How to replace a cabin air filter in a Sprinter T1N Van

Especially in summertime, this very quick fix can help improve the cooling capacity of your A/C: Replacing an old, clogged and dirty cabin air filter. In a T1N Sprinter Van, the cabin air filter is located in the engine compartment.

Look for the big box right under your windshield on the passenger side. Most likely the whole thing is still covered by an insulation blanket that you’ll need to remove first (it’s hold in place by clips and velcro). This is how it looks once you have the blanket removed:

To open the air filter housing you’ll need to open the two clips that hold the cover in place. One is in front and one in the back (see above picture). After that you can slide the housing to the right which exposes the air filter. Pull out the filter to the front and most likely your old filter will compare to the new one like this:

Slide the new air filter into place – it will take a few tries to get this right but once you figured it out it’s actually pretty easy. Make sure the direction of the filter is correct. There will be an indication of the airflow on the side of the filter. Seated correctly, the filter should look like this:

The only thing that’s left is to slide the housing cover back in place, secure it with the clips and reattach the insulation blanket. After that, test your ventilation – you’ll be surprised what a difference a clean cabin air filter makes!

There’s also a video about the process on Youtube. I found that useful to see how to handle the filter.

Parts needed:

• The part Number of the Sprinter Cabin Air filter is 5103600AA or AQ1173. Good deals can be found on eBay or Rockauto.

Tools required:

• none

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