E36 fuel filter

Hey gents and ladies, I want to change my fuel filter soon, anyone know of a diagram or a pic of it somewhere? Also can I expect any performance gain out of changing it ? Thanks

Oh I forgot to mention it's a 1995 318ti

I know of 'heartaches' you may experience for having a clogged or failed fuel filter. resolution of these would be the performance benefit. Also unseen, a dirty fuel filer can cause more work for the fuel pump and possible failure of same. In one case with another vehicle my acceleration was suffering, started to develop rough Idle, etc. Not being where I could immediately access a replacement, I pulled the existing one and dumped it out the 'supply-side'..***** was I surprised I was getting anything through it. I then 'back-flushed' it with carbuerator cleaner and reinstalled. It worked great until I got a new one and had the time to install it. I clocked about 200-300 miles before that happened. I now make it part of my annual maintenance.

Originally Posted by Bimmer1995318ti

Hey gents and ladies, I want to change my fuel filter soon, anyone know of a diagram or a pic of it somewhere? Also can I expect any performance gain out of changing it ? Thanks

If you car is running smoothly now, you will not get any performance gain by replacing your fuel filter. Keep in mind that after fuel passes through the filter, it enters the fuel pressure regulator. This means that installing a clean filter will not allow gas to flow more freely to the injectors, since the FPR ensures stable fuel pressure, so long as fuel is able to pass through the filter.

On the other hand, if your current fuel filter is clogged and the engine is running poorly as a direct result of that, you will see a "performance gain" (aka: a return to normal).

Here is a DIY tutorial for fuel filter replacement. I'm not sure if the '95s have the filter located underneath or on the firewall, but I think it's underneath (as shown in the tutorial). Others will chime in to clarify.

http://www.dvatp.com/bmw/diy/fuel_filter/

Thanks a lot guys it's more of a maintenance before it needs to have attention thing for me which Is always best

Would replacing my fuel filter on my 1992 325I require the same process??

Nope. Your fuel filter is located on the firewall (and it's a lot more difficult to get to/replace).