'any reason' to not use one is that they are small.
and ......
having a fuel filter downstream of the fuel pump, to protect the fuel
injectors is a good idea .

it's not so much that the fuel pump can't deal with minor pieces of junk,
it's more that fine metal particles come out of fuel pumps as they get more
and more miles on them,
or .......that is my theory about the tiny pieces of shinny metal I often
find in fuel filters.
and it's *always* a good idea to empty out your old fuel filter backwards on
a clean dish, to see what's in there.
I find rust, dirt, water, and fine particles of shinny metal in them.

Scott
www.turbovans.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "John Meeks" <vanagon@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Sunday, October 11, 2009 5:34 PM
Subject: Re: Anyone know why VW discontinued the square pre-filter?

> On Sun, Oct 11, 2009 at 7:52 PM, Michael Sullivan
> <sandwichhead@gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> I don't think it is...I believe I saw it while searching for Bug parts.
>> Not sure though.
>> Michael in San Antonio
>> 91GL AT 'Gringo'
>> 73 Beetle
>>
>>
>>
> I was just wondering why they stopped using them in later vans.
> Is there a reason why I can't keep running with my filter as adapter?  Do
> they cause any problems?  It seems to me that filtering the fuel before
> the
> pump is a good thing.
>
> John Meeks
>
>
>>
>> On Sun, Oct 11, 2009 at 6:40 PM, John Meeks <vanagon@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> I replaced my rusty crusty fuel tank today with a lightly used tank from
>>> my
>>> son's crashed '85. It has the smaller outlet pipe and of course I hadn't
>>> planned ahead enough to have a 7 to 11 mm adapter on hand.  I had to use
>>> one
>>> of those square filters (mileage unknown) to adapt the tank outlet to
>>> the
>>> fuel pump.
>>>
>>> It runs just fine, but it got me wondering why the square pre-pump
>>> filter
>>> was discontinued.
>>>
>>> Anyone know?
>>> John Meeks
>>>
>>> '91 Multivan
>>> Northern Michigan
>>>
>>> Vanagon Rescue Squad
>>> http://www.vanagonauts.com/Vanagon_Rescue_Squad74.htm
>>>
>>> Radio Call:KC8ZFN
>>>
>>
>>