Hey Y'all, I just wanted to share the cabin filter I added to my 1997. I bought this thing with a bad heater core and changed it recently. When I took the hvac box apart I noticed a few things. Firstly on the 1997 the fresh air intake under the cowl is wide open and doesn't have the cover like the later ones do. Secondly the duct between that intake and the heater box is only sealed with some loose foam strip. Mine was very loose and the foam was all flat. Thirdly the ac evaporator had all kinds of garbage in the front. I also noticed that water has been entering from the cowl intake and down under the carpet causing the floor to rust. I had previously worked on a cabin filter box for my LJ, but it hasn't been a priority. I decided to finish the box and install it on the '97 to prevent trash from entering the duct system and to help keep water from freely entering the cabin. The cabin filter I used is from a Jeep Liberty and it uses two parts. I only used one part. The box base is solid and should prevent most water from getting into the duct until it's almost an inch deep. The filter does restrict the flow slightly, but I think the filtration is worth the reduction in flow. I did have to heat and massage the top slightly to get the cowl to fit back on flat. Mostly on the far outside and some in the center. I could change this in the design, but I don't care that much and don't plan to sell these or anything. I also had to cut off the part of the duct that sticks out above the cowl floor. I silicone the bottom of the filter housing to the cowl floor and screwed it down. So far it has passed the garden hose test, and hopefully it will keep most of the dust and tree bits out.
