Change a Diesel Fuel Filter

Steps

1. Get the right filter. Fuel filters differ by engine, so choose one for your car's engine and model years ("Parts for your car" below). Check in the handbook how your engine's filter is changed and how the air is let out afterwards.
2. Park and prepare. Park on level ground, switch off the engine and take out the key. Open the bonnet and find the filter: a canister or a housing on the fuel line, often with a hand pump on top.
3. Clean around the filter. Wipe the housing and the pipes so no dirt gets into the fuel system when it is open. Lay rags under the filter to catch fuel.
4. Drain the water. If the filter has a drain screw or tap at the bottom, open it over the drain pan and let fuel and water run out until only clean diesel comes. Close it.
5. Unplug the sensors if the filter has a water sensor or a heater wire. Note where each plug goes.
6. Take off the old filter. For a spin-on filter, unscrew it from its head. For a cartridge, undo the housing cap and lift the cartridge out. Note how the seals sat.
7. Fit the new filter. Fit the new seal rings that come with it, wetted with a little clean diesel. Do the same as the old one: screw a spin-on filter on by hand until the seal touches, then the extra turn printed on the filter; tighten a cartridge cap to the figure on the cap or in your handbook. Refit the sensors and plugs.
8. Let the air out. Air in the system stops a diesel engine. With a hand pump, press it until it becomes firm. On cars without a pump, the handbook often says to switch the ignition on and off a few times so the electric pump fills the filter. Follow your handbook's way.
9. Start the engine. It may need a few tries; crank for no more than 10 seconds at a time, with a pause between. Let it idle and check for leaks around the filter and pipes.
10. Clean up and test. Wipe off any spilt fuel, drive a short way and check again for leaks. Write down the date and the mileage.