I kno this is a really dumb question...but ive been gettin pretty bad mileage and im thinkin its either the fuel filter or one of my oxygen sensors....problem is i cant seem to find where the fuel filter is on my 5th gen lude

 

5th gen is the 97+ lude right??

Cause my friend just changed out his on a 97 with the AEM one, and its located right next to the Oil Filter. It's not a easy as with a teg where its just on the firewall.

 

Yes, the 5th gen prelude is 97-01....only thing is the base prelude and the type-sh prelude have their oil filters in different locations...do you know which one your buddy has? thanks....

 

You did say FUEL filter. It is a real PITA to reach as it is below the brake booster. You will need a very long extension and a special "crowsfoot" wrench to get it off properly. My Honda Tech says that they rarely go bad in the first 100k, btw. (He's been at the same dealership 25years) To get at the fittings takes time and is best done with a lift to reach the bottom one. If you decide to follow the Helm-take your time.
Poor mileage can be caused by more than just the filter. If anything the brand, grade and formula of the gasoline you are buying can influence it. That and the condition of the air cleaner element, Cap, rotor and plugs along with valve adjustment can all make a difference. If you have a bad O2 sensor you will have a Check light that is on all the time usually. Another thing, if the ECU is putting out a Code-it will run the engine in 'Limp mode' and this one you would be able to feel. Final thought-have you been driving harder than normal or doing a lot of stop-n-go becuase that will eat fuel too.
Happy Luding

That's my take on it and our car is For Sale too

 

He's got the SH

 

well i have nology hot wires and denso iridium spark plugs so i dont think its that....i also just recently put in a new cap and rotor...i have no check engine light which means the O2 sensors are fine..i did a valve adjustment 2 weeks ago...by air cleaner element do you mean the intake filter....cuz i just put in a v2 intake....to me the only thing left is the fuel filter....by the way by lude is coming up on 80K

 

If by chance youare NOT the original owner it is possible that the injectors are thecause of your problem. Try running atank of gas with cleaner and see how that works. Also remember that your intake is not stock and that can also affect things a bit. Again-the season of the year does have something to do with your mileage since the gas is reformulated-I assume you are in place where such is the case.

 

i have runned a tank of gas with injector cleaner two or three times over the last year....ive been gettin crappy mileage since i bout the car i jus havent really payed attention to it

 

symptoms of clogged fuel filter would be loss of acceleration, or even may act as mph limiter. i suppose you might not know the former if it's been doing this since you got it.

check your plugs for carbon deposits. if so may be running rich. while your at it, do a compression check to make sure all cyl are withing at most 10% of one another. bent valves may let gas right back out...

what kind of mileage are we talking. I get about 24-28mpg.

 

i jus put in new denso iridiums...i get about 250-300 a tank...i think ima do a compression check when it gets warmer