Could cheap fuel have clogged up a fuel filter?

[paulri]

Back in the early 90s, I got a clogged fuel filter. My car literally stopped in the middle of traffic a couple of times. Mechanic replaced the fuel filter and I never had the problem again. I forget the mileage on the car at the time, but it was not new.

I had been gassing up a lot at ARCO (this was pre-Top Tier arco), and a truck stop that had the cheapest price gas around. Since then, I have moved to more expensive gas stations, usually Chevron.

Now I'm wondering---could the cause of that clogged fuel filter have been bad fuel? Or was it a maintenance item, like having to replace the brakes? I have not had to replace the fuel filter in any other car since then, so I'm inclined to think that the issue was the poor fuel I was pumping into the car.

 

[Gasbuggy]

The filter on my accord is original.

Some cars are prone to having the plastic screen fall off the pump, I think that would eventually get you.

 

[Chris142]

Cheap no. Dirty yes. Even expensive gas can have dirt

 

[Kawiguy454]

FWIW Never buy gas while a gas tanker is unloading to the stations tanks. The massive fill rate stirs up any [censored] or moisture in the tanks and it could pump into your car. This may not be as true as it once was at better stations but at a sketchy station still may be true.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

No, because the cheap gas moves so fast it's always fresh

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: Kawiguy454
FWIW Never buy gas while a gas tanker is unloading to the stations tanks. The massive fill rate stirs up any [censored] or moisture in the tanks and it could pump into your car. This may not be as true as it once was at better stations but at a sketchy station still may be true.


Hasn't that been debunked? Isn't the fuel filtered before its pumped?

 

[901Memphis]

I believe they use 1 or 2 micron filters at the pump along with fiberglass tanks, there no way dirts getting past those good filters in the pumps.

 

[Kira]

I often wonder what it is which OCCASIONALLY clogs a fuel filter.

A Ford Explorer board I read for a friend's son has posters who SWEAR the fuel filter (a bit-of-bear to replace) commonly clogs and that changing same is a legit "first thing" to do come 50-60K.

I do not know butI told him to do so. Kira

 

[UltrafanUK]

You can get dirty expensive fuel as well as dirty cheap fuel, it's more a question of the care taken at the service station in terms of changing their filters and draining storage tanks etc.

Some of you need to read your cars maintenance schedule, as nearly every engine has some type of fuel fuel unless it's a real small petrol job. It might not need changing for a very long time in some petrol jobs, BUT it will eventually get dirty.

 

[HerrStig]

The FAA has expressed enough confidence in "gas station" gas that they allow it's use in some aircraft. And, it doesn't have to be "top tier".

 

[AZjeff]

You're pondering something that happened to a car 25 years ago??

 

[paulri]

So if I'm understanding folks here correctly, you can get dirty fuel from anywhere, but it really isn't a matter of top tier vs. "meets federal standards" fuel, but more a matter of how often the gas station changes its filters?

 

[Jetronic]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
Originally Posted By: Kawiguy454
FWIW Never buy gas while a gas tanker is unloading to the stations tanks. The massive fill rate stirs up any [censored] or moisture in the tanks and it could pump into your car. This may not be as true as it once was at better stations but at a sketchy station still may be true.


Hasn't that been debunked? Isn't the fuel filtered before its pumped?


Yes it is. But at work we have a gas station and in 3 years I have never seen anyone change the filter. It looks like a big oil filter can, and I suspect it has a bypass valve in it...

 

[Jetronic]

oh, but we do see clogged diesel filters in vehicles all the time. So I don't believe for one second the fuel station filters go down to 2 micron ever!

 

[901Memphis]

Originally Posted By: Jetronic
oh, but we do see clogged diesel filters in vehicles all the time. So I don't believe for one second the fuel station filters go down to 2 micron ever!


I was referring to gasoline pumps maybe the diesel uses a different filter since it's a different fluid

 

[Jetronic]

Diesels use finer filters as the injection equipment is much more sensitive to hard particles.

 

[DoubleWasp]

Indeed. factory used a 5-micron filter in my truck.