'92Volvo 240 Wagon. There are a lot of fir needles piled up under the "grate-like" cabin air intake, located just beneath the exterior of the windshield. I cannot see a way to get them out, short of possibly removing the dashboard, and am not even certain that would provide access. They have accumulated over time (years) and I think are actually molding and giving a bad smell and probable health hazard to interior air, especially during cold weather season. The only other thought I have had is to hacksaw out the grate bars, vacuum or blow the needles out and replace the grate with something like hardware cloth. Anyone had experience with a similar issue and have a proven technique for removal?
Thanks, Prairie

 

never did a 240 but on other cars I've used a shop vac with fixed up with a smaller hose to vacuum up stuff first then used compressed air to blow out debris. Depending on the car you may even want to access the blower motor or remove the dash vents (they should pop off with squeeze on the sides) to give more access. If you have a musty smell from mildew or mold then you can try a car vent cleaner product (google "car ac cleaner spray" for ideas)