Having trouble with the HCF removal

[jhutch]

Hi all, I'm very unexperienced with cars and really have no idea what I'm doing so please cut me some slack. After doing ample research I have decided to remove the hydrocarbon filter. I bought my 2005 SR5 V6 4runner used a few years ago and have no idea if the previous owner removed it or not. I am having trouble locating the HCF and have a few questions....

Do I need to take off the plastic engine cover to access the air box?
Is the HCF behind the air filter in the second picture or is it the filter in the 3rd picture?

Thanks!

 

[Rocket61]

In the last picture, that piece that says "LFV" on it, that is the filter you want to remove. Take a flat head screw driver to the melted plastic stubs around the edge, pop them off with some force. Don't be afraid to scratch the frame of the filter when popping those tabs, it's going in the garbage anyway. If you can't get a hold of the filter, you can always puncture it and put your hand through. Just be careful not to kick up too much dust if you puncture it because it goes straight to your intake.

 

[rinkman07]

Just ripped mine right the **** out.

 

[jsmith21]

I tried to take mine out so it could be reused but it didn't want to play nice so i forcefully stabbed through it with a screwdriver and ripped it out..

 

[JB40]

Just ripped mine right the **** out.

I tried to take mine out so it could be reused but it didn't want to play nice so i forcefully stabbed through it with a screwdriver and ripped it out..

Sensing a theme here. Might not waste any time trying to finesse this out this weekend.

 

[Jembrmstr]

+1 rip it out, throw it away. you won't be needing it again.

 

[chmura]

Yup. Just make a hole in the material and pull near the plastic rivets. The rivets are plastic so if you pull hard enough they will pop out.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

That's it right there, just cut the rivots with a wire cutter or pop them out, it's easy, should only take a second

 

[Dylan]

I used a flat head screw driver when I removed mine on my v8, given it's in a different spot. Don't be afraid. It's not going to break anything on the filter housing itself. The HC filter should just pop off the plastic rivets. There may be some small residual debris from the plastic that you can vacuum or wipe up.

 

[BlueHenT4R]

I just did this to my new-to-me 4th gen V6. A simple chisel tapped with a hammer made quick work of all six plastic rivets. It also maintains the filter neatly in its container in case you ever want to drop it back in. Here is a 3-second video for reference.



Before

After