Motts said:
how hard is it to change a fuel filter??
I have not had my LS long enough to say from experience, but evey car I have owned since 1986(fuel injected) had filters that were pretty easy to remove.
With some Fords you will need a filter removal "wrench" set. Looks like plastic collars that slip over the fuel line and slide inside of the clamp and disengage it. I think the kit I bougth at Autozone cost me all of $5 and had 4 "wrenches" for different size fuel lines.
Before you do the job, get a drain pan and some towels for spills. Wouldn't hurt to have a friend stand by with a fire extinguisher since it would be you on fire if something happened. =:O Not to worry I have never had a gas fire except a carb back fire, since 1970, but a little static and boom.
Let the car sit over night and do not start it anytime before you start the job. This allows the pressure in the fuel system to drop and not spray gas all over the place. I prefer to have the car low on gas to prevent too much gravity drain of the fuel when you pull the hoses.
I DO NOT know where the filter is on our cars but assume it is somewhere along the frame rails. Just follow any hard lines coming from the gas tank area and you should bump into a filter. Or maybe we are lucky and it is under the hood mounted on the firewall. Then again, not much room under the hood so if it is there who knows if you can see it. But like I said, I am guessing.
If you can see and wrap your hand around the filter you can replace it easy.
Once you find the filter, use the "wrenches" I mentioned or in some cases they just use plain old fashioned hose clamps. Remove the front line and plug if you can, not much should dribble out. Remove the rear line and let any gas drain into pan until you can plug it with maybe a golf tee or figure out something. Then remove the filter and put a new one in. The old filter will have a fair amount of gas in it so treat it with fire safety in mind.
I would say on my F250 the job took half an hour because of bracketing that made it tough to get at and you needed those "wrenches". On my Chebby it took maybe 30 seconds. On my Villager it takes maybe a minute.
This is easier than doing an oil change in 90% of the cases I have seen.
Good Luck,
Jim Henderson
lol