trying not to type too much due to gas on hands. i was trying to change the filter and on mine i have 3 hoses going to it. the one going to the engine was easy. the other 2 find out they are circular. well long story short they broke and i need some. does auto parts store sell them? no they didnt come in the package with the filter.
will have to wait for my wife to get home since i would be driving with loose fuel filter...and i kinda ran out of gas while coming home.

thats another thread.

 

One of mine broke. I ziptied it back on.

 

i went to oreillys and got a set of clips. worked as designed on the one going to the engine but the 2 that broke didnt work well. i tugged on it and it didnt come out so im happy for now.

 

I think napa carries them.

 

If you broke the quick-disconnect ends, you can sometimes use a small zip-tie on the two smaller conections, on the larger of the three you can use the plastic clip from an older fuel filter design, or a larger zip-tie. Hopefully you can get away with that, if they are too damaged and you need a new line, hopefully you can find one at the local junkyard. Ford sells the compleat fuel/brake line set as a whole and it is very expensive.

 

it was just the clips. found out in another thread by graniteguy that you push them in. not pull them out. durh on my count.

 

You should of asked someone before you went under there.....trust me, I didn't and man o' man, what a mess. First time I ever seen these type of clips. Everyone was telling me to get a fuel line tool....so I did, spent an hour trying to get it to work with no luck....found out later that we don't need the tool....just to use your thumb to push the coloured tab in........son of a b****. Anyway, here's a tid bit of info for anyone else planning on doing a filter replacement.

LINKY LINK

 

this is my second ranger just jumped under there when i got off work on last saturday and did it. figured it was easy...oh well its done, learning experience. pass on the info to the next person so they dont make the mistake.

 

I wish I had searched on this topic a week ago. Last weekend I attempted to change my fuel filter. I thought the orange and green rings were supposed to be pulled out, not pushed in. I wound up breaking a ring, and left the job for the dealer.

The dealership wants $450 (parts and labor) to fix the fuel line. They want to do all of my fuel lines, even though I only broke one ring. I guess the service part number includes all three lines.

 

Sears has this: Lisle AC/Fuel Line Disconnect Tool Set


Sears item #00946337000 Mfr. model #37000
Easily disconnects air conditioning lines and quick connect fuel lines. Used on spring lock couplings on Ford and Chrysler air conditioning lines.


If you messed up the retainers, you might consider carrying a fire extinguisher, until you can get them fixed.

 

i am the one that learned the hard way about the dealership fixing broken fuel lines :(

for the price they charge to change a filter i think it is worth it. if you break the clip then you need to replace the fuel line and that turned into all of the fuel lines from the filter back = about $450

 

My brother has a fuel line removal tool, so I'll have him mail it to me. I looked at a fuel line removal tool at Napa, and it looks nothing like the one AeroDoc posted from Sears. The fire extinguisher always lives in the truck, but after two weeks and 1000 miles with no retaining clip, no problems.

And I should have just gone to the dealer for the fuel fiter change, rather than attempting to try it myself. Why do I always begin a project and it ends with more broken parts and money than originally planned???

Since I can't find the retaining rings anywhere, the current plan is to go to the junk yard, remove one end of the fuel line from the filter, cut the fuel line in the middle, and take it home with the good retaining ring inside.

Thanks for all the help from everyone.

 

I have several different styles of the fuel line removal tools and have found that none of them will fit in between the tiny gap between the filter and fuel lines on the smaller two lines. The tool fits easily into the larger line, but is not needed. I fought like hell several time trying to use the removal tool, for the smaller two line it simply will not fit. I asked a mechanic at my work how to get the lines off and he told me to simply push on the colored retaining clip with my thumb while gently pulling on the line. I tried that and was amazed that they came right off very easy. May not work for ever year, but I have done several 2003's, 2004's since learning this and every one has come right off.

 

well if anybody needs a fuel line then shoot me a PM. i think i still have all of the original lines that are still good

 

I think I should be able to get the two retaining rings that are still intact without any problems. In the line that I tried to remove, I pulled out most of the ring without removing the fuel line. A part of the ring is still inside the fitting, so I think that's what's still holding the line on. It has about 1/8" of end play, but I can't yank it off of the fuel filter.

After I find a junkyard retaining ring, my worry is that I won't be able to get the fuel line off the filter that has the broken ring inside of it. I'll just have to remove the fuel filter and the entire line at once. If that's the case, I'll have to replace the entire line.

Jacob, if I need a line, you will definitely hear from me. Do you have the fuel line readily accessible? I'm not sure what the purpose of the line is (what it's called) since there are two lines from the tank to the filter, but I'd be interested in the line that has the orange ring in it. Also, does your line have retaining rings at both ends? Or whatever retention fastener is used at the fuel-tank end of the line? Lastly, how much would you want for it?

Sorry for all the questions, but in the event I run into trouble, I can't afford to have much (well any, really) down time, and I'd like to know that your line is available as a contingency. Thanks.

 

If you happen to break one of the retaining rings, you can remove the entire ring and use a smaill zip-tie to hold the fuel line on.

 

I've read where people have done just what you're talking about; broken a ring and used a zip tie to hold the fitting on the filter. I bought a 5-pack of the "traditional" fuel line retaining clips; the ones that have legs that are about 3/4" long and pinch together near the end. On the opposite end is a triangle-shaped ear that allows you to pull the clip out of the fitting. I'm not sure if this will fit the style of fitting that is used on the Ranger, but the dimensions and proportions look right. If that doesn't work out, I'll just use the zip tie until I can find a permanent fix.

 

The traditional old style clips will work great if you can find the correct size. My '03 has 2 smaller fuel lines and 1 larger fuel line, the plastic clip from a filter for a '92 escort fits the larger fuel line perfectly, but I have not found one two fit the 2 smaller lines. I only know this because a few of my buddies don't like asking for help and ruined the connections on there fuel lines. One clip and 2 small zip-ties or 2 small zip-ties and 1 medium zip-tie and you save the crazy price Ford wants for the fuel/brake line kit that is only sold as a compleat kit.

 

I've got the same fuel line setup on my '02 as you have on the '03. I'll try the "traditional" clips first, but will likely have to resort to the zip ties. Luckily, I already have the small zip ties on-hand, so if I have a problem my truck won't be down until I can get parts.

And the parts kit price from Ford is insanely high... $235 for the brake/fuel line kit! Plus $215 in labor to put the new fuel line in. All for a $0.12 ring! I can't blame Ford though, I work in the parts department for a heavy truck manufacturer, and we do the same thing with our parts kits.

Thanks for the tips!

 

i will try looking at all of the good lines and post tomm.

only one line was damaged

 

Cool. Thanks man.

 

Just an update on my broken fuel fitting. Not being able to find a $0.10 plastic snap ring that I broke while attempting the fuel filter change, and not wanting to spend $450 at the dealership to get it fixed, I found a replacement part at Napa.

I used a replacement fitting which fits a 5/16" metal tube (as in what is on the fuel fiter) and it uses a "traditional" styled retaining clip. The other end was about 20" of 5/16" line. I clipped this off, leaving about 5" still attached to the fitting. I clipped the fuel line with the broken retaining ring so that the cut ends of each line were within about 1/8" of each other.

The replacement fitting kit comes with a brass hose barb. Immersing each end of the plastic tubing in hot water for 30 seconds softened it enough to get the hose barb in. I had to soak a rag in hot water and wrap it around the line that was still on the truck from the fuel tank. Once the plastic cools, the hose barb will not move in or out!

Bottom line: $26 for the repair part from Napa is a lot more than a $0.10 retaining ring, but a LOT less than $450 from Ford. Thanks to everyone who offered their advice. What I have now is a non-factory fitting, but it's easier to service, and I'm 100% confident in not having any problems from this fitting. Thanks again!