Late Style OM642 Fuel Filter Change
 

Wow - it's been a really long time since I've been here!

I have a 2014 ML350 and I needed to change the fuel filter. My Indy quoted me $275-$300 to replace the filter and while I thought it was a fair price when I looked at the engine, I'm still a cheapskate.
The problem is that on my engine the charge pipe from the turbo to the intercooler has resonance chamber (or "warts") that make changing the fuel filter difficult. I don't know when the change happened but most of the other charge pipes I have seen lack the resonance chambers which makes it easy to change the fuel filter.
On mine - the charge pipe has to come out.

The charge pipe is easy to remove. There is one Torx screw holding the middle section of the pipe, and one external Torx holding the pipe to the black box. I assume the black box is an oil trap but I am not sure.

Once you have removed those two bolts, you need to removed the black box/oil trap so you have remove to manuever the charge pipe. Two more external Torx bolts, one on either side.

I got a picture of one but the other was impossible for me to photograph.

Once you get the charge pipe put of the way you can replace the fuel filter normally. I used fuel injection hose clamps to replace the Clic clamps that were on the filter but that's probably overkill.

Total time was about an hour but I wasn't in a rush. I also saved myself at least $200 doing it myself.