Changed the fuel filter this weekend, and since I haven't seen any pictures of old filters, I was curious if this was typical of a old filter. The truck just turned 14,000 miles. The fuel bowl looked clean enough, but the filter was pretty dirty. Could be my imagination, but throttle response seems to be better now.





Thanks
John

 

That old filter is crusty

I usually change mine every 4-6,000 just because I get them for just alittle over a $1 a pece from my buddy who works for a dealership. After 6,000 miles mine are pretty much the color of Tea, not black paint like yours...

 

Looks typical for a filter with that many miles on it.

 

Mine looked the same when I bought the truck and changed it. Unknown miles. I've heard that they turn black pretty quick.

 

I read that 15,000 miles between filter replacements is recommended. Should I change it more often? How othen does everyone else replace them?

Thanks.
John

 

Pep... I replace mine every 3rd oil change or 9k miles. Very cheap insurance as well as peace of mind.

 

It's also a good idea to pack one away in the truck. You go on a road trip and get some bad fuel with water and crud in it, its a good fallback to keep motoring.

Typical to what I see on mine after 12-15K, was changing them sooner but they didn't seem to change color until ~7500 miles. Unfortunately I pay a lot more than $1 a piece for 'em, so they get a fair bit of mileage on them before they get tossed.

 

I just changed mine at at 13,400 miles (2003 F250 with 7.3). After reading some post at this site, I expected my filter to look like your picture. It was nice to see that my filter was a light tan color with no black whatsoever. I buy fuel from all over Tucson or where I happen to be when the tank gets low. I also tend to run the tank pretty far down before I fill it. I would worry if it looks like that next time. You might want to buy fuel elsewhere and/or flush the tank. Jim

 

What price are you guys paying for these fuel filters? I pay from $15.00 to $25.00 each!! Is there a place on the net to buy these at a cheaper price?

 

K2lee
A friend works for Ford, he sold me the Motorcraft oil,air and fuel filter for 55 bucks. The invoice also showed Ford list pricing which was double what he charged me. I think that the fuel filter cost 27 by itself. Jim

 

I made friends with my local NAPA dealers early on, since they were the only source for fuel filters other than Ford when I bought my truck. They also have the oils in gallon jugs which keeps the empty bottle pile manageable at oil change time - my neighbors freak when they see me pull a 5 gallon bucket of oil from under the truck.... can't wait till its time to change coolant.

As for the fuel in Tucson, I hear there's a neighborhood where you can get all you want for free but you have to fill the bed with Kinder Morgan dirt to get it.... Go Devils!

 

I just replaced my filter after 9,000 miles and it looked practically brand new. It had a light brown or honey color. I buy fuel (in Tucson) at the same station every time. Mostly because it's a high volume location and I want the freshest fuel, but also because it runs about $1.34 per gallon. The Conoco station by my house charges $1.79 a gallon. (I've never seen anybody pumping diesel there yet)

 

Wow. Looks to me like your getting oil in your fuel. I've never seen one like that. Should be tan color as mentioned. 2003, how many miles? If high miles, maybe o-rings need replaced?

 

I don't think so. My filter looks like that too after 12-15k on it and I only use 1/2 qt of oil between changes.

 

I bought my truck in July, it's a 2000 F250 with 85,000 miles, and I don't know when the fuel filter was last changed, so I probably need to do it, so this may be a dumb question, but where is it located on my truck?