Secondary fuel filter

Mate one of the best investments you'll make in this era of CRD vehicles particularly if you are panning to fill from drums, tanks at remote communities (where filtration of supply can be dodgy) or even jerry cans (condensation). I'd suggest a 'fuel manger' system that uses Stanadyne filters. They are about $280 on Ebay.

As a cheaper alternative you could consider a 'Mr Funnel' filter funnel. I swear by these and they have saved my bacon a couple of times out bush. I do check mine at the start of every trip though by putting it under the tap to ensure the filter mesh is still preventing passage of water.

Mr Funnel

Again my suggestion the 13 or 19l per minute single outlet.

Safe travels. Mick

Hi
If you get the prado serviced (recomended ) before you go get them to change the filter under the car ( above the rear prop shaft ) and also the main filter in the engine bay. This is not always done in a normal service. Carry a spare one of these and know how to change it and reset the warning light if it comes on. If you want more details let me know.

An extra filter/water seperator as said above is a good idea.

Are you travelling solo or do others in the group have some mechanical knowledge. Basic stuff should be learnt before you go as well as a tool and spares kit just in case.

Enjoy the trip and the planning.
Cheers
Mike

Hi Pandora,
May I suggest that you take a look at the LCOOL.org site. It has masses of information on all Toyota 4WDs. I am confident you will find some good suggestions there.
I have a WaterWatch installed which will detect water before it reaches the main filter. I do appreciate that there are other good alternatives available. The LCOOL.org site, everything Toyota, should be able to offer suggestions.
I agree with Mick that a Mr Funnel fuel filter is a good investment.
As stated by Mike have the filters changed before you leave is an excellent suggestion and if you are able it might be worth knowing how to change a fuel filter yourself. Definitely take a few spare filters with you.
I am not sure if you are intending to travel in a group or alone, however some of these areas are not for the fainthearted. The Oodnadatta Track is more or less an unsealed highway these days, however the Anne Beadell is just a "track" and very rough at that.
Best wishes for your outback trip.

You can get dirty fuel anywhere.
I Would STRONGLY recommend checking your insurance policy.
As some wont cover dirty fuel !!!
Yes, fit the 2nd fuel filter.
But checking out your insurance policy first, costs you nothing compared to putting the 2nd filter on

I had one of these Fuel Manager kits fitted to my Landcruiser ute. There are kits for most 4WDs, and think they're about $400 fitted.



Fitted as a primary filter, they give some early warning, though combined with a Water Watch unit would be the ultimate solution. Far cheaper than common rail overhaul.

Bob

Many of these replies come from people who had single fuel filters.
Your Prado has 2 fuel filters already. Not sure why you'd want a 3rd filter.
Change both filters before your trip and carry spares.
Pradopoint is the best place for Prado specific advice.

We have just sold our Prado 150 and we had fitted the extra fuel filter with the glass bowl. We also have a Mr Funnel dual filter and all fuel from jerry cans is filtered through it and we have even used it with bowsers. It is slow, but so what if no dirty fuel.

We now have a 200 Series and have fitted the same filter for the same reasons.

We have done the Anne Beadell in our Prado twice, fantastic trip. If you can go visit Maralinga. It is fascinating and a real eye opener. You do need permission though.

Di

Hi Pandora
I have had the same vehicle from new, first thing I did was put a water watch system on it, think I would have preferred a fuel manager, as Bob Y has said, the water watch will only go off if water is in the system, by the time you pull over and shut the vehicle off, it would be to late.. you get the same warning with the fuel manager, with the added benefit of an extra filter..
The other concern is the original filters, the little one under the car gets changed every 20k. The other under the bonnet, never gets changed, unless the light on the dash comes on.. this filter is not in the maintenance schedule.. every service I have, I get it changed.. I have now started doing this myself, better to know how and be comfortable doing it yourself, in the comfort of your own driveway, than trying to figure it out in the bush.. the one under the car I found the most awkward, (big fingers)... I also have a mister funnel but have never used it, no room to store it, and the smell of diesel in the car if it leaked out.. when your insurance covers bad fuel, I'll deal with it when/if it happens.. last trip we did, filled up at some odd places, but no dramas.. one thing I have been using lately is chemtec diesel power additive, use it every 3rd tank, seems to keep the engine running nice an quite, instant difference...Pradopoint is the place to find info on the prados, great wealth of info on there.. hope this helps and enjoy your trip. Cheers Odog

I have a secondary fuel filter down the back of the dual cab where I can observe it every time I refuel.. Mind you, works for a dual cab, perhaps not a Prado.

I change my fuel filter every 5,000klm and carry spares in the vehicle.

In my opinion prevention is far better than cure. Carry a Mr Funnel fuel filter, best insurance around and cheap. Stop contamination at the source rather than try fixing it after it has happened...

There is plenty of information on the tracks you will be travelling, I have written a blog on the Anne Beadle and Sandy Blight Junction Tracks, link follows.

Anne Beadell and Sandy Blight Junction Tracks

And as suggested, visit Maralinga if you have the time, very interesting!
Enjoy your travels!

Cheers, Baz - The Landy

filter have a secondary fuel manager filter on my px ranger,its a good investment,according to ford ,if you get bad fuel you could be up for 10 thousand plus for pump and injectors, racv insurance will not cover bad fuel damadge

Seeing you already have a primary and secondary filter, I don't believe you need another one just spare filters.

I actually have a stanadyne fuel manager and a water watch unit.

The fuel manager catches the rocks the same as your oem underbody filter. It also traps some water. If water gets through the fuel manager, the water watch which is prior to the secondary will detect very small amounts of water present in the fuel and alarm before it gets into the secondary filter. It also traps water.

They are not cheap but are of a very high quality.

Waterwatch and price

Hi Pandora. As an ex diesel mechanic and tourer of remote Australian places, I agree totally with everything you've been advised of on this thread. However, before you rush out and spend good money on a third fuel filter you need to check that the fuel suction pump has the strength to suck fuel through an additional (third) filter. The people at Toowoomba Diesel? should be able to advise you on this. I have seen this happen before and it causes the engine to starve of fuel when it is working hardest eg when you're far from home, fully loaded struggling up hills!
My other piece of advice is to get some hands-on training on how to replace a fuel & air filter and how to afterwards bleed YOUR car's fuel system. I also take a spare air filter. And another tip, if you have the money, invest in a set of TyreDogs (or similar) and a good quality air compressor. Have a wonderful trip. Deejay.

Have read one horror story of dirt trashing injectors so I decided it was worth fitting a prefilter and went to my local 4WD specialist - long established and well respected crowd. I was prepared to stump up the $500 or so needed to supply and fit.

The guy I spoke with drives outback himself, and his advice was that it wasn't needed as long as you keep an eye on the warning light and just drain the bowl and whack a new filter in as soon as it comes on.

Personally I reckon the addition of an extra filter or better still a water trap is a good idea whether a new CRD or even the old school mechanical fuel injection equipment.
Considering the cost of repairs and the much higher pressures and lower tolerances for anything but clean diesel, particularly important with CRD.

Has anyone considered fitting a differential pressure gauge or warning sensor to detect pressure drop across a primary filter? Water sensors obviously warn if there is any present but plain old dirt plugging a filter would only be noticed when the CRD pump is unable to generate the required pressure. I'm pretty sure the ECU will throw up a fault but I also know high pressure pumps don't like being starved of fluid for their intake side. Cavitation can damage their internals.

Cheers
Pop