Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community - FT86CLUB - View Single Post - Stock In-Tank Fuel Filter Degradation

sw20kosh · 05-29-2013, 03:17 PM

Let's try this again. Please keep this informational and factual.

The Issue:
*****It is not proven that E85 will destroy your filter. This is one case of it happening on an almost track-exclusive car.*****

@robispec found out (while diagnosing high rpm hesitation) that the combination of E85 + high flow (maxed out stock injectors) + lots of track competitions (~5k on E85) = a disintegrated fuel pump filter (not the sock filter). No fuel additives were ever used.

The filter:
1. Is encased in the plastic bucket that the fuel pump sits in.
2. Is not serviceable.
3. Is attached with adhesive that may or may not be susceptible to Ethanol degradation.
4. Is composed of a fibrous felt-like material that disseminated throughout Robi's fuel system.
5. The enclosure with the filter in it costs ~$106.65. Part#: 42052CA110
https://www.subarugenuineparts.com/oe_parts_cat.html

Prevalence:
Only one incident of filter degradation so far.

Many other's have been on E85 with no issues thus far though most if not all do not come close to the amount of tracking Robi's car sees.

A counter point to this issue is Don @ Accelerated Performance's car which also has ~5k miles on E85. He sees no problems with his filter. Some argue he hasn't run his car consistently hard like Robi has.

The solution:
We can add various solutions as we go.

I do have a question though: Is this filter even required? Is the sock filter sufficient? Can a new bucket be designed without a filter? Is there a reasonably safe way to cut open the enclosure, remove the filter, and then seal it back up?

If this filter was not absolutely necessary, one could mount an in-line filter downstream of the pump.

Robi's pics of the fibrous filter material:

This is how the filter should look ( @Don@Accelerated picture)

Sportsguy's pic of the enclosure housing the filter:

05-29-2013, 03:17 PM	#1
sw20kosh Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Drives: 2013 Black FR-S Location: SF Posts: 3,030 Thanks: 881 Thanked 2,014 Times in 990 Posts Mentioned: 153 Post(s) Tagged: 1 Thread(s)	Stock In-Tank Fuel Filter Degradation Let's try this again. Please keep this informational and factual. The Issue: ***It is not proven that E85 will destroy your filter. This is one case of it happening on an almost track-exclusive car.* @robispec found out (while diagnosing high rpm hesitation) that the combination of E85 + high flow (maxed out stock injectors) + lots of track competitions (~5k on E85) = a disintegrated fuel pump filter (not the sock filter). No fuel additives were ever used. The filter: 1. Is encased in the plastic bucket that the fuel pump sits in. 2. Is not serviceable. 3. Is attached with adhesive that may or may not be susceptible to Ethanol degradation. 4. Is composed of a fibrous felt-like material that disseminated throughout Robi's fuel system. 5. The enclosure with the filter in it costs ~$106.65. Part#: 42052CA110 https://www.subarugenuineparts.com/oe_parts_cat.html Prevalence: Only one incident of filter degradation so far. Many other's have been on E85 with no issues thus far though most if not all do not come close to the amount of tracking Robi's car sees. A counter point to this issue is Don @ Accelerated Performance's car which also has ~5k miles on E85. He sees no problems with his filter. Some argue he hasn't run his car consistently hard like Robi has. The solution: We can add various solutions as we go. I do have a question though: Is this filter even required? Is the sock filter sufficient? Can a new bucket be designed without a filter? Is there a reasonably safe way to cut open the enclosure, remove the filter, and then seal it back up? If this filter was not absolutely necessary, one could mount an in-line filter downstream of the pump. Robi's pics of the fibrous filter material: This is how the filter should look ( @Don@Accelerated picture) Sportsguy's pic of the enclosure housing the filter:** Last edited by sw20kosh; 05-31-2013 at 05:12 PM.