fuel filter mounting differences

[defecater]

Had a friend mention to me before I ever owned a diesel that the 6.9 filters are WAY cheaper than the 7.3 filters. Said that he changed ther filter mount on his 7.3 over to the 6.9 style for the cheaper filters. I went ahead and pulled the fuel filter mount from an old 86 parts truck in my field this weekend, then compared it to the 7.3 in my truck- looks like it will bolt to the bracket just fine, the hard lines should fit too, and I believe I can deal with the other flexible lines, but there are a couple wires on the 7.3 housing that are not on the 6.9. What are these for?? Is this swap a good or bad idea??

 

[towcat]

the 6.9/7.3 brackets mount in the same place.
the difference is the 6.9 is a filter only
the 7.3 has the filter and water separator as one unit.
the 7.3 has a fuel heater in the filter base and has the "filter plugged" sensor.
the 6.9 has neither.

 

[LCAM-01XA]

To add to what Calvin said, if you choose to run a 6.9 filter in your 7.3, you will need to add a water separator somewhere before it - the 6.9 truck have it on the firewall next to the brake booster, but that separator is of poor design so it is to be avoided, you should probably look for some aftermarket setup.

 

[defecater]

Interesting,,,,, sounds like it may not be worth the trouble to switch, or is it??

 

[Agnem]

I would NOT switch! In fact, I have been doing the opposite. Switching to the 7.3 filter head for all my 6.9's. Doing so on a stock 6.9 eliminates the external fuel heater and water filter. Aside from that, I don't really know or care what the filter price difference is since I only swap it out once a year. It would seem odd to me to go through the effort of swapping to an older filter style just to save 10 or 20 bucks a year. I am however, trying to avoid the 2 piece filter, and am using the WIX filter in it's place.

 

[hesutton]

I would NOT switch! In fact, I have been doing the opposite. Switching to the 7.3 filter head for all my 6.9's. Doing so on a stock 6.9 eliminates the external fuel heater and water filter. Aside from that, I don't really know or care what the filter price difference is since I only swap it out once a year. It would seem odd to me to go through the effort of swapping to an older filter style just to save 10 or 20 bucks a year. I am however, trying to avoid the 2 piece filter, and am using the WIX filter in it's place.

Plus 2. I'm looking for a 7.3 filter head and water bowl for my "new" '86 Crew Cab.

Heath