Automakers Clearing the Air Inside the Cabin

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Automakers Clearing the Air Inside the Cabin

Posted 4/20/06 9:45 a.m. CDT

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The Chrysler 300 is equipped with an air filter that can keep

certain particles outside the car.

Very soon, that new car smell might just be clean, fresh air as

automakers make more vehicles with air filtration or ionization

systems.

Vehicles such as the Chrysler 300 and Ford Mustang are equipped with

air filters that keep certain particles on the other side of powered

windows. Toyota Motor Corp.'s new Camry sedans are rolling off

factory lines with ionizers that release positive and negative ions

into the cabin to attack invading allergens and pollutants.

Such features could help attract some of the estimated 40 million

Americans who suffer from seasonal allergies. Mounting environmental

concerns in general and a throng of consumers purchasing home

purification systems also are driving the trend.

" Consumers desire in their vehicles what they can get at home or in

the office, " said Larry Wu, a senior analyst who follows emerging

technologies in the auto industry for J.D. Power and Associates.

" They want a better sound system to match their home theater or a

GPS navigation system that's easy to use like Mapquest.com. Those

trends are pretty prevalent in what you see as new features being

added to vehicles. "

Though cabin air filters are becoming more popular, they are not

new, said Dave Lester, general manager of cabin air filtration for

MicronAir, a brand of the Germany-based Freudenberg Group.

MicronAir installs its filters on vehicles worldwide to remove dust,

exhaust fumes, airborne pollens, spores, soot, tire particles and

bacteria from the air entering a vehicle's cabin.

" U.S. numbers are increasing every year, " said Lester, adding that

MicronAir projects a 40 percent jump in the U.S. market this year.

There are no U.S. regulations calling for improved air quality in

vehicles, said Enesta , a spokeswoman for the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency, but " anything that's contributing

to air quality improvement is a good thing. "

But as with many comfort features offered by automakers, air filters

and purification systems come with additional costs. A carbon filter

similar to ones found in home air filtration systems is optional in

certain Chrysler vehicles, including the 300.

The filter is available as part of a $590 optional protection

package that includes side curtain airbags.

" It's a feature that is appealing to buyers of more expensive

vehicles, " said Chrysler spokesman Cole Quinell. " If you're buying a

$14,000 car, it's not going to be high on your buying list. "

Cleaner air ranked high among Camry buyers surveyed during the

research and development phase for the redesigned vehicle, said

Hathaway, passenger car product manager for Toyota Motor Sales

USA.

" People have filters in their homes. We just took it a step further

and into the car, " Hathaway said.

Toyota will offer ionizers standard on its 2007 Camry XLE and Camry

Hybrid.

The automaker is the first in the United States to have a factory-

installed ionizer, called the Plasmacluster and manufactured by

Sharp Electronics. According to Hathaway, the supplier claims the

system is highly effective, eliminating 99 percent of viruses from

the air.

" It will attack anything from germs and odors to mold, spores — any

airborne contaminates, " he said. " It's not too different from

(ionizers) found in homes. "

Ford Motor Co. has used air filters in some vehicles for the past

decade. The Taurus offered an air filter in 1996, said Nick Twork, a

company spokesman. The Ford Edge, which comes out this fall, will

have the option of dealer-installed filters.

" For some allergy sufferers and for folks who have respiratory

problems, it's a big issue, " he said.

According to a Society of Automotive Engineers International report

written by parts maker CalsonicKansei North America, indoor air

quality is becoming an important issue for vehicles in the United

States, Europe and Asia as roadways grow more congested and drivers

spend more time in their vehicles.

CalsonicKansei tested the level of gas concentrations on

metropolitan Detroit highways and found that levels inside tunnels

and areas where walls are on either side are worst.

But the levels were not high enough to be considered harmful, the

report said.

Yet as concerns surge about particulates and pollutants entering

vehicles, some automakers are installing combination filters into

cars and trucks.

" The reasons for this trend are the increasing health and wellness

demands of car owners, " reads a separate SAE report written by

Freudenberg Vliesstoffe KG, another division of Freudenberg Group.

Wu of J.D. Power said more automakers could begin adding ionizers.

But for the moment, it remains more of a creature comfort rather

than a must-have.

" It's sort of nice to have, but it's not as critical as airbags, " he

said.

According to air filter-maker MicronAir's most recent study

conducted by the Dohring Co. in 2004 that includes responses from

1,000 respondents, more than 91 percent said they'd like to see

cabin air filters offered as a standard feature in cars and trucks,

83 percent said they preferred that their next vehicle come equipped

with cabin air filters and 85 percent said they were concerned with

health effects of gases and vapors while driving.

Almost half of the respondents were concerned about pollens,

allergens, germs, dust particles, odors and smog.

— Reported by e Valcourt, Detroit News; image courtesy of the

manufacturer;