Most of us 2011-2016 6.7 owners keep a spare cup on hand along with spare set of filter. There are two different cups for the 2016 truck depending on when it was made. The newer cup is fairly large water containment area compared to the older up.

I think either will work on the 2011-2016 truck. Ford replace the complete DFCM (frame fuel pump/filter assembly) 6 months ago and the cup is not the new style but the old BC3Z style.

fuel filter cap

FC4Z-9G270-A - filter cup - larger water containment area
BC3Z-9G270-D - standard filter cup

You might want to acquire a new cup in case the "nut" breaks out of the cup bottom.


When you go to remove the cup to change the filter and get it to turn, losen the cup THREE (3) turn and then open the yellow drain valve. The 3 turns of the cup breaks the suction action of the filter cup to the tank otherwise you might drain the tank before it stops.

When you go to put the cup back on, use CLEAN MOTOR OIL on the green o-ring and then install the cup. There is a stop on the cup and on the DFCM. Tighten till the two stops meet. Hopefully no one has broken them off.

Good luck.

 

Thats my problem. I CAN'T get the bottom to turn. The whole assembly starts turning. Tried strap wrenches, tried turning the nut, tried a breaker bar. It DOESN'T unscrew, the whole unit starts turning...

As I said originally, I found a LOT of threads different places that talked about having to chisel the thing apart 'cause they couldn't get it to turn... Or taking the large vise grips and breaking it, then breaking off pieces til it came loose. This seems like a REALLY bad thing to have to do to change a lousy fuel filter.

Once I have it off, it's easy from there and I'll grease up the o-ring and threads so it HOPEFULLY comes off in the future, but HOW do I get this thing loose without turning the whole assembly?

 

Let me ask this did you use oil or something to lube the oring? Also did you get on it when changing last time? If so you may have to break it to change it. You could try impact and just tap or burp it so not hammering on it hard just a rap to try to break it loose. Hope this helps.

 

If the whole DFCM is turning, I would think you a damaged mount for the DFCM to the bracket and frame. There is a pad on the frame side of the DFCM that should prevent it from turning as a unit and I would think the mounting studs go through this pad.

A new DFCM with cup, filter, WIF and drain is approx 290 to 400 depending on where you purchase it and if it is Motorcraft or Ford packaging.

The 4 nuts, a few fuel connectors and two electrical connectors and you can remove it as a unit and then see what your problem is.

Of the 4 forums I regularly visit, I have yet to see any threads in the last 5 years about the complete DFCM rotating or the cup stuck to the point of can't remove it. There are many cases where the "nut" was broken out.

 

The nut itself doesn't turn, the housing does. Is the lift pump moving too?

 

I haven't seen any topics about the whole DFCM rotating, just a number about destroying the bottom piece. Which is part of the problem - this one turns. It didn't turn far, but as I said - I'm leaving and don't have time for the truck to be disabled because I did something stupid.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure where the lift pump is. Is it what's in the upper part of the housing? If so, would it turn as the housing does or are they separate? I only know that the upper piece of what I think of as the fuel filter is rotating a small amount when I attempt to turn the lower piece (the one with the water drain).

I didn't change it the first time. I was in New Mexico or Arizona or some such and had it changed there 'cause it was overdue and the truck was being serviced... I presume they took whatever measure were normal for ensuring that the unit was properly assembled.

It appears there aren't any magic bullets for getting this thing off.

 

Lift pump is just the pump part of the assembly.

If the whole shebang is twisting, you might need to remove it and put it in a bench. O ring probably wasn't oiled.

I use diesel fuel not oil for the o ring fwiw.

 

Our trucks do NOT have a "lift" pump. That is a term originated by an aftermarket companies. Lift pump defines an aftermarket low pressure pump that is external to the DFCM.

The DFCM contains the low pressure pump and the fuel filter. There is NO pump in the tank on our 6.7l 2011-2016 diesels.

Wish people would use correct terminology for the parts to a stock fuel system.

 

For what it's worth, I appreciate your accuracy. Better to be accurate than overly polite when it comes to technical advice that could cost someone $$$$

 

I bet your fun at parties.

 

Lot more fun than you telling untruths about the facts...

 

you might need a snickers.

no need to get upset over me calling the part of the DFCM that lifts fuel out of the tank and pumps it to the HPFP a "lift pump".

 

The low pressure pump DOES NOT lift the fuel out of the tank. The low pressure pump in the DFCM sucks the fuel out of the tank and supplies it to the HPFP. The HPFP does NOT lift the fuel from anything much less the DFCM. The HPFP pressurizes the fuel supplied by the DFCM low pressure pump to the pressure required by the ECM for the engine to operate.

If you are going to talk about the fuel system then do it correctly.

This is what Ford described the 6.7 fuel system as containing and performing...no place in the Ford description does it mention "lift pump"

Fuel System — Diesel Engine

The diesel fuel system consists of the following:

• Fuel tubes
• Vapor tube (midship fuel tank)
• Fuel filters (located on the engine and in the fuel conditioning module)
• Fuel level sensor
• Fuel tank filler pipe assembly
• Fuel tank
• Fuel tank selector switch (if equipped)
• Fuel tank selector valve (if equipped)
• High-pressure fuel system (located on the engine)
• Diesel fuel conditioning module (located on the LH frame rail)
• Inertia Fuel Shutoff (IFS) switch (located on the RH side of the instrument panel)
• Low fuel pressure switch (located on the supply line between the engine mounted fuel filter and high pressure pump)

The fuel system for the high-pressure common rail direct injection turbocharged diesel engine:

• is controlled by the PCM.
• utilizes a diesel fuel conditioning module, which contains an electric Fuel Pump (FP) and incorporates a fuel filter and water separator assembly.

The electric FP :

• draws fuel from the fuel tank.
• circulates fuel at low pressure through the 10 micron fuel filter located in the diesel fuel conditioning module to the engine mounted secondary fuel filter and fuel injectors to initially fill the hydraulic couplers. The fuel is filtered through the 2 to 4 micron engine mounted secondary fuel filter, and then supplied to the high-pressure fuel injection pump. Fuel is returned from the injectors through the fuel injector return hose and combines with fuel being supplied to the inlet of the engine mounted secondary fuel filter. Fuel that is returned from the fuel rail combines with fuel being returned from the high-pressure fuel injection pump and passes through the frame mounted fuel cooler to the diesel fuel conditioning module. The diesel fuel conditioning module contains a thermal recirculating valve that, based on fuel temperature, allows the returning fuel to be sent through the fuel conditioning module or sent back to the fuel tank.

Fuel Filter/Water Separator

The vehicle is equipped with a diesel fuel conditioning module. The diesel fuel conditioning module contains a fuel filter and water separator. Drain the water from the diesel fuel conditioning module at the recommended maintenance intervals. Refer to the Owner's Literature for the maintenance intervals.

While the engine is running a water in fuel indicator on the instrument panel or a “Water in Fuel, Drain Filter” message on the instrument panel message center will alert the operator. When this occurs drain the water from the diesel fuel conditioning module as soon as possible to prevent damage to the fuel injection system.


The above excerpt if from the 2016 Ford Workshop DVD...

Might help to know what the termanology is if you need repairs to your fuel system by a dealer....

 

I doubt getting hung up about a part that sucks vs lifts or supplies vs pumps is gong to make a difference at any shop.

We're saying the same thing. The. Exact. Same. Thing.

 

then use the correct words so as to not confuse a novice or even someone with experience....duh..

 

I did use the correct words.

 

I hate to be that guy. Ford did use the term "lift pump" at some point in the past. On the obs 7.3's they only had a "tandem lift pump" (how it can be tandem with only 1 pump I have no idea, dual stage I could see).
In 6.7 land the "low pressure fuel pump" is located inside the DFCM (diesel fuel conditioning module) to draw fuel from the tank and supply fuel to the HPFP.

Back to the post the whole thing should be stationary. It sounds like you have tried the best suggestions without breaking it. I'd either try that some more (it'll move eventually) or break it.

 

Y'all,

Thanks for the replies. There's just one piece of information I DIDN'T have... When you're laying on the ground under the truck, looking up at the fuel filter, there's a lower section that's smooth and has the electrical plug and the fuel drain. And there's a flange about 3 inches up the makes it LOOK like the BOTTOM piece should be the part that unscrews. Then, going up, there's the continued housing that goes up into the frame and such.......

And when I turned the piece that was SUPPOSED to come off, yes, the DFCM does turn, but only a little, and when I screwed the filter housing back on, it moved back to where it had been... It was that 1/4 inch of movement that made me leery of using the bigger hammer...

All this time, I've been trying to separate the LOWER piece, about 3 inches high, from the piece above the flange... So, it WASN'T stuck, and when I kept turning the whole unit it WAS unscrewing the right piece....


Once again I have EXCELLED at the execution of "The Stupid Human Trick!"

Next time I'll know.

 

I am in the same boat you were in- my whole housing unit turns almost a quarter turn before I chicken out and turn it back. Are we sure if I keep cranking on it with the long handle that I won’t break something before the bottom of the housing starts to unscrew?

 

I was concerned enough that I took the truck over to a local shop that's familiar with them, told them my story, and they put it up in the air, grabbed a strap wrench and took it loose while I was there. THAT'S when I realized I was expecting the housing to separate in the wrong place. Once I saw THAT, and learned in here about lubricating the o-ring and such (I actually did already know that has to be done, but it didn't hurt to read it), and picked up a strap wrench, things got a lot easier! I've popped everything apart and changed the filter myself since then...

I DID ask the shop manager about the actual NEED to change the filters, since on most cars now they don't change them for some huge interval. His response was that here in the midwest (and maybe other parts of the country) there can be algae in there, as well as other stuff, that'll clog things. Is this because of increasing amounts of Biodiesel, or has it always been a problem?

After more research, I have realized that the reason we both were looking for the housing to separate in the wrong place is because of an altered design for 2016 only. The bottom cup is wider and longer for 2016, to allow for more warning of water in fuel before it would reach the engine. That made it look like, compared to the 2011-15 models that we see in all the filter change videos, that it should separate at a seam that is actually a seam where the new shape of the housing starts.
So now I'll grab the long handle and go ahead and crank it off!
Great tip to have a backup cup though, in case the plastic bolthead breaks. Use the 270-A part no. though, otherwise sellers will try to sell you the -D part, for 2011-15's. It might fit, but better to get the correct, improved one.

 

This is the most important post of the entire thread! Everyone that thinks the whole pump is spinning has a 2016 (post 5/15 build) Ford made the bowl separate higher up so it looks as thought something is wrong compared to all the other years. This persons post needs to have its own thread to save people a lot of headaches.