How To Change A Fuel Filter On A Saturn Sl

One of the worst bug that tin happen to your Saturn SL is a bad fuel filter. When the filter goes bad, it can limit the amount of fuel that enters the engine. Without fuel, the vehicle will not run at all. With that in mind, most of the symptoms of a bad fuel filter revolve effectually the vehicle stalling out.

Bad Fuel Filter Diagnosis Saturn SL

Fuel filters accept been making a rearward progression for the terminal 50 years, literally. For a long fourth dimension, y'all'd find it nether the hood. Information technology looked like a little pill, and it would be quick and easy to replace. This was in the era of carbureted vehicles.

Things began to change in the 80's. Fuel injection requires college fuel pressure. Higher fuel pressure meant that a more robust fuel filter would be required. This meant the fuel filter was no longer left under the hood. Information technology was put in the steel fuel line, betwixt the gas tank and engine bay.

These fuel filters were more reliable, only they as well were tougher to change. Repairing them means getting under the vehicle and disconnecting steel fittings. It really still isn't that difficult to bargain with, as long as you give the vehicle a few minutes for the fuel pressure to go down.

The practiced news is, no matter how former your SL is, the symptoms of a bad fuel filter are universal. It doesn't matter if it's in-tank or in-line. And, fuel filters are cheap.

Signs of a Bad Fuel Filter: Saturn SL

Saturn SL Bad Fuel Filter Diagnosis — Typical Fuel Filter

At that place are physical signs that you can experience when your SL's fuel filter is bottleneck. Before taking annihilation apart, check to encounter if your engines calculator has any trouble codes saved in it.

The engine may throw a P0087 problem lawmaking. This trouble lawmaking detects that the fuel track/system pressure level is too low. Whatsoever trouble codes that be could be a inkling. Sometimes when there is low fuel pressure, you may also go an oxygen sensor related trouble lawmaking every bit well. The real upshot with diagnosing a bad fuel filter is that it resembles many other vehicular bug in terms of symptoms.

Here are the nearly common symptoms of a bad fuel filter in your Saturn SL:

Sputtering Nether Load

The merely fashion that you are going to know that your SL's fuel filter may be going out is that it is no longer letting enough fuel through to continue the engine running nether a heavy load, or at high-speed. Typically, if you are heading up a hill (or accelerating) the engine may offset to feel like it is but running out of steam. That's what it feels like with a bad fuel filter.

Now, a bad fuel filter can as well experience a heck of a lot like a bad catalytic converter. Both weather condition will make the motor feel like it is running out of current of air when yous hit the gas. A bad catalytic converter will not experience as jarring. It'southward a smooth lack of ability. If you lot are unsure, check out this article on troubleshooting catalytic converters. If you get P0420 or P0430 trouble codes with a scanner, it very well may exist the catalytic converter causing these symptoms.

Hard to Kickoff Engine

One of the best indicators of a chock-full fuel filter is going to exist that the your SL is difficult to start. This because there's not plenty fuel pressure to properly atomize the fuel equally information technology enters the combustion chamber.

If your car is difficult to start, a chock-full fuel filter would probably not be the place to kickoff looking, especially if you lot are getting no trouble code for fuel pressure level or the oxygen sensors.

Instead, we'd recommend taking a expect at the ignition system first. Often information technology'll be bad spark plugs, or a bad whorl pack.

Engine Non Starting

If the fuel filter has get and so contaminated that the minimum corporeality of fuel has not been let through information technology, the engine won't commencement at all.

At the well-nigh basic of levels your Saturn SL needs three things to commencement: Air, fuel, and spark. If any of these things aren't nowadays, the engine won't turn over at all. If there'due south been goose egg alarm that the fuel filter could exist going bad (hesitation, difficulty starting, etc) than a clogged fuel filter might non exist the place to start. It could certainly cause the problem though.

Here's a great video on using your eyes to diagnose the fuel filter:

It Could Too be Your SL's Fuel Pump

A fuel pump that is going out is going to feel the aforementioned as a bad fuel filter. This makes telling if you accept a bad fuel pump vs bad fuel filter very challenging.

How practice you tell them autonomously? A clogged fuel filter will have loftier pressure on its input side and low pressure on its output side. They are both going to crusade the aforementioned hesitation at high speed and difficulty starting. The only way to truly tell is to identify a fuel pressure guess on both sides of the line and get a reading from both.

If your car isn't starting at all, and you hear the fuel pump prime that is usually a skilful indication that the pump is working to some chapters. Testing your SL'south fuel pressure on each side of the pump would be the best way to diagnose this problem.

A priming fuel pump sounds similar a high-pitched whine for a few seconds and tin can be heard with a sharp engine correct later the ignition key is turned, only earlier the starter is engaged.

Decision: Saturn SL Bad Fuel Pump

The symptoms of a bad fuel pump match a lot of other common problems that can occur in the Saturn SL. Testing the filter and pressure on each side of it are going to be the quickest ways to rule information technology out. If at that place is annihilation you would like to add together, please get out a comment below. Skillful luck!