I'm going to be changing the Pollen / Cabin filter on the Fiat 500. Looking in the service book, I don't think it has ever been changed!

Does any have the part number of what to buy?

If it makes any difference, the car is a 2009 '59' Fiat 500 1.4 16v Sport, with Air Conditioning but not automatic climate control.



Thanks!

Westyfield2 said:

I'm going to be changing the Pollen / Cabin filter on the Fiat 500. Looking in the service book, I don't think it has ever been changed!

Does any have the part number of what to buy?

If it makes any difference, the car is a 2009 '59' Fiat 500 1.4 16v Sport, with Air Conditioning but not automatic climate control.



Thanks!

Click to expand...

A couple of links for you:

Shop4Parts

EuroCarParts

The job itself will likely have you swearing - small hands and patience are both helpful. One assumes it would be easier on a LHD car.

I would also recommend being an acrobat and not doing it on a warm day....

jrkitching said:

A couple of links for you:

Shop4Parts

EuroCarParts

The job itself will likely have you swearing - small hands and patience are both helpful. One assumes it would be easier on a LHD car.

Click to expand...

i watched it being replaced about 3 times looks not so difficult to do in my left hand drive car takes about 10-15 mins, probably quicker if you are used to the car.

ahmett said:

i watched it being replaced about 3 times looks not so difficult to do in my left hand drive car takes about 10-15 mins, probably quicker if you are used to the car.

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Yup, having recently spoken to a Fiat technician who has replaced pollen filters on left hand drive 500's, they are an absolute piece of wee wee to do compared to the right hand drive models without clutch/brake and accelerator pedals getting in the way. I wonder how many pollen filters actually get changed on right hand drive 500's Having done it 3 times myself and hated every minute of it, I can't believe there are many mechanics who actually like swapping them out on right hand drive models.

On my Panda I junked the filter, and aircon works better without it.
I breathe unfiltered air most of the time, so I reckon I'm not missing much.
Have done this on other cars with improved airflow as a result.
No downside showed up.

Have a fun time breathing in unfiltered carcinogenic diesel particulates!

306maxi said:

Have a fun time breathing in unfiltered carcinogenic diesel particulates!

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Gotta laugh. I do that anyway, as we all do - but mostly outside the car, not inside.

Yes, but I don't have a diesel engine a couple of metres from me in my home or workplace.

306maxi said:

Yes, but I don't have a diesel engine a couple of metres from me in my home or workplace.

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A good pollen filter can take out particulates down to .001 microns, so should give you worthwhile protection from nanoparticles. I'd be tempted to change mine more often if I drove regularly in a big city.

jrkitching said:

A good pollen filter can take out particulates down to .001 microns, so should give you worthwhile protection from nanoparticles. I'd be tempted to change mine more often if I drove regularly in a big city.

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Against that protection, with windows and sunroof tight shut, is the reality that most of our lives are spent outside the car, breathing whatever comes our way.
Agree that such a filter is better than nothing, but don't lets kid ourselves here. The effect on our lives is marginal. However good an in-car filter, the effect is destroyed when the sun comes out and the roof or windows are open, or when we go walkies or sleepies.

So all the manufacturers who put filters in their cars, on vacuum cleaners and the like are wrong and you're right?

Of course not, but vacuum cleaners don't burn diesel. The makers include filters to help sell their equipment which also has to meet EU standards. If it didn't, it wouldn't sell.
But don't let's be naive here.
The effect on my health of not having a particulate filter in my car is so small as to be unmeasurable. Road rage apart, we tend to breath shallow while driving, and more deeply while walking, shopping, etc. often in unfiltered environments.
Which do you think does most harm?

Driving on a road where there's lots of traffic and also sitting at traffic lights while the car in front spews particulates out at you.

EU standards are there for a reason.....

Walking on the same road is a lot more unhealthy.
A car driver has the choice to switch to recirculated air in extreme environments. ( which incidentally doesn't say a lot for the efficiency of the filter).
I take your point that filters help, but they are no magic bullet.
The pollution issues are far more serious, aren't they?

Zzzzzzzzz but I don't walk along dual carriageways or stand at traffic lights where cars are stopped. As a pedestrian if the cars are stopped you walk across. The point is that you CAN filter the air in your car and where air pollution is extreme, people do use face masks.

Sounds like the fitting will be fun!


I did some googling. For the 09/2007 to 09/2011 Fiat 500, Magneti Marelli list the BCF191 as the normal filter, and the BCF391 as a Carbon/Charcoal activated filter. Both are dimensions L205 H17 W177.
Magneti Marelli BCF191 = Fiat 46723321, Bosch 1987431106, Mann CU2026
Magneti Marelli BCF391 = Fiat 77365763, Mann CUK2026


For the 09/2011 to now Fiat 500, Magneti Marelli list the BCF409. Dimensions L195 H30 W187.
Magneti Marelli BCF409 = Lancia 51854923

Seeing as I’m going to be enduring the hassle of fitting the filter, I might as well get the upgraded Carbon/Charcoal activated filter.

Sweetsixteen said:

Walking on the same road is a lot more unhealthy.

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And if walking is bad, cycling is even worse . Cyclists in London often wear face masks.

Sweetsixteen said:

The pollution issues are far more serious, aren't they?

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Yes.

Banning all but the cleanest diesel vehicles from city centres is one option which IMO will happen within a decade.

jrkitching said:

And if walking is bad, cycling is even worse . Cyclists in London often wear face masks.

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I was in Taipei for a while. Face masks everywhere, mostly needed because of the old, two-stroke TukTuks and mopeds. The atmosphere was thick with it. Plenty of cyclists there, poor things.

jrkiitching said:

Yes.

Banning all but the cleanest diesel vehicles from city centres is one option which IMO will happen within a decade.

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I've been a diesel man most of my life, from stationary engines for water extraction to Jeeps for their lugging ability, but I've come round to your way of thinking.
If Elon Musk doesn't successfully spearhead a motoring rethink, we are in deep diesel residue!
If we're going to ban some diesels, why not be a grizzly and ban them all? Won't happen - too many entrenched interests.
And my apologies to OP for hijacking his thread.

To the OP - unusually, I found fitting the pollen filter in my old 1.3mj very easy. Which surprised me, as I too had read the horror stories on here.

The only hard bit was pulling off the case cover - it felt as if a screw was locating it, it was so resistant. I believe it is actually retained by an external plastic locating lug - others on here may have done the job more recently than I and have better memories.

But once the cover was off, the filter was an easy slide out / slide in swap.