Help! I broke off the bottom door of my Prius glovebox!

If the door just fell off, it seems unlikely that it actually broke. It comes off easily and the damper (side arm) falls off easily without actually breaking anything. And it can be a bugger to put back together the first time or two. But without re-doing mine again and taking pictures, I don't yet have reassembly advice.

Hopefully that side arm didn't fall back behind the trim. Retrieving it from there appears difficult.

 

Side arm? Do you mean the damper like fuzzy mentioned or do you mean the latch(es) that hold the door close?

 

I made a quick video showing how to change the filter. It's not the best video but might help you a little with your issue. If not...just ignore it I'm just hoping to save you some money instead of going to the dealership.

 

Thanks a bunch for making and posting that video. Very helpful.

 

Jrlnc: The 'side arm' in this video was well behaved. Mine was not, giving several bits of trouble before I got it right.

 

Even if it fell down behind the kick panel ... it's no big deal. Just pop off the kick panel and get it out. There's nowhere it can go that you can't get it with a little mechanical aptitude. Just get some good lighting and you'll figure it out. It really isn't hard.

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Unlimited, gr8 job with the filter change ..
How do you embed a video, does it have to ne on youtube first and how do you add it to the forum?

thanks

 

Upload to youtube and just add the URL via the Insert Link button.

 

Depressing the left side of the glove box to get it go down seems much stiffer than other Toyotas I've owned. Other than that, it was pretty easy to change the filter.

 

Our local mice population find the white "noise-suppressant" insulation shown in the video (glued to the backside wall of lower glove box) - to be absolutely delicious!

 

Notice how the aftermarket cheapo filter does not have the same amount of filter media? This is why they opened up the pleats to get less materal to cover the same area. Also, the media material does not quite look the same as factory when I checked one out in the auto parts store.

For me, they only need changed every 30,000 miles or so. I'll stick with a Toyota replacement.

 

True ... but ... does it matter in that application ?? I think not.

Having said that ... can't go wrong with the OEM filter.

I've made about a dozen of these filters from cut up furnace filters. Cost about $2 each and do the exact same job. If you look at how it fits, you'll see it just lays in there ... air can easily get around and under it without passing throught the filter ... it's not like an engine air filter that's well sealed.

As far as I'm concerned ... the whole concept is just a ridiculous money making scam for the dealers.


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I have noticed that it is easy for the bottom hinge points of the glove box to slip out of place when opening wide for a filter change, but it is easy enough to slide them in before reclosing the door. I bought a Puralator filter at Advance that seemed pretty close to the Toyota one (about $15)....I didn't bother to count the number of pleats though. Happy to change it every 15K if it helps my wife with her allergies.

 

I couldn't get the damper back on so it rides in the bottom glovebox. If you open it watch your knees!