Re: 60k maintenance

[Kevin Ng <speedie@optonline.net>]

on 9/15/00 11:14 PM, Thomas J. Boyer at cyng@lamere.net wrote:

> Kevin,
> 
> Could you take a sec to detail how you replaced the fuel filter? I
> should do mine, but am somewhat daunted! Thanks.
> 
> -T ('95)

Hi Tom,

The fuel filter is located on the passenger side, right next the the rear
jacking point (makes it fun to find another place to jack the car up
hehehe), you can't miss it. It sits in a black plastic housing and is the
size of a mayonnaise jar.

It's probably not necessary, but I pulled the fuel pump relay just to make
sure no extra fuel would be flowing. I cranked the car a few times to
"clear" out fuel from the line. Don't worry, there will still be plenty of
fuel in the filter for you to spill and inhale :)
The relay was #167 on my car. It may 67 or 80 also, depending on your model
year. It's basically the one on the bottom right of the relay panel.

Use a flathead screwdriver or 7mm socket wrench to release the fuel line
clamps. Disconnect the fuel lines (it may take some elbow grease). If you
have vise-grips it may be a good idea to pinch the lines so no addl fuel
spews out. I just bent the lines up a little.

Now comes the hard part. Remove the (two) 17mm nuts from the bracket. Use
some wd40 to loosen them first as they may be rusty. The plastic bracket is
held on by these metal clips, which are firmly attached the the body of the
car. What you have to do is bend the metal clip just enough so that it comes
off the stud. Once free the bracket should pop off. MUCH easier said than
done :)

Remove old filter, put new one back in. Make sure the arrows are pointing in
the right direction--the bracket has an arrow and so does the filter, so
it's not easy to screw up.

Bolt everything back on, put the relay back in, and start the car. It'll
take more than a few cranks to fire up the engine.

Done! I got the filter from Potterman for $15. The only thing I'm a little
concerned about is that I got the dreaded check engine light afterwards. I'm
hoping it's the vacuum pressure sensor thingy, and that once I fill up the
car again, it'll go away. I also did an oil change and spark plugs too, so
that may have something to do with it (I accidentally filled the case with 6
qts of oil--doh!). 

Anyway, there you have it. You wanted detail, you got it :) Overall an easy
procedure, I'd say a 1 bloody knuckle job.

Kevin Ng
97 Jetta GLX Windsor Blue