If your fuel filter is really dirty after 8000miles (50% filter life) would you change your normal fuel station or is it a shot in the dark finding a clean(er) fuel station :confused:

I always try to stay away from places where the tanker truck is filling the underground tanks becuase I hear it stirs up all the sediments in the bottom of the tanks. So when you pump your diesel you get lots of sediment into your trucks tank..which plugs the filter quicker :o:

I always try to fill up at Sam's Club and Safeway (discounts on fuel) and every now and then I go to the Loco truck stop near my house. Should I check out the big rig truck stops more often??

Thanks :)

Im on my laptop and cant resize the pics but ill post a few shots of my fuel filter later tonight. Its pretty bad lol

Truck stops do alot more business so the volume of fuel they handle is greater. Basically it doesn't sit around for a long time which lowers the chance of getting bad or dirty fuel.

Truck stops do alot more business so the volume of fuel they handle is greater. Basically it doesn't sit around for a long time which lowers the chance of getting bad or dirty fuel.

:agreed:

Would think that Sams Club also moves a lot of volume as well (at least I know that they move sh!tloads of mogas).....

You just can't guess when it's going to happen, especially when you're traveling. My suggestion is that if suspect that your regular dealer has a contamination problem, discuss it with the manager, they are probably liable for any damage caused by delivery of contaminated fuel. They can't fix it if they don't know, and you may save them and yourself a lot of hassle. If they ignore you, check with the state agency responsible for consumer affairs. Save your receipts and write the mileage on it when you purchased it, that way you can file a claim if your fuel system is damaged. I save all my receipts for one month, but if you get a bad load of fuel it'll screw things up real quick, especially if they dumped gasoline in the diesel tank.

I fueled up tonight at a Valero Station I use regularly where the pump has a bad fill nozzle. You have to shake it before it will pass diesel at full flow. It works for a while, then you gotta stop, hold it up and shake it again. That nozzle has been that way for two months. The dealer said he keeps calling, and Valero said they will be out to fix it. Naturally I'm sure to keep records of those fill-up's, because who knows what shape the storage tank is in or when the dispenser filters were changed.

Also, consider purchasing one of the prefilters such as the Nicktane setup which uses the CAT 1R0749 High Efficiency filter, with about twice the capacity of the OEM filter. That way you intercept the water, sludge and particulates before it even gets to the OEM filter. I'd much rather change the CAT filter under the rear wheel enclosure than the OEM unit in a pinch. Just a few thoughts to keep her running and you smiling.

FWIW, the filter change interval of 15,000 miles is BS to me. You probably need to change it about every 10,000 or sooner. Before I added my Racor Pre-oem system, I would change the fuel filter with my oil....the longest it went was 8500 and it was pretty dirty. I just changed my Racor the for the first time at about 15,000 miles on it and it was pure black. It was doing a pretty good job IMO. I probably could have gone a little longer, but I didn't want to have to change a fuel filter on my back in the snow at -40F.

I decided it change it at 50% just to see what it looked like and boy was i amazed! i will start changing it with my oil for sure! lol

Ill post those pics in a few :)

i only fill at truck stops. the one down the road from me fills it diesel tank about 3 or 4 times a week. the diesel is always fresh, got 19,000 miles on the stock filter and not one fuel problem yet, well one so far. i got a code after i filled at shell which dont sell hardly any diesel, but i do carry a spare filter too should i need it. ill pull the stocker off at 20k and see what it looks like, should we start betting on how dirty it is??
I didn't want to have to change a fuel filter on my back in the snow at -40F.
wimp:D

I change with my oil, they aren't expensive...but very frustrating to change sometimes.

I usually think the DIC is pretty accurate but Id say the Fuel filter life goes by mileage and hours and doesnt measure the actual filter.

I do agree to change every 10,000 :cool:

Kennedy sells some gauges that allow a more precise measurement of the filter restriction.

I change mine at least every 10,000.

:o: see what i mean and thats only 47% or 8000 miles :eek:

These pics are 180* from eachother...why does its go from pretty clean to really dirty, back to clean then, back to really dirty? :confused:

Fellas, I'm moving this to the maintnence section.

:o: see what i mean and thats only 47% or 8000 miles :eek:

These pics are 180* from eachother...why does its go from pretty clean to really dirty, back to clean then, back to really dirty? :confused:

If you look, the dirty part corresponds to the series of holes in the top of the filter, where the fuel enters it.

I think its sucked to the inside from there.

Before I added the Nicktane, my filters didn't look that dirty at 13K. I fuel up 95% of the time at the same station that does a lot of diesel business.

I see a few guys are changing fuel filters the same time as the oil filters, I don't think it is necessary (at least for me) to change the fuel filter so often.