Autumn leaves around Russell Hill and a blocked cabin filter
Purley has plenty of trees. The Promenade de Verdun, an avenue of Lombardy poplars planted as a First World War memorial, is the best known, and parked cars all over the area gather leaves in autumn. Many of those cars sit on driveways or the street for most of the week. The leaves settle on the bonnet and slide into the scuttle panel below the windscreen, which is where most cars draw in fresh air for the cabin.
Once leaves get into the filter housing, they restrict airflow and hold moisture. The fan works harder, less air reaches the windscreen and the car can start to smell musty. If they also block the scuttle drains, rainwater can find its way to the filter and occasionally into the footwell. It won't damage the engine, but it's unpleasant, and it's a common reason a cabin filter is soggy and discoloured well before its service interval.
Local driving adds dust and exhaust to the mix. Most residential roads are 20mph under Croydon's borough-wide scheme, traffic heading up the A23 Purley Way to Croydon moves slowly around Purley Cross, and morning drop-offs at Thomas More Catholic School, in the old Russell Hill school buildings, mean more slow traffic nearby. We fit a standard or activated carbon filter, depending on how you use the car, clear out every leaf we can reach in the housing and scuttle, check for damp, and test airflow from each vent on every fan speed.
From Purley Cross, head up Foxley Lane to the A237 and follow it north through Wallington to Hackbridge, around 15 minutes. Cars with the filter under the scuttle can take up to an hour; most take 15 to 30 minutes, and you can wait. You'll have a written quote before we start, and a 3-month workmanship warranty on the work. Collection and delivery can also be arranged.