The AC filter cleaning task was bugging me from past several weeks. Decided to finish it off today!
I must thank 'geminithomas' who gave me the idea that the filter might be located under the plastic shroud - around the gear lever. And yes it was there itself, behind the plastic shroud on the passenger side footwell.
Forgive me for the quality of pics. I didn't had a good camera and used my mobile phone to take pictures. Also, pardon me for any mistakes, as this is my 1st thread here on Team-Bhp!
First & foremost let me disclose that this DIY was not as easy as i estimated. I guess this Ford has one of the most complex procedure for removal of cabin AC filter due to its unusual placement and presence of fuse box just 3-4 inches away from it, which obstructs the path while taking the filter out. Hence, The fuse box was required to be removed and let it hang to clear the way for the filter to slide out!
Removal of the plastic shroud around the gear lever and the Fuse Box and again fitting them back is a real pain. Removal of the filter cover and filter element is a pretty easy job.
STEP 1:
Removal of the plastic cover around the gear lever
The entire console is a single piece of molded plastic.
1. Unscrew the screws marked at position
1 on both right & left sides using a phillips screw driver.
2. Pierce out the plastic clips marked at position
2 on both right & left sides.
3. Pierce out the silver plastic surround around the gear lever using a flat head screw driver. Pull the rubber cover up. Locate the plug & wire powering the cigarette lighter socket and pull out the female socket to release the cover.
4. Unscrew the screw marked at position
3, which is on the either side of the gear lever, using a TORX type screw driver head. I bought the tool kit having 32 pieces of funny looking screw driver heads just for this purpose. Same type of head can be used to open the air filter box as well.
5. Keep all the screws and clips at a safe place. Hold the plastic shroud from either sides and pull towards yourself. Now pull it Upwards at the same time adjust the gear lever and parking brake lever to let the console pop out.
Carefully remove the console and keep it aside.
Removing the glove box
1. Open & Empty the glove box.
2. Pull the rubber stoppers inwards and push the glove box downwards to release and hang.
3. Pull two locks on either sides which holds the glove box from beneath.
4. Take out the glove box and keep it apart. Now there would be enough space to open the fuse box.
Removing the fuse box unit
1. You only need to remove the unit from its place to let it make way for the filter to come out. Use 10 mm wrench or a bit to unscrew the two bolts on either ends.
2. Now, push the fuse box upwards and then towards yourself to remove it from the housing clips.
Removing the Filter cover and taking the filter out
1.Unscrew 4 screws placed vertically over each other on the either side of the filter cover.
2. Pull out the filter carefully
Cleaning the filter
I cleaned the filter with a soapy solution and a toothbrush as it had sticky/greasy dust on it. I could see a good amount of black grime coming out of the filter during cleaning.
After cleaning,let the filter dry.
Reverse the steps to re-install everything back to its place.
Note: The plastic edges inside the dashboard are pretty sharp and may cut your hands if you are not careful enough. Also, tighten the nuts and screws very carefully as they may slip and get lost. I spent a tiring one hour to search a lost black color screw over the black interiors.
Haven't tested the AC performance, post this cleaning exercise. Will let you all know after some use.