A6 Avant Fuel Filter replacement - a "scientific" inquiry.
11-26-2004, 06:40 PM
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A6 Avant Fuel Filter replacement - a "scientific" inquiry.
<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/84506/dscf0135.1.jpg"></center><p>Hello,
Long time visitor, first time poster.
I have been reading about the importance of fuel filter replacement in our Audis. I have heard arguments that the filter gets so plugged that after removing it one can hardly blow through it. Well, I decided to explore the issue.
Test victim: 99 Avant 70k miles with original filter (to my best belief).
After filter removal, indeed the filter was next to impossible to blow through. This freaked me out. However, being an engineer, I had to investigate further.
I dried the filter out and guess what: the filter is as easy to blow through as the new filter. It turns out that the wet filter media creates a resistance and the fact that you cannot blow through a filter you just removed from a car is NOT an idication of plugged filter. Thus, we can disspell a myth. Then, I cut the filter open and the picture above shows the filter media. The light brown is the outlet side, the dark side is the inlet side. For 70k miles the media looked surprisingly normal. To tell you the truth I was hoping that it would look a lot more "dramatic."
But one probably cannot tell much without a microscope and I am not going that far ;-)
Note: I am NOT trying to suggest that we do not change filters on our cars. After all, it could not hurt, right? Just wanted to disspell a common myth by way of a little "experiment."
Happy Audiing!
Bart
Long time visitor, first time poster.
I have been reading about the importance of fuel filter replacement in our Audis. I have heard arguments that the filter gets so plugged that after removing it one can hardly blow through it. Well, I decided to explore the issue.
Test victim: 99 Avant 70k miles with original filter (to my best belief).
After filter removal, indeed the filter was next to impossible to blow through. This freaked me out. However, being an engineer, I had to investigate further.
I dried the filter out and guess what: the filter is as easy to blow through as the new filter. It turns out that the wet filter media creates a resistance and the fact that you cannot blow through a filter you just removed from a car is NOT an idication of plugged filter. Thus, we can disspell a myth. Then, I cut the filter open and the picture above shows the filter media. The light brown is the outlet side, the dark side is the inlet side. For 70k miles the media looked surprisingly normal. To tell you the truth I was hoping that it would look a lot more "dramatic."
But one probably cannot tell much without a microscope and I am not going that far ;-)
Note: I am NOT trying to suggest that we do not change filters on our cars. After all, it could not hurt, right? Just wanted to disspell a common myth by way of a little "experiment."
Happy Audiing!
Bart
11-26-2004, 11:40 PM
#3
AudiWorld Super User
Audi specifies that the fuel filter is lifetime unless your fuel system becomes contaminated....
I think that your sectioning your filter demonstrates that fact. As a mech engineer, I tend to follow Audi's recommendations re: maintenance and filter replacements, knowing that their engineers have done their job. Having said that, I changed the fuel filter on my '96 A6 @ ~45,400 miles from the original (7 years old) only because I had previously purchased one. There was no difference in the car's performance after installing the new filter. Based on your disection and my experience, I don't plan on changing it again unless my fuel system becomes contaminated. Thanks for the great test report!
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