Fuel Filter Replacement Possible!

[b0b88]

03 2003 Chrysler PT Cruiser Fuel Filter Interfil Chrysler Fuel Filter Base Naturally Aspirated

I found these fuel filters for almost every year pt through google.com I think I am going to attempt to change the fuel filter out if its even remotely possible... I am hoping someone here has changed the filter for 20 bucks instead of changing the whole fuel pump assembly.. which i found the lowest priced one for 180.00 and am hoping someone can share their expirience?

[CREWZIN]

Bob,

Nobody here has talked about when or if they ever changed out the fuel filter at least on the thousands of posts on this forum. You do have to drop the fuel tank completely to do it. Even the owners that have nearly or over 100K don't talk about changing the filter and unless I missed it, I don't see it recommeded to clean or replace it in my owners manual all the way up to 120,000 miles.

[4b316]

Same setup in my Dakota pickup.I finally pulled that out at 200,000 miles to change the pump.Easy job just to change the filter(after you drop the tank.)

[b0b88]

well, i douby you remember but i posted some time ago about my pt loosing some power from when i first got it... and you said to try the cat converter so I rented the tool hooked it up to my 02 sensor and the pressue was fine.. so im moving on to the fuel filter?? maybe i got some crappy gas somewheres along my way. i am usually pretty cheap and will buy whatevers cheapest. any other suspects you can think of for loss of power?

[CREWZIN]

Bob,

I talk to to many people to remember all the problems and circumstances but looking at your picture it looks like an early model (2000-2001) PT. Here's something I found on PT Do-It-Yourself.net .......

We have an early 2001 LE PT with 135k miles. Recently we started to notice a power loss and had our repair shop take a look while performing scheduled maintenance. They suggested conducting a leak down test, which I'm not familiar with? Thank you for your help. - Vincent, from Maine.

A leak down or cylinder leakage test is used to find excessive wear in an engine. When a technician performs a leak down test each cylinder is tested to see how well it holds pressure. If a cylinder is unable to hold pressure, they can pinpoint which component of the cylinder (piston rings, valves, etc) is causing the pressure loss. An engine in great condition should generally show only a 5 to 10% pressure leak. An engine that's still in pretty good condition may show up to 20% leakage, but more than 30% leakage indicates a problem.

This test is often confused with a compression test, but is quite different. A compression test measures cylinder pressure (not pressure loss), but checks many engine components at the same time. A poor pressure reading can indicate so many things that it's hard to tell which component is at fault without a lot of other tests. A leak down test avoids this difficulty, although in some instances it can be used in conjunction with a compression test to diagnose other problems. For instance, if a cylinder is misfiring, but the compression is good and leakage is minimal, it could indicate a fuel delivery (bad injector) or ignition problem (fouled spark plug or bad plug wire).