I just had my first fuel filter change (about 9,000 miles).
After the shop changed both fuel filters with factory Ford ones, a check engine light came on and a "low fuel pressure" warning, along with a "reduced engine power" warning. It also stalls a lot and takes a long time to restart.

Obviously, they didn't do it right (for a measly $153). I suppose there is air in the lines or something didn't go back together correctly.

Does anyone know if there are are tricks to this on the 2011?
My '06 seemed to purge itself, but this truck obviously won't. It is not even driveable to get it back to the station, to see if they can correct the problem.

The thing is, I watched them do it, so if someone can ask me the right questions as far as what I saw, maybe I can lick the issue in the driveway myself.

 

on another forum, someone had this problem. the filter that mounts to the frame rail is most likely where the problem is. the "o" ring is easily unseated if a lubricant is not used when installing, causing an air leak, rough running engine, if at all. also to bleed the top one in engine compartment, i think turning the key on several times for 10-15 seconds will purge the air from the system. good luck with it. post what you find !

 

The purge process is simple. Just turn the key on and let the fuel pump move fuel for 15 seconds or so. Do this a total of 5 times and you can be sure no air is in the system. Assuming of course that you do not have a leak that is introducing air...

 

Just to have what the manual states in this topic:

30 seconds is the amount of time the fuel pump runs before shutting off without the engine starting.
I just listen for the fuel pump to shut off then I start over.

 

I had the exact same thing happen. I had the filters changed and had no problem driving home from the dealer, however I did notice a whining noise similar to a pump running dry...anyways when I got home, I looked and noticed the sound coming from the middle of the truck near a plastic canister of some sort..It also has a yellow valve, which I am assuming is a fuel/water seperator drain. Anyways I opened the valve and air then diesel came out so I assumed that was it, although after repeated attempts with key on engine off/on it still did not eliminate the faint whining noise. Called the dealer first thing was given the run around that the sound is normal....so I decided to take it to my backup dealer and enroute on the freeway got the same messages low fuel pressue, then reduced power and CEL, which it did reduce to 30mph then to 20 as I got off the freeway. I limped to the dealer and after a day they just assumed it was just improper filter installation, when they replaced it, the truck ran fine, and has the last week. These must be a little more sensitive than past trucks.. The odd thing in my case, I had no lost power or hesitation that night, even though I heard a whining noise, and later saw air coming out of the valve..

 

Yes, that device with the yellow valve is the DFCM (contains one of the filters). You also need to drain that monthly.

 

Problem resolved!

Had my frien the mechanic stop by and we crawled under the truck in the snow to see if we could resolve the issue. Turns out the other mechanic had not fully seated/tightened the fuel filter housing, so it was sucking in air under load. So after a short while of driving, it would run out of fuel and be overwhelmed by air bubbles which would cause the CEL and warning messages. We cleared all the codes, and all is well now.

The lesson here is that when tightening the fuel filter housing under the truck, you need to tighten it with a 1 1/4" socket and fully seat it until you hear the two plastic halves of the housing make contact with one another.

 

On the 6.4 cap there is a torque spec on it. What about the 6.7? I would think that would help with air as well?

 

Glad to hear you got it sorted out, Von Overkill!

This is NOT a good thing to have happen to one of these engines, as sucking air can cause damage to the HPFP and the injectors, leading to one VERY expensive repair. The reduced power mode was the truck trying to protect the pump.

This is one reason that either myself or my dealer are the only people who touch my truck. If they screw it up I think I'll have better luck in the event of an out-of-warranty repair than if my local mechanic did it. Failures caused by improper filter installation wouldn't be covered under your warranty.

 

kper5, what part of bama ?

 

Is this the same area that I have read about breaking off the filter housing by using a wrench?

 

Thanks for all your help everyone. Your comments were very helpful in sorting this out without a tow to the dealer. This should have been a cakewalk for any mechanic.

I would have preferred to see a metal fuel filter housing under the frame, but each passing year seems to give us more plastic. And how about a viewing window in the housing? My backhoe has one, in fact the whole housing is transparent.
I can only hope the air bubbles did not cause significant, lasting damage. Time will tell. In my home state, a dealer is not a viable option. It is a 4 hour round trip at best, and they usually screw things up so that you have to come back multiple times to solve each issue. This means multiple days off. Just a no-can-do for me.

 

Don't feel so bad... once I had a dealer tech change out a tire (we are talking like remove 5 nuts)

One of the lugs was cross threaded.

So I showed up back at the dealer with a grin.. and pointed out the cross threaded nut.

Poor fella... he got the stud replaced for me... fast.

I suggest the tech be taken out behind the barn....

 

Just curious why did you change the fuel filter so early, did you get a message?

 

Away from home and I'm about to put 3000 miles on her, so I wanted to do it on my own terms.