I'm posting this as a supplement to the write up in the 101 Projects book and Pedro's site, and in the hope that it might help someone who's doing this job for the first time.
Sorry, I didn't take pictures, but there are plenty on the interwebs.
Not to get to the punchline first, but one of the steps that seems simple in most descriptions is in fact the most troublesome aspect of the process: removing the ground wire from the old filter. More about this in a moment; here are the steps I followed:
- Remove negative terminal battery cable
- Remove gas cap
- Make sure you're working in a well ventilated area
- Remove plastic shroud beneath the center of the car (10mm socket or driver)
- Remove foam piece
- Remove plastic bracket around the two coolant pipes
- I also removed the (similar) plastic bracket that's further back toward the engine
- This is where you normally remove the ground wire. Instead, I positioned my drain pan and disconnected the fuel line connector toward the front of the vehicle; about 3-4 ozs. drained from the filter
- After a few minutes I disconnected the connector on the rear of the filter; more fuel drained from the filter
- I then completely loosened the strap that secures the filter until I could remove the strap from the bracket it goes beneath, so I could move the filter around to a more convenient position
- Then, and only then, was I able to remove the ground wire. The female connector has a small pin that engages a hole in the male spade connector that's connected to the filter. Only by pulling the filter down almost between the two coolant pipes was i able to get the wire off by depressing the pin with a small screwdriver. (I also semi-mangled the plastic sheath that covers the female connector in order to be able to get at the pin; I'm sure there's a better way, but that's what I did)
- Once that was done I installed the new filter and reversed all the previous steps
- Make sure you pull on the fuel line connectors and ground wire to make sure they're securely connected before buttoning things up
- Also, DON'T FORGET to reinstall your gas cap, or you may throw a code
Bottom line: there was no way I could get the ground wire off without pulling the filter down between or near the coolant pipes, mangling the plastic cover that's on the female connector, and then pushing on the little retainer tab with a small screwdriver while pulling on the connector with my other hand.
It makes perfect sense that Porsche used this type of connector; lying on my back on a creeper beneath the car, I just found it impossible to disconnect the wire without getting the filter lower and rotated around so I had access to the tab on the female connector.
Hope this helps!!
Links:
101 Projects - Fuel Filter
Pedro's Garage - Fuel Filter
Helpful blog post - see bottom of page