Fuel filter

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Winston
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Drives: 1.2 TSI 6c
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Fuel filter

Post by Winston »

Hello I was told by a service advisor that it's not necessary to change the fuel filter on my 2016 1.2 TSI......is this true?
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Maarten
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by Maarten »

Depends on the mileage of your car
Winston
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by Winston »

Maarten wrote: Fri Jan 13, 2023 10:11 am Depends on the mileage of your car
Its on 152000km
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Maarten
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by Maarten »

If it has never been replaced, I would replace it.
On my Polo 9N3 (2008) I changed it every 60.000km.

It takes about 5-10min to change it.
Winston
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by Winston »

Maarten wrote: Fri Jan 13, 2023 10:22 am If it has never been replaced, I would replace it.
On my Polo 9N3 (2008) I changed it every 60.000km.

It takes about 5-10min to change it.
Thank you...much appreciated 👍
2fast4ya
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by 2fast4ya »

Filters are relatively cheap & they are better off being replaced , most ppl have them replaced at service intervals but if yours is playin up or its been on the car for ever ?
For peace of mind either way renew it if ya want .
RUM4MO
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by RUM4MO »

It is a "replace on failure" or "replace if causing a problem" item nowadays, some models of VW Group car now do not have a replaceable type of petrol filter - so now not a service item.

I bought a new filter and fuel pressure regulator for my wife's 2002 VW Polo when it was maybe 8 years old and so 85K miles or 90K miles, due to concerns about if the "push to fit" still being "happy" enough to allow me to do that without breaking, make me stall that filter replacement, for that car at least, there were fuel line "repair kits" which were just replacement elements for the "push to fit" connections, I even bought pliers made for the job - then sold the car at 13 years old and 105K or 135K miles still with its original filter fitted and still no fuelling issues.

I do acknowledge that replacing something like a petrol filter can only be a good thing for fault free motoring, but it seems that it is not that important in reality, put it this way, I walked into my local VW dealership parts department back in 2009 or 2010 and asked for a fuel filter for that 2002 VW Polo, they were not stock item, so I needed to return a couple of days later once it had been ordered in for me, I did not expect that!

The explanation given for this change wrt petrol filters is, locally, ie in UK at least, service station equipment and its maintenance is off a level that factory fitted filters, where still fitted to new cars, are not trapping must debris so should last the life of the car. I'd think that the same fuel quality will be same in most other Northern European countries.

Edit:- I would have thought that the need/reason for keeping a replaceable petrol filter in a car's fuel system would have been more relevant when petrol was pumped from the tank at high pressure like back in the days of mechanical fuel injection, because these electric high pressure fuel pumps did tend to try to destroy themselves and so send tiny bits of steel out into the high pressure side of the fuel system. Nowadays, with direct injection fuel systems, the tank electric pump is just a low pressure lift pump taking the fuel up to the engine mounted mechanical high pressure pump which only delivers to the fuel rail without any further filtering.
Bobupndown
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Re: Fuel filter

Post by Bobupndown »

Changed one at 80000 miles on a 2014 polo for peace of mind. Think it still had the factory fitted filter in there.
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