Fuel tank strainer delete?

[eatont9999]

Hi all,

I am planning on cleaning my fuel tank strainer this weekend if I get the gasket in time. I was wondering if I should just go ahead and remove the mesh screen. My logic is that it is 10x easier to replace the pre-filter under the hood than it is to drain the tank and fight to get the strainer out. The only concern I have is a big chunk of crap getting caught in the fuel line. Perhaps I should retrofit some larger diameter screen around the strainer body?

Part of the reason I am going to clean the strainer is because my car has almost no low-end power and quite lacking in power in general. When the turbo eventually boosts, it has some power but then it up-shifts too soon and all is lost (I know, different issue). It smokes a light grey haze at idle and smells like diesel in the exhaust and burnt oil. I am comparing it to my 7.3IDI's exhaust smell, so maybe the OM617 has a different smell altogether.

It more than likely needs a valve adjustment, injector rebuild, fuel system cleaning, etc. I do have a new pre-filter and main filter on it.