I'm pretty new to this forum and this is my first attempt at a "tutorial" but I read the Technical Article (all 11 pages) on this procedure and got confused, misinformed and frustrated. While there is a lot of good info in this article, much of it did not apply to my setup.

As far as I know - THIS INFO IS FOR 06-07 F150's WITH THE RED CLIP

First off - The cheap plastic fuel line disconnect tools work very well so this is what I bought ($9.99 at Auto Zone)



I also bought a fuel filter at Auto Zone telling them its for an 07 F150 w/5.4L 4WD and they sold me the filter on the right - WRONG FILTER



Here is what my fuel filter looks like with the RED clip

 

I tried to understand the instructions in the other article about how to remove/release the clips. I was CONFUSED. I will try to explain how these red clips function.

First thing you have to do is pull down (toward the ground) on the small red tab of the clip. This will release the large red tab to swing up and away from the fuel line.





Once this large tab is swung up and out you can push the entire clip assembly "back" away from the fuel line. Note the rim/lip on the fuel filter intake - this is what the clip must clear to slide the line off.



Here's a photo looking down the fuel line at the red clip when it has been released and pushed back to clear the filter rim.

 

Installing the new filter on this red clip end is simple. Just slide the filter intake into the fuel line. Watch to see that the rim on the filter is inserted past the red clip (see photo above). Then push the red clip from the back side so that it engages the rim.



The last thing to do is to push the large red tab back down until it snaps in place along the small tab.



The other end of the filter seems to be similar on all models. I took photos of this end as well that I can share.

 

You have done an excellant job with Very clear pictures. Don't stop now, show us the rest of the procedure.

 

The other end of the filter looks like many of the photos others have posted. There is a spring clip retainer which has to be removed first.



Once the spring clip is unhooked you can pull it off the filter and set it aside.





You then need your disconnect tool. As I mentioned earlier, I bought the six pack of plastic tools in various sizes. Since my filter has the 3/8" output I used the light blue tool. I'm sorry, but I didn't take a photo of the tool on the filter.



You simply snap the tool over the fuel filter output and slide it to the right up under the fuel line metal collar. As you slide it under this collar it releases the line from the filter and they can be pulled apart.



Installation is just the reverse. Slide the new fuel filter output into the fuel line collar. Then clip the spring clip retainer onto the new filter output and squeeze the spring clip back together.

 

Now, as Paul Harvey would say, is the rest of the story...

When I bought the disconnect tools at Auto Zone I also got a filter - the wrong filter. The filter that their computer says fits an 07 F150 has 5/16" lines. I didn't realize mine was 3/8" until I had the Motorcraft removed and looked at them side-by-side.

There's a Napa store close so I looked on their website to see if they stocked the correct filter. Their website shows both a 5/16" and a 3/8" fuel filter for this truck. I hurried over there and bought the only 3/8" filter they had left. In this photo I show the incorrect (for my truck) Auto Zone filter, the Motorcraft stock filter and the Napa #FIL3243 Gold filter (3/8" correct for my truck).



I can't understand the variety of filters and clips that Ford has used on these trucks. But then again I guess nothing should surprise me from the company that brought us two-piece spark plugs.

Here's a photo of the fuel that came out of the tank side of my filter - not as dirty as others have posted.



Out of curiosity I cut the filter apart to see what the element looked like. Here's a few photos of that. Note that the metal filings on the element are from the hacksaw when I cut it apart.

 

I'm sure someone is bound to ask - but I admit I am ashamed to say how many miles were on the fuel filter that I removed today.

I bought the truck new in February 2007 and have put 111,385 miles on it before I changed this filter today. I KNOW, I KNOW - bad F150 owner!

To be honest, the fuel filter is one of the last items of preventative maintenance I think of. The truck has been running well, at least since I changed the spark plugs (that's another story).

I don't know how many of you have the red clip fuel filters, but I hope that this posting may help someone preparing for this procedure. Good Luck.

 

Very nice pictures. I also had to make two trips to two different parts stores after discovering under the truck that there are two different sized filters that may go on these trucks. Yay. My filter must have never been changed before (truck bought w/45K already on it)...very nasty what came out it.

 

Great write up and awesome pictures, I too had two different filters sold to me. Good thing I had another form of transport to get me back to the parts store to get the right one.

 

I had another vehicle, the wife's Jeep - only problem is I had my truck blocking the garage. It took a phone call to the son to get a ride to NAPA.

 

Great write up, not much different from my year.
You should have plugged both sides of the filter, shake it, and you'll see how dirty it was. For 111,385 that's super clean lol...
I just changed mine twice (last year and few weeks ago), and the second time still came out very dirty.

 

Depending on your conditions, the Ford service manual recommends changing the fuel filter from every 15,000 to 30,000 miles. 15K for severe, and 30K for normal. I follow the severe conditions for police, taxi, and delivery vehicles because I see a lot of stop & go in The City, and I'm at WOT trying to come up to 70 mph freeway speeds from a standstill at a red metering light.

 

Another tip is to first climb under the truck and get the Ford part number on the filter. The filter rotates pretty easily inside it's bracket if you need to turn it a bit to see the number. That way you eliminate the (very strong) possibility of getting the wrong filter and only go to the parts store once.

 

AWESOME write up!! I have wasted over an hour trying to fiddle with my filter-removal tool and figured out how to remove the red clip. Now I am afraid that the scissor-like tool that I bought isnt working so its off to go get those plastic ones.

 

Great Writeup. I changed mine yesterday with the help of this thread and two others. 44K on the original filter, and it was nasty. When I removed it, I accidentally tilted the tank side of the filter down and black fuel ran out. I had to look twice because I didnt think I would have ever saw that much crud coming out. Tried to blow through it and nothing. Cut it open, and it looked similar to the one pictured above.

Also, dont know it is phsycological or what, but the truck seems to run/drive better. Who knows? Either way, it was a simple 5 minute PM to do, that I will now include regularly.

Thanks again,

Ghost0217