cabin air filter

[dwoeste]

I have a 99 Cabriolet. Lately I've been getting small pieces of foam air filter material coming from the vents in the car. Since the car is 13 years old it doesn't surprise me, but I have no idea where it is and the part number.

Is there a cabin air filter and where is it located?

[JFP in PA]

It is to the left of the battery in the front trunk, but it does not normally have any foam components. Usually when foam appears, it is failing seals in the HVAC system under the dash.

[DaveBerry]

I have the same situation. My 2000 Carrera is blowing foam pieces out. Some are small, some are a couple of centimeters, not small. Wish I knew what this stuff is that is deteriorating. It is sad to see my beauty falling apart from within...

[dwoeste]

What exactly do you mean by seals? There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with the HVAC. The A/C is working properly.

[JFP in PA]

There are various doors and flaps in the HVAC system to divert air flow to the dash vents or onto the floor, etc.; all of them have foam seals around them to stop air flow leakage and reduce noise. Those are the seals I am refering to................

[DaveBerry]

Worth fixing, or just let it go?

[JFP in PA]

Fixing it requires you take the HVAC box out from under the dash, which is not difficult, but can be time consuming. Some years no longer have just the seals available, so you have to buy the entire box, which gets very exensive.

Most people just ignore it.............

[996TWINS]

Did anyone check the cabin filter? It has black/dark gray, or even a white foam seal.

[Gus Berges]

Hate to tell you all this, but the same thing happened on my ex 996 and the AC unit (evaporator) failed shortly after the same foam started to appear. I am looking at a 2005 that has the same issue (foam all over the place) and during the PPI, the dealer said that the car needs a new evaporator/dryer/etc. The foam is a tell tale sign that the AC is about to croak.

[DaveBerry]

What do you mean by "croak"? Just the evaporator? Compressor?
I had the 30K service by Porsche dealer about 7,000 miles ago and they told me all is good. Please elaborate.

[Gus Berges]

Please allow me to preface this by stating that I am stating facts solely based on my experiences and please take into consideration that where I live, the climate is constantly very hot and very humid.

I have had to replace the AC units (here they replace the evaporator and dryer bottle every time, compressor only if it is found to be leaking) on my Nissan Pathfinder, 996 C2, BMW M Z3 coupe, BMW 328is coupe, and sooner than later, my current Cayenne Turbo (2003 model). In the case of the 996 C2, the same grayish/black foam found all over the vents was the indicator that the evaporator was leaking, thus needed replacement. I tried to delay this, but it came to the point where the car would not hold a charge for more than two days. All my other cars did not have this foam falling out.
A 2005 C2S (997) that I was considering getting had this same foam all over the place. Surely enough, when I took the car in for a PPI, they right away told me that I would need to replace the evaporator. It may work fine (except for the annoying "spitting" of foam) for a month or a year, but sooner than later, the evaporator will more than likely need replacing. Perhaps it is the freon leak that deteriorates the foam and causes it to get all over the vents?
For whatever it is worth, once the repair was done, no more foam all over the place. I sold my C2 to a friend of mine three years ago and he has yet to have any AC issues. My C2 was a 99 model.

[DaveBerry]

I contacted my Porsche advisor at Momentum Porsche in Houston:


My question:

Richard,

I have noticed small to large pieces of gray foam blowing out of my AC vents.

I posted this fact on the Pelican Parts technical forum:

Someone posted this in response:

Hate to tell you all this, but the same thing happened on my ex 996 and the AC unit (evaporator) failed shortly after the same foam started to appear. I am looking at a 2005 that has the same issue (foam all over the place) and during the PPI, the dealer said that the car needs a new evaporator/dryer/etc. The foam is a tell tale sign that the AC is about to croak.
__________________
2003 Cayenne Turbo RoW

Can you verify this or is this guy just blowing smoke up my ?

His reply:

I have seen the foam coming through the vents as a result of age. It is merely a resonator and insulation. I have not put an evap. in a 996 in my 4.5 years back with Momentum Porsche, so maybe an unfortunate incident for his particular car, but I would not think it would be a sign your evaparator is going out...just my opinion, but anything is possible.

[Gus Berges]

Again, just sharing my experience with a car that I owned (99 C2, AC failed in 2006) and a 2005 C2S (AC failed in 2011). Both cars lived in a very hot/humid climate and spent a bit of time on traffic jams. Not making claims that it is 100% guaranteed that yours will fail too, but has been the case in two cars that I personally know of.

[dwoeste]

Any idea where to get the seals? If I'm going to take it apart (which I'm still undecided about), I'd like to have them ready.

[white out]

Foam seals should be available from any auto parts store. It's just thin foam with double sided tape on one side.

Nick

[dwoeste]

I think it's more than seals. The pieces of foam are pretty big to be seals (up to 1" square). On the one side is the foam on the other is a light black coating. Doesn't look like there is any adhesive.

Other thoughts people?

[white out]

You can cut and layer them to fit just about any surface size. It won't look as pretty as OEM, but for a part that is never visible; it's a good option to save $$ for the same results.

Nick