charcoal cannister replacement-1993 -190e-1.8

[sunil sood]

i have been thinking about replacing the charcoal cannister on my 190e with 113k on the clock.

what are the symptoms of a faulty cannister?

what is the function of this item?

the car service booklet and haynes manual both say it should be changed at 72,000miles or every 4yrs.

my service records from the dealer show that this part was not replaced at 72k miles.

comments on this issue from andy or piestore would be appreciated or anyone else who has been through this one before.

thanks.

 

[grober]

Charcoal Canister

Hi Sunil,
possible symptom is a smell of petrol in the car after sitting overnight. Cannister is in nearside wheelarch. You have to remove the wheel arch liner to get to it. It is part of the fuel tank evaporation system. The charcoal canister absorbs fuel vapour from the tank while the engine is not running, there is a pipe that runs from the tank. When the engine is warmed up a evacuation line from the intake manifold opens {in the 190e this line is switched on by a vacuum actuator, same vacuum that operates the doors etc via a thermal vacuum switch mounted on the engine at the front. in other models i.e. later 124 series its opened by a solenoid valve but same principle applies}.The cannister is then cleaned up ready to absorb more petrol fumes. Eventually this process fails and the cannister has to be replaced. Its held on to the inner wing via a couple of studs and nuts. you can access the nuts inside the engine compartment. replacement is easy once you get inside the wheel arch. I dont think many people replace this unless they are experiencing petrol smells. Cannister life is supposedly shortened by filling the tank too full. Dont fill past that first petrol pump nozzle trip off when the tank is full. Hope this helps. Maybe ANDY might comment on how often replacement is necessary from his long experience. I have done it only once on a 190e.