Daekar
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2008
- TDI
- White 2003 Jetta TDI Wagon
Hello all,
One of the items I got for my recent birthday was the Nicktane Uber Fuel Filter kit, located here:
http://nicktane.com/osc/product_info.php?cPath=23_30&products_id=47
I received it several days after ordering, and boy is the red anodizing pretty! It comes with the filter head and the associated banjo bolts and copper washers, a T-bracket with nuts and bolts to replace the existing fuel filter bracket, a nicely machined straight tube for replacing the OEM thermostatic tee, four little hose clamps to replace the snap ring clamps that are stock, and two humongous hose clams to hold the new filter to the new bracket. Also included is a fabulously useful wrench which fits the new filter head.
Bracket installation requires removing the existing fuel filter from the bracket and lines, removing the existing T-fitting from the aft pair of fuel lines, removing the bracket, cursing the bad luck that the new filter won't fit in the spiffy OEM bracket, installing the new T-bracket in place of the old one, dropping one of the nuts into the engine and finding it with a magnet, and finishing the attachment of the new bracket with the recovered nut.
In order to attach the two large hose clamps to the T-bracket, you have to actually undo them completely and slide one end through the opening created in the T-bracket by the folding process, then reattach. You can do this on or off the car, but I did it before attaching the T-bracket. It might be easier to attach the bracket if this step is done afterwards.
I found that on my vehicle, the bolt holes on the car and on the T-bracket would not line up properly unless I used a hack saw to remove a little bit of the folded bracket to give proper clearance. I suspect that the bolt holes on my car were not as close to the edge of the sheet metal as the ones with which the T-bracket was designed. However, removing that bit of metal was easy, and from there on in the bolt holes lined up perfectly.
After filling the new 2-micron Caterpillar filter with fresh diesel procured two days before, I screwed on the filter head (make sure you buy the right threads for the filter you want to use!) hand-tight and then used a strap wrench and the included head wrench to tighten things up a bit - no He-man stuff here. Then you slide the filter body into the hose clamps and rotate it so that the head gives clearance for the straight pipe that is going to replace the existing T-fitting that links the aft pair of fuel lines. See the Nicktane website for installation pictures.
Once you have the filter lined up and the hose clamps rotated so you can access them with the twisting tool of your choice (I used a little socket wrench), tighten the large hose clamps until they clamp down firmly but not hard on the new fuel filter.
Now you have to remove all the snap rings and replace them with the tiny hose clamps (bolt-side up!), then install the aluminum tube which is replacing the factory T-fitting and tighten the clamps on the ends firmly.
Then rotate the banjo bolts so that the center bolt is pointing towards the front of the vehicle and the one further from the center of the head is pointing to the rear - see the Nicktane website for pictures. Slide the fuel lines onto their respective barb fittings and clamp down their hose clamps firmly.
The last part is tightening down the banjo bolts so that they don't leak and keep your fuel lines pointing the right directions. I believe it's a 17mm socket, and I didn't have to torque them very hard. I just made sure that I squished the crush washers all the way and then gave them a little more of a twist... no leaks so far!
A note for those using the CAT filter: it is larger than the OEM filter in both length and diameter, and will actually touch the sheet metal below the bracket. It also sits a little higher than the stock setup even when "bottomed out." I have not noticed any adverse effects from this, but those who are uncomfortable with the change would be better off with the 1-micron glass filter because it is considerably shorter despite its capable performance.
One of the items I got for my recent birthday was the Nicktane Uber Fuel Filter kit, located here:
http://nicktane.com/osc/product_info.php?cPath=23_30&products_id=47
I received it several days after ordering, and boy is the red anodizing pretty! It comes with the filter head and the associated banjo bolts and copper washers, a T-bracket with nuts and bolts to replace the existing fuel filter bracket, a nicely machined straight tube for replacing the OEM thermostatic tee, four little hose clamps to replace the snap ring clamps that are stock, and two humongous hose clams to hold the new filter to the new bracket. Also included is a fabulously useful wrench which fits the new filter head.
Bracket installation requires removing the existing fuel filter from the bracket and lines, removing the existing T-fitting from the aft pair of fuel lines, removing the bracket, cursing the bad luck that the new filter won't fit in the spiffy OEM bracket, installing the new T-bracket in place of the old one, dropping one of the nuts into the engine and finding it with a magnet, and finishing the attachment of the new bracket with the recovered nut.
In order to attach the two large hose clamps to the T-bracket, you have to actually undo them completely and slide one end through the opening created in the T-bracket by the folding process, then reattach. You can do this on or off the car, but I did it before attaching the T-bracket. It might be easier to attach the bracket if this step is done afterwards.
I found that on my vehicle, the bolt holes on the car and on the T-bracket would not line up properly unless I used a hack saw to remove a little bit of the folded bracket to give proper clearance. I suspect that the bolt holes on my car were not as close to the edge of the sheet metal as the ones with which the T-bracket was designed. However, removing that bit of metal was easy, and from there on in the bolt holes lined up perfectly.
After filling the new 2-micron Caterpillar filter with fresh diesel procured two days before, I screwed on the filter head (make sure you buy the right threads for the filter you want to use!) hand-tight and then used a strap wrench and the included head wrench to tighten things up a bit - no He-man stuff here. Then you slide the filter body into the hose clamps and rotate it so that the head gives clearance for the straight pipe that is going to replace the existing T-fitting that links the aft pair of fuel lines. See the Nicktane website for installation pictures.
Once you have the filter lined up and the hose clamps rotated so you can access them with the twisting tool of your choice (I used a little socket wrench), tighten the large hose clamps until they clamp down firmly but not hard on the new fuel filter.
Now you have to remove all the snap rings and replace them with the tiny hose clamps (bolt-side up!), then install the aluminum tube which is replacing the factory T-fitting and tighten the clamps on the ends firmly.
Then rotate the banjo bolts so that the center bolt is pointing towards the front of the vehicle and the one further from the center of the head is pointing to the rear - see the Nicktane website for pictures. Slide the fuel lines onto their respective barb fittings and clamp down their hose clamps firmly.
The last part is tightening down the banjo bolts so that they don't leak and keep your fuel lines pointing the right directions. I believe it's a 17mm socket, and I didn't have to torque them very hard. I just made sure that I squished the crush washers all the way and then gave them a little more of a twist... no leaks so far!
A note for those using the CAT filter: it is larger than the OEM filter in both length and diameter, and will actually touch the sheet metal below the bracket. It also sits a little higher than the stock setup even when "bottomed out." I have not noticed any adverse effects from this, but those who are uncomfortable with the change would be better off with the 1-micron glass filter because it is considerably shorter despite its capable performance.