I learned a valuable lesson when changing the fuel filter on my 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier. I learned that I needed two wrenches to remove the feed line from the fuel filter.
To relieve fuel pressure, I loosened the gas cap and started the engine. I opened the power distribution block in the engine compartment and removed the fuel pump relay. The truck idled until it died, then I turned off the key and removed it from the ignition. I put the relay back in and closed the PDB.
I put a floor jack on the rear crossmember, jacked up the rear of the Cavalier, and then put jack stands under the body seams just forward of the rear wheels. I found the fuel filter on the passenger side, mounted on the frame under the bed. One end of the filter had a quick-connect fitting, but the other end had a double nut. I needed a 21 mm wrench on the back-up nut and a 16 mm wrench to loosen the feed line and remove it from the filter. Before putting the new filter in, I applied a few drops of clean engine oil to the male fitting to ease installation of the fuel line, reinstalled the lines and tightened the fitting to 20 to 22 foot pounds, again using the back-up wrench and a torque wrench with a crowfoot attachment.
