Yeah, I've come to that conclusion. I thought the filter would just snap out, but in their infinite wisdom, they designed a filter to be part of the housing. I really don't think that filter is even nesessary. I have never seen two air filters back to back. It is obviously an filter, but probably has more to do with air flow than anything. I am thinking one could do without it altogether. Nice job Chrysler, NOT. The dealer didn't even know what I was talking about when I called them. Way to communicate Chrysler, NOT.You have to purchase the whole upper cover.
Thank you.You have to purchase the whole upper cover.
Thank you. I'm not the only curious one out there then. Appreciate this!As far as I can determine, it is for noise abatement only. I removed it and found the intake noise much louder during hard acceleration. I reinstalled it with screws. The air goes through the filter element before it gets to that filter. On my PT Cruiser, the filter cover had a large hollow chamber built into the cover for the same reason.