Goodbye Stanadyne 80

[BrIONwoshMunky]

Hello 2 micron Racor 245.

While tracing down the air infiltration occuring in my rig after overnight sits, which caused nearly impossible cranking times, I discovered that the source was the heating element of the behind-the-intake mounted Stanadyne 80 filter housing. I'm glad they made it so obviously easy to service. :( After powering up the newly installed lift pump, and attempting to bleed the system, I was greeted with bubbles and fuel before I even cracked the bleed screw. Problem. Found.

Ordered a 245 from an online dealer. Now I just have to find a suitable mount location that will allow EASY service that doesn't require disassembly of anything to service the bugger.

I'll try to get some pictures (maybe even a short video) taken for posterity!

[DmaxMaverick]

Just FYI:

The Stanadyne "80" is the square filter mounted on the firewall of 6.2L rigs. The "100" is the round fuel manager normally seen on 6.5L rigs (and latest 6.2L), mounted at the rear of the intake.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

Yup. I've got the square/rectangular filter housing currently. Though it isn't mounted on the firewall, it appears to be the same as those that are, and definiately isn't the round cartridge type on the 6.5's.

[DmaxMaverick]

Very well.

I have NO idea what the rating of the 80 is, but they have never seemed to be lacking in the filtration quality department. Very effective, in my experience. When they are due for replacement, they won't pass anything, including water. They are very easy to replace (if done correctly), and don't get in the way. Their weakness, as you've discovered, is they will leak when they are very old. There is a fix for this, and may be the best option in most cases, as they are very reliable and rarely fail in any other way.

Beware, though. "2 micron" is rarely ever really "2 micron". Racor filters are good, but they have their testing methods, like all the rest, and the ratings are not what they appear to be. For example, a 30 micron absolute may be the exact same as a 2 micron nominal, and any filter stating "2 micron absolute" is not really that. It depends on the testing methods and conditions (read the fine print). In the end, a "true" 2 micron absolute filter would have to be so big to be effective, it would be impractical (unless you enjoy weekly changes). In the end, we use what works, and we also find that the actual filter performance claims are near the least significant factors. There are really good ones out there, but they are usually cost prohibitive.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

Thanks for the insight Dmax. I've been looking around at other filter mount posts/threads and it seems that the 80's are sometimes repairable with new o-rings and a bit of luck.

[DmaxMaverick]

More luck, and sometimes some J-B Weld. Even so, they aren't expensive to replace, if you shop around. It only has to work.

[More Power]

A couple of things about the Model-80....

The simple lip seals used in the rectangular filter element will allow air infiltration in the fuel filter housing IF the fuel tank cap isn't venting properly (holding too much vacuum) and IF the check-valve in the lift pump isn't checking.

The best feature of the model-80 is the ease of changing the elements, but the bad usually wins out... Jim

[Robyn]

I have had the same troubles with the GM filters. BOTH KINDS

A nice little L bracket bolted to the LH inner fender with the two very front most Bolts for the ABS unit works really well for the 230R2 Racor.

These are rated at 2 micron. They are a spin on cartridge and will plug up a tad faster than the GM filters (stock units) The best part is that they have a bowl on the bottom that you can see the water and junk and drain it with the engine running.

Carry a spare in back of the seat so if you need to, you can swap the filter on the road.

I have had mine stop up once or so, but the fuel is clean, and these don't have troubles with leaks.

Racor 230R2

Good luck

[john8662]

His 1993 6.2 has the Model 80 mounted in the valley. They did that on the GMT 400 Trucks with 6.2's.

I agree, doesn't look real easy to change. You gotta pull the air cleaner asssembly off to get to it. Reminds me of the 82-83 6.2 secondary fuel filter change.

You could just replace it with a Model 100 6.5 Filter, everything will plug right in, you'll just need to make a small bracket to hold it in the same spot the 80 is in now, or Swap intakes for a N/A 6.5 manifold that has the bosses cast onto the back to hold a model 100.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

Having the time to actually do the filterhousing swap is coming up I think. Just a quick question, is there an easier way to mount a new fuel inlet hose other than having to take off my intake manifold? And if I have to take it off, what all do I need for proper replacement? New gaskets, bolts, sealant of some sort?

[DmaxMaverick]

Since you are installing a new filter assy, and should be using new line, just go around. Secure it properly and it'll never give a fit. If at some time in the future you R/R the intake, you can stick it in there. Otherwise, it isn't required.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

Thanks for the reply, but I think we're talking two different inlets. Please let me rephrase. I meant the IP inlet and not the new filter inlet.

The DB2 seems to be attached to the filter housing via a short 4-6" section of hardline coming from the center-most line on the pump (which I assumed to be the pump inlet). After that short section of hardline, a hose clamp holds in another short 4-6" section of rubber fuel line that attaches from the hardline to the filter outlet. I see no way of removing that little hose clamp holding the flex line onto the hardline other than by removing the intake itself which would allow me access between the injector lines.

When I relocate the filter housing, I'm going to need to replace that short section of flex-line, or splice into a 20 year old piece of fuel line. Obviously, I'd rather not splice the line.

I can barely see in there (where the IP is, under the intake), except by nearly standing on my head while in the engine compartment, so I'm just guessing really.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

At $13 for a Fel-Pro intake manifold gasket set, I'll probably buy one to be safe and then start the retro-fit of the Racor. I'll TRY and remember to take some pictures.

Probably should have looked that up before asking silly questions.

[TrenchFoot]

Here's a shot of my block on a stand with the intake off. This may shed some light on the line you're looking to replace or splice. If it's possible to deal with the hose or the short hard line into the IP with the intake on, you could save yourself some time.

If you can thread the needle from behind, you may be able to use a crow foot wrench to remove the hard line from the rear of the IP. But without an inspection camera, visibility through the intake would be pretty tough.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7170/6680260575_b51bb806c5.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12542960@N04/6680260575/)

[BrIONwoshMunky]

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7170/6680260575_b51bb806c5.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12542960@N04/6680260575/)


That is EXACTLY what I was 'seeing' while laying in my engine compartment, with my head nearly on the front of the IP, all the while trying to poke flashlight beams in different holes to illuminate where I was trying to look! For $13, and a bucketload less headache, I'll probably pull the intake. Looks like it'll go fairly quickly after that!

Thanks for the the picture. Boosted my confidence level considerably!

[TrenchFoot]

I think pulling the intake is a small price to pay for your mod.

When you get done, include some pictures and part numbers. I'm not wild about replacing the model 80 brick filter once I have the Banks turbo chamber on top of my intake. I'd be interested in what you choose and how you mounted it.

[BrIONwoshMunky]

I think, preliminarily, I'm going to try and mount it nearly directly under the fuel pump fuse/junction block/relay conglomeration on the firewall. I don't have A/C lines or banks piping to worry about, and it'll allow me to prime using the fuse removal/junction block air-bleed trick fairly easily.

Not to mention I'll actually be able to service the filter without removing the entire intake structure and crawling atop the engine. Fabbing a little mounting bracket seems to be the hardest thing at the moment. I'll decide more when I get to the project, now I'm working on the underbody boxes, and that's likley going to take a week or two to finish in my off time.