Honda's Kurumaku air filter is a 'face mask' for your car

Honda's Kurumaku air filter, the latest innovation from the company on the COVID-19 front, is designed to make driving a little less stressful during the pandemic. According to Honda Japan, as Slashgear reports, the company has introduced an air filter system that takes it one level above Geely's CN95 cabin filter by destroying COVID-19 virus particles inside your vehicle.

Driving with a face mask or shield on can be quite the ordeal. If you wear eyeglasses, there is a possibility that your glasses will fog up, which could affect your ability to safely navigate a busy street. Plus, there's not much one can do if a passenger brings in the particles from the outside after a trip to any public space.

With this kind of air filter, the Kurumaku system is positioned right above the standard cabin filter. It is perfectly usable for up to 9,300 miles. If you own one of these, you'll have to replace them every year or after every 15,000 kilometers. The filter comes with a zinc-phosphate composition, which the company says helps to ensnare external droplets in the filter system. Honda Japan sounds fairly confident about its viral protection mechanism, noting that within 15 minutes, the Kurumaku filter can remove some 99.8 percent of COVID-19 drops.

How do I get it? — Honda's Kurumaku filter will first appear in Japan’s N-Box kei car, per Slashgear. It won't take too long for these filters to appear in other vehicles. Honda's filter system could inspire other vehicle manufacturers to get more serious and creative about cabin filtration.

At this moment, the High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) conventional filtration system is found in most modern vehicles. This helps the car to inhibit the transmission of tiny particles. However, COVID-19 particles are believed to be so small that they can easily pass through a HEPA filter. It's one of the reasons why public health experts advise that you wear a face mask, including scenarios where you are taking a ride in an Uber, Lyft, or other ride-sharing services.

With Honda's Kurumaku filter, there is a possibility that these cabin filtration mechanisms could be mainstreamed to other manufacturers, potentially shaping the health of drivers and passengers for the better. It's a particularly helpful feature when it comes to vehicular circulation, improving interior-air screens, fighting the coronavirus during commute, and even filtering out other pollutants. We're just hoping it's affordable.