HFCM interference and Wix filters...

66glide · February 12, 2014

I have a 33899 Wix filter pictured next to the proper Ford filter for an '06 F250.

Here is a pic of the inside of the HFCM.

The Ford filter has a cylindrical protrusion with an O-ring that seals in the inner bore at the far end of the HFCM. The Wix has a flat rubber gasket and needs to "butt up" against the far end. You can see how the Ford filter does not seat as far in as the wix. There is a small "flap valve" that can be seen on the RH side of the HFCM inside. I sweat the flat surface of the Wix filter interferes in this area causing either leakage past the primary filter or interfering with that small valve. Two questions...

What is the purpose of that valve?

Has anyone else run into this? In the past, I always felt the last turn or so of the filter cover when installing a Wix felt...not quite right. I wish I looked harder at the differences a long time ago, but I did not. I am located in a rural area, and have always liked the quality of Wix, and they are easy to source locally. I have not used their hokey oil filters with the combined cap on the 6.0L for awhile, and now likely will not use these fuel filters. Opinions? The Wix rep has been notified. I am waiting to hear what they have to say.

fabfoes87 · February 12, 2014

Can someone please post the original document from Ford describing the differnce of these filters? Ive been trying to sway the opinion of my shop manager of the Wix filters we use in our 6.4. The suposed non removeble cap on Wix oil filters have been seperating everytime we service it.

Aaron · February 12, 2014

Just price him out a HPFP and 8 injectors and say for the difference of x dollars, you could save this much dough by having the proper working filters.

That flap is the bypass if there is a restriction on the outlet I think. I have one at work I will look at tomorrow and see if that's the case.

blown99 · February 12, 2014

I just ran into this tonight myself. To me, it looked like the wix filter seals on the stand tube in the filter housing vs the oem uses the snout with the o-ring to seal to the aluminum bore. If I remember correctly, that flapper is a pressure regulator of only a few psi for the hfcm. Filtered fuel goes through the outside of the filter element, then through the standpipe. The wix filter bottoming in the filter housing does not create the seal for the filter, the filter sealing on the standpipe is what makes the seal.

Keith Browning · February 12, 2014

66glide · February 12, 2014

I just ran into this tonight myself. To me, it looked like the wix filter seals on the stand tube in the filter housing vs the oem uses the snout with the o-ring to seal to the aluminum bore. If I remember correctly, that flapper is a pressure regulator of only a few psi for the hfcm. Filtered fuel goes through the outside of the filter element, then through the standpipe. The wix filter bottoming in the filter housing does not create the seal for the filter, the filter sealing on the standpipe is what makes the seal.

That makes sense. I want to do some measurements to see just how far the wix goes into the housing and verify it can't interfere with the valve. Either way, the Ford filter O-ring seal inspires more confidence than the Wix system.

Alex Bruene · February 13, 2014

Can someone please post the original document from Ford describing the differnce of these filters? Ive been trying to sway the opinion of my shop manager of the Wix filters we use in our 6.4. The suposed non removeble cap on Wix oil filters have been seperating everytime we service it.

That oil filter is by far the worst filter on the market. Anybody that has any pride in the work they do would refuse to use that filter.

Alex Bruene · February 13, 2014

Version 2.0 is better... It shows the WIX filter...

Fordracer · February 15, 2014

Here's a good reason not to use WIX filters. The pictures below are from filters out of a 6.4. The last three complete fuel system replacements I did came in one right after the other with filters that looked exactly like these. Two of them were trucks from the Kansas Department of Transportation. They called their supplier and they called WIX and two days later WIX had a rep come out and look at the filters but they refused to help pay the bill.

This secondary filter has a lip on the bottom of it that gets scrapped off on the fuel pressure regulator bolts during installation. I don't know if these pieces plug any passages in the fuel system and starving the pump causing it to destroy itself.

This is the top of the primary filter.

This is the bottom of the primary filter.

This is a side view of the primary filter. This filter doesn't have the vent hole in it causing the top half of the filter housing to be full of air and not fuel. This might cause the fuel to aerate with the air and cause damage to the high pressure pump.

Matt Saunoras · February 15, 2014

Wow, I have seen aftermarket filters come out looking like that quite often. Never really could figure out why. I've had at least 3-4 half dirty filters come out of 6.0s and 6.4s in the last month.