you talking about the one that are in the cabin below the glove compartment near the Passenger knee ? or where is it located in your model ?

mleskovar

I've only had the car a couple of weeks however I had the C for 12 years. The most noticeable odor is the catalytic exhaust emissions from other cars. Didn't notice them at all in the C when the filter was in use.....only when it was in bypass mode. This filter doesn't stop them at all.

rufmb

I notice this too in my month old E350, hardly ever in my Honda, Nissan, old Audi A6 which I used for a decade.

mleskovar

One filter below the glove box. The C had two filters....one for dust/pollen over the battery and a substantial carbon coated double one below the glove box. The pictures of the ones I've seen for the E look like the single filter that was over the battery....lightly carbon coated.

aeroconfigs

I just ordered the Mann filter from amazon last week. I haven't tried to install it yet. My garage is cold and the floor keeps getting wet from tracking in snow and slush. I'll put it in soon, hopefully this weekend. I had big problems with nasty smell from the AC right after I got it last summer. Hope the new filter fixes it.

El Cid

One thing I really loved about my Hyundai Azera was the Automatic Air Quality filter. It was amazing how quickly it could sense smoke, exhaust fumes, etc. and automatically switch to recirculation and then switch back to normal when air cleared.

mleskovar

Nissan started doing this in 2010 as well. Nice feature. I'm surprised MB hasn't picked up on it.

rufmb

That is wonderful! Wish the MB filter mech was as smart.

BenzMan369

Good observation - same experience here. Cat. odor does get through. Switching to Re-circulate mode eliminates it very quickly.

mleskovar

True, but it's after the fact I just ordered a bulk roll of carbon impregnated filter medium to make my own. If it works I'll have enough material to outlast me I plan on taking the cage from a house furnace filter and cutting/bending it to fit inside a donor filter that I'll gut.

mleskovar

Pictures of my new filter. Three layers of 3/4" carbon mat. No smells have made it past it yet.

rufmb

Brilliant. If I can't make one I may need to request one from you.
For a fee of course with core return

telemakhos

Thanks for posting and nice work! I too am not happy with the lack of odour filtration compared with my previous E class that worked very well. Now off to order some carbon filter media...

KHARBAT1

Those are expenssive , like $100 for the double one . where do you but the materials to make 10 of them and give them for the cost of shipping? hahahaha

mleskovar

It wasn't easy and I don't need the money so I'm not interested in making more. Advice: Buy a filter that fits to use as the donor. I didn't and ended up making two The groove at the bottom wasn't wide enough on the NPA/cheapo filter. Make a cardboard pattern as the filter isn't symmetrical. I used the wire backing from stucco sheathing for the frame/exhaust side and glued it to the outer fiber pieces and extended it through the top and bottom plastic for more support. Fishing mono line for the intake side. Cutting out the folded filter material was the hardest part. I used an Exacto knife and it took forever. I cut the new filter material slightly over sized and it just fits in there snug with no glue. Easy to change out the media when it's time that way. www.filters-now.com part number FMRCBP48X80X.75 The smallest lot available will probably make12 sets if you triple it. Good luck if you decide to do it. I'm happy I did and it's sure worth it to me.

thekurgan

Creative! Nice!

Grau E350

Nice mod! The standard cabin air filtration in the W212 is not up to par compared to Audi and especially BMW.

The system has to clean outside air coming in, as well as pass. compartment filtering. the offgassing of MB's sea of plastic (esp. w/ MB Tex) can be really rough.

Nuru

I have leather interior and mine seems to be fine. I did notice that when I recently was given a 2013 as a loaner car, the filter did not seem to be working very well. Could the leather vs MB Tex, be a significant contributing factor?

mleskovar

No. What I'm referring to is the outside odors that enter the cabin as you are driving. Like....catalytic converters, dairy farms, chemical plants, etc. I have leather as well and the out gassing of the plastics has run its' course. Some people aren't bothered by the smells and it's transient so not a constant irritant but just another "feature" that I miss. But not anymore It seems to be an odd/another cost cutting move by MB.

Nuru

Yes I was aware of the outside odor perspective, I kinda thought you were speaking of the odors of the sound proofing materials and the leather seats overcoming the outside air smells for a time?

And if that is not what you are saying, the my response is

"Oh, Ok"

mpr2007

Loosely on topic... I have a 2010 E550 I picked up recently. It had a foul air-conditioning odor the dealer took care of with new filters and a duct cleaning/de-mustification process of some sort. However - overall, the interior still has the smell of what I'll describe as 'old-man clothes closet' smell. Since I've only had the car since mid-February, wondering if it's the wool carpet and general climate dampness? Should the interior filter on recirculate manage this? Anyone else have the same experience?

mleskovar

Are you sure it wasn't flood damaged before you bought it? Look at the tools in the trunk to see if they're rusted. Lift the carpeting in the cabin and look for signs of rust and water damage. The air conditioning will eventually dry it out but if it's bad it would be a good idea to run a large fan through the interior with the doors open. Also, sometimes the AC water vent can get clogged or routed wrong and dump the water inside the car instead of outside as it should.

Grau E350

i would be concerned about mold growth. water's getting in somewhere.

mb's treatment is to spray a sealant inside of the HVAC system & duct-work and replace the cabin interior filters.

the mb tex and plastic inside mb cars is also related to interior air quality.

outside filtering of exhaust fumes is poor. it may be more noticable to some owners. if you're sensative to odors, or have allergies you will be much more acute to this issue.

if you smoke a pack a day, you probably won't pick up on the odor. if you don't , you are more apt.

one thing to watch if you complain about odors, that there is a commercially available "odor bomb" that your dealer can use in your car to try and get rid of odors. i would ask your dealer if they use such a chemical to try and get rid of odors.