Technical 2008 3.0 fiat ducato fuel filter, how often should it be replaced?

[Marmitethecat]

Hi all,
how often should the fuel filter be replaced eg ' every year or every 10,000 miles- which ever comes first'??

 

[bugsymike]

Between 10,000 and 20,000 miles seems to be appropriate, though depending on where you are and the quality of fuel available, some seem to be neglected for the life of the vehicle to their detriment.
If possible to drain and inspect the fuel from the old filter it may give a guide to what's going on, apart from dirt and water, sometimes metal particles can appear from worn pumps.
Many years ago traveling over the moors in a strong wind the Peugeot 504 diesel pick up I was in was struggling, but on inspection the fuel tank and filter had a lot of water in it.

 

[Marmitethecat]

Between 10,000 and 20,000 miles seems to be appropriate, though depending on where you are and the quality of fuel available, some seem to be neglected for the life of the vehicle to their detriment.
If possible to drain and inspect the fuel from the old filter it may give a guide to what's going on, apart from dirt and water, sometimes metal particles can appear from worn pumps.
Many years ago traveling over the moors in a strong wind the Peugeot 504 diesel pick up I was in was struggling, but on inspection the fuel tank and filter had a lot of water in it.

well , someone suggested my fuel filter as at around 1800 rpm it starts rising and dropping by about 300 rpm, until i either increase rpm to above 2,000 or lower the rpm to 1500 or back to idle speed

 

[bugsymike]

Filter may have a fault , but I can't say I have heard that as a cure for what you describe, unless there is air getting into the fuel at some point.
Is there any error codes , even pending ones if read with a diagnostic tool?

 

[Marmitethecat]

no error codes, no eml light.. im wandering if it was throttle position sensor... but also when its cold the engine has a slightly uneven idle but onle very slight, kind of reminds me of an old lorry or bus where the the idle kind of 'trots'

 

[bugsymike]

no error codes, no eml light.. im wandering if it was throttle position sensor... but also when its cold the engine has a slightly uneven idle but onle very slight, kind of reminds me of an old lorry or bus where the the idle kind of 'trots'

Still horse related , but we used to call it "hunts or hunting", I think on the old lorries it was due to the mechanical governor kicking in to keep the engine idling, so the revs would go up and down as it corrected the engine idle speed.
If mainly when cold, just started up and for the first few minutes it may be due to heater plug operation or not as is the case, as trying to improve combustion on a cold engine, so could look in that direction. However if still doing it at normal engine temp then not related.
Any black or white smoke on start up from cold?
Have you checked fuel filter for any contaminants etc. It may be a good idea to change the filter anyway just for good maintenance.
Throttle issues usually throw up error codes.
What sort of mileage has the vehicle done?

 

[Marmitethecat]

Still horse related , but we used to call it "hunts or hunting", I think on the old lorries it was due to the mechanical governor kicking in to keep the engine idling, so the revs would go up and down as it corrected the engine idle speed.
If mainly when cold, just started up and for the first few minutes it may be due to heater plug operation or not as is the case, as trying to improve combustion on a cold engine, so could look in that direction. However if still doing it at normal engine temp then not related.
Any black or white smoke on start up from cold?
Have you checked fuel filter for any contaminants etc. It may be a good idea to change the filter anyway just for good maintenance.
Throttle issues usually throw up error codes.
What sort of mileage has the vehicle done?

Thanks for your reply, yeh i will replace the fuel filter, to see if that helps, i have the tool for it lol. But i wanted to know when it is recommended to be replaced to get into a good routine. I replace the engine oil no later than 10,000 miles, along with a new oil filter. Throttle issues i read bout people finding that the throttle control device on the front of the engine was rotting out due to moisture infiltration on the circuit board- but if that would bring up an EML then, that isnt an issue.
The van is at about 179,000 miles, no smoke when starting up, slight puff of black smoke when reved occassionaly, but ive learned as long as i drive it so the rpm is over 2,000 but under 3,000, then there isnt much build up of soot( previously the year before last it failed on emissions). It looses some engine oil, but not alot eg about uto 1 litre every 2,500 miles ish.. Some times its not loosing and tbh ive switched it to semisynth as on fully it appeared to use that alot quicker. The engine doesnt have a serious leak, slight residue around the power steering pump,which apparantly is not power steering fluid and the pipe at the top front, which i think is from the intercooler?? that has some oil residue on it that builds up over months.
I replaced all the earths with seriously thicker cable - so no more bad earths. My van is running a slightly larger battery than the standard Halfords option, it fits in nicely and gives me more crank amps and i dont get issues with it being difficult to crank in the winter.
This van isnt a camper, its a panel van that is driven every day for business uses( except at the moment because im waiting for parts to replace the clutch slave cylinder- unrelated to this thread question)