I bought the basic auto model of the almera.

The air con is nice and cool but it doesnt appear to filter out smoke, smog, diesel fumes from trucks very well at all. Sometimes when I am behind a smoky truck i start sneezing.

So instead of taking in fresh air, i have to use the setting for recycling the air inside the car which isnt really healthy either

I am just wondering if there is a way to modify/upgrade the AC so it actually filters the air instead of just cooling it

Thanks

If you are taking in fresh air, yes it will smell. Smells in my car and most other cars I imagine. You need to set it to recycle. Also, some cars don't come standard with an air conditioner air filter. Mine didn't and I had one put in. I think it was about 700 baht. But even that won't stop smells when you set your air cond to suck in air from outside.

Saab used to have hepa filter in the AC for allergies not sure it would stop smells.

I haven't ever pulled apart and Almera, but most Japanese makes have a provision for fitting an aftermarket filter. They won't do much for smells coming in, but they will reduce dust ingress, and lessen the amount of diesel soot entering the car.

Sounds like you're going to have to follow most other Bangokians in setting your AC to recycle, and flipping it to fresh when you see an opportunity to so do without fouling up the air in the cabin...

I always set the AC to recycle - I thought you're supposed to. The Almera's AC does have a filter but you can buy air purifiers - I have an amazing Phillips GoPure which plugs into the lighter socket, got it back home around 2 years ago, it's good but you do need to buy replacement filers kits which aren't cheap. Tesco and Big C sell similar ones, MyCar brand, and recently I saw these 'Ionic' filters for 299b in Tesco that plug into the lighter socket - not sure how effective those are though!

Sounds like you're going to have to follow most other Bangokians in setting your AC to recycle, and flipping it to fresh when you see an opportunity to so do without fouling up the air in the cabin...

I think "recycle" is actually the default mode for most locally manufactured cars.

Oh

I have a Hyundai in Australia and it says in instruction book not to recycle the air for more than 10 minutes because it causes a bacteria build up in the a/c unit

I might get an ozone air purifier for it plug in lighter job that will kill all bacteria in the car and in the ac unit also ill just leave it on recycle then i guess.

I like to drive without the air con on if I can, but not always possible in LOS!

The problem with bacteria in the A/c it can lead to respitory disease...if the weather conditions are ideal for bacteria to thrive they will!

What a lot of people don't know is not using the A/c for a period of time can allow bacteria to profligate.....then you switch it on and.......

If you are in a smelly situation turn the A/C to recirculating air. This uses the air inside the ride. Soon as smelly stuff gone switch back to outside air.

Oh

I have a Hyundai in Australia and it says in instruction book not to recycle the air for more than 10 minutes because it causes a bacteria build up in the a/c unit

I might get an ozone air purifier for it plug in lighter job that will kill all bacteria in the car and in the ac unit also ill just leave it on recycle then i guess.

OK, so your Almera's AC unit has a cabin air filter which should regularly be replaced by Nissan but these don't filter bacteria, so Hyundai's instructions are valid. The only way to remove bacteria from the air inside your car is set the AC on recirculate and buy and use an air purifier that has a HEPA filter (like Phillips Go Pure). When choosing an air purifier, check it has a HEPA filter - this is what will effectively remove bacteria.

i will use an ozonator