fuel filter 88 ford festiva L

[redstiva]

I am attempting to replace the fuel filter on my festiva and ford thought it would be funny to put a part that needs to be changed frequently in a place hard to get to. Does anyone have a easy way to do it? looking for pointers such as remove this or that and you get right to it....something my hands and forearms thank you in advance

[batstiva]

If there's an easy way, I never found it. Just gotta kind of screw your hands in there.

[ejp2fast]

hard way or no way.

[redstiva]

great.....has anyone ever relocated the filter?

[WmWatt]

You might find it easier to remove the bracket from the firewall. Also the charcoal cannister is easy to unfasten from the fender and shove out of the way. Be watchfull of the vaccum hoses. I tend to dislodge one of the charcoal cannister hoses and then smell gas fumes until it's reconnected.

[redstiva]

thanks I got it replaced but i am sill having the same problem it will start it will idle for 5 seconds or less and then will die. It has gas and now a new filter. Any ideas on what it could be? cause I'm stumped

[jglutz]

It's a pain....one of those that you leave some knuckle skin behind.

I stand in front of the car....lay over the engine...place my left hand down towards the oil filter the weave it under the manifold towards the filter...use my rigth hand down under the master cylinder to assist.

[ejp2fast]

there is a fuel cut off inertia switch on top of the the drivers side rear strut.. make sure thats not tripped. may be hard to locate for the first time, but there is a little 1" hole to put your finger in where the button is..

[redstiva]

Ok Now what's happening is it will start and run as long as I feather the throttle but it will not continue running it keeps shutting off. When I drove it back from Houston it did something similar going down the road it would sputter then shut off it did this three times for about a 5 mile stretch. once I got to Seguin I put a few gallons in and lucas, and no problems for the rest of that week then it happened again as I was leaving the house it sputtered and shut off once I put it in 1st gear and tried to take off. put a gallon of gas from a gas can I had, started right up drove it to the gas station and filled it up with 3.47 gallons (?) ran fine for another 5 days or so. Now I put a gallon in and it cranked right up and then died now will not start.....?
My opinion is the tank has lots of garbage in it but I am looking for other Ideas.

[redstiva]

oh and I will try the fuel cutt-off when I get back to the house ejp2fast

[WmWatt]

Sediment in the fuel tank? Sounds like you're having problem when low on fuel.

[ejp2fast]

problem probably isn't your inertia switch, if you are getting fuel... yeah, junk in the fuel tank or bad gas sounds like your issue.. keep the tank filled up (over 1/2 tank) for a couple hundred miles.. when fuel tank is low, sometimes H2O condeses on the inside of the tank..
also i'd suggest some seafoam in the fuel tank.. that stuff works wonders.

[redstiva]

seafoam over lucas? I will do that thanks a bunch. My cousin also said I may have fouled a plug will pull them tonight and see. Does that sound like something else that could contribute to this problem?