Charcoal Canister (1 Viewer)

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went to fill up today for first time after install and no hisssssing from gas cap....this was a great fix/solution!!!
 
Those who have experienced smelling their canister, is it like an old gas smell or fresh gas smell? I've caught a few whiffs of gas but there's no leaks and it kinda smells like old/bad gas if that makes sense to anyone else. It smells a little sweeter and less eye watering than fresh gas smell. I admit this is a weird question but maybe some KWIM.
 
It appears the infamous vc120 is discontinued. Has anyone found another alternative to the alternative?
 
Strange that there isn't a direct aftermarket replacement for the FJ/FZJ80 charcoal canister. Maybe we all need to individually write a note to Dorman, Beck Arnley, Standard Products, ---- and ask them to start making this part.
 
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Kernal, I agree. There's a new market being created with the discontinuance of OEM parts.
 
Dont forget to check and / or replace all of the connections at the vsv end under the intake. There are like 4 little hoses which can get loose or crumbly from age. Preventing the engine vacuum from opening the vsv to release fumes from the canister. I changed my canister out for the vc120, worked for about a week, then back to high pressure at the tank and fuel odor at higher altitude. Come to find out it probably was the tubing at the vsv and not the oem canister. The ends of some tubing where flared open from age preventing a good seal at the vsv nipples. Replaced all of it with 3mm and 6mm silicone tubing from Mcmaster Carr, checked that the vsv was still working per the fsm and everything is perfect now. Went up to over 9000 ft and had zero issues.
 
Dont forget to check and / or replace all of the connections at the vsv end under the intake. There are like 4 little hoses which can get loose or crumbly from age. Preventing the engine vacuum from opening the vsv to release fumes from the canister. I changed my canister out for the vc120, worked for about a week, then back to high pressure at the tank and fuel odor at higher altitude. Come to find out it probably was the tubing at the vsv and not the oem canister. The ends of some tubing where flared open from age preventing a good seal at the vsv nipples. Replaced all of it with 3mm and 6mm silicone tubing from Mcmaster Carr, checked that the vsv was still working per the fsm and everything is perfect now. Went up to over 9000 ft and had zero issues.

I haven't done the testing on intake P's (maybe I'll find time this winter) but I still suspect that the charcoal canister is not a replacement item. I'm still curious how many people actually go through the FSM maintenance procedures or just skip straight to a replacement?
 
Dont forget to check and / or replace all of the connections at the vsv end under the intake. There are like 4 little hoses which can get loose or crumbly from age. Preventing the engine vacuum from opening the vsv to release fumes from the canister. I changed my canister out for the vc120, worked for about a week, then back to high pressure at the tank and fuel odor at higher altitude. Come to find out it probably was the tubing at the vsv and not the oem canister. The ends of some tubing where flared open from age preventing a good seal at the vsv nipples. Replaced all of it with 3mm and 6mm silicone tubing from Mcmaster Carr, checked that the vsv was still working per the fsm and everything is perfect now. Went up to over 9000 ft and had zero issues.


Good call. I went through the same trouble shooting protocol with my 100 series and should do the same with my, new to me, 80.

I ended up picking up the ACdelco unit from Amazon. Looking forward to getting rid of that fuel smell!
 
The symptoms are vacuum in the gas tank. When removing the cap it sucks in air swoosh. If you can repair the stuck valve on the original metal canister, you don't need to replace it. I bought the plastic 120 (GM), it was a little chalanging to mount, by it fixed the problem. It might not pass California smog.....we'll see.
 
It appears the infamous vc120 is discontinued. Has anyone found another alternative to the alternative?

When i discovered that the original canister can be serviced i regretted throwing it away.

if i remember right, you run a file along the seam where the lid is crimped on until you can pull the lid off, dump out charcoal, clean out the check valves, potentially install new filter pads, fill with charcoal from the fish department of the pet store, and seal up with epoxy or silicone or the adhesive of your choice.
 
When i discovered that the original canister can be serviced i regretted throwing it away.

if i remember right, you run a file along the seam where the lid is crimped on until you can pull the lid off, dump out charcoal, clean out the check valves, potentially install new filter pads, fill with charcoal from the fish department of the pet store, and seal up with epoxy or silicone or the adhesive of your choice.
One of my favorite aspects of the 80 is the ability to rebuild the factory part vs replacing with a new "soon to fail' part.
 
Those who have experienced smelling their canister, is it like an old gas smell or fresh gas smell? I've caught a few whiffs of gas but there's no leaks and it kinda smells like old/bad gas if that makes sense to anyone else. It smells a little sweeter and less eye watering than fresh gas smell. I admit this is a weird question but maybe some KWIM.

Ours has that strange smell too. I think ours is due to the wonderful amount of ethanol in our gas here. I know a good dirt bike won't hardly run on the stuff after sitting for a week or so. Same smell in it's gas tank as well.
 
Dont forget to check and / or replace all of the connections at the vsv end under the intake. There are like 4 little hoses which can get loose or crumbly from age. Preventing the engine vacuum from opening the vsv to release fumes from the canister. I changed my canister out for the vc120, worked for about a week, then back to high pressure at the tank and fuel odor at higher altitude. Come to find out it probably was the tubing at the vsv and not the oem canister. The ends of some tubing where flared open from age preventing a good seal at the vsv nipples. Replaced all of it with 3mm and 6mm silicone tubing from Mcmaster Carr, checked that the vsv was still working per the fsm and everything is perfect now. Went up to over 9000 ft and had zero issues.

Which hoses did you buy exactly... looking on the McMaster Carr website a bunch of different hoses.
 
When the check valve gets clogged up it won't let the gas tank vent causing pressure to build up. When you loosen the gas cap the pressure is released. I took my canister out and rebuilt it using the method described in post #51 above. It has worked like a champ ever since.

Over filling the tank (up to the top of the fill neck) will cause gas to enter the vent line that goes to the canister and saturate the charcoal causing the canister to emit the smell of gas residually. The only real fix for that is to either replace the charcoal or canister.

A bad VSV located under the intake manifold or leaking vacuum lines going to it can also cause vapor canister problems and need to be ruled out.
 
5041K521

5041K742

Just type these part #'s into the search bar on the McMaster Carr website
 
Wayne, as the gas in the tank is used, it doesn't create pressure, it creates vacuum. It can cause the fuel pump to overwork.
 
Wayne, as the gas in the tank is used, it doesn't create pressure, it creates vacuum. It can cause the fuel pump to overwork.

That would be true if gas caps weren't designed to allow air flow into the tank. Also, following the above theory, if you drove from one gas station straight to the next on a hot day and your evap system wasn't working, you wouldn't build pressure....which is the problem many have.
 
I live at sea level and for as long as I've owned my FZJ80 there has been a whoosh of gasoline vapor coming out of the tank but I've never experienced any issues beyond that. On the other hand I've never driven this vehicle higher than maybe 5000'. I picked up a used original canister from a salvage yard 80 with half the miles as my truck, installed it, no difference. Maybe it's time to check the Evap VSV??
 
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I just replaced mine with the GM model. When I was releasing the gas cap, the fumes were being forced out. You can see the aromatics in the air very well. Hadn't had any problems since, till we went wheeling with a fairly dramatic increase in elevation with a full tank of fuel and had a strong gas fume smell whenever we stopped or decelerated (or accelerated in the opposite direction). Checked the gas cap and sure enough, pressure had built. After coming back down to 5800' for 30 minutes, check the cap again and had no pressure. I'm chalking it up to the truck rocking and rolling at elevation- shaking up the fuel with less atmospheric pressure.

During the emissions testing here, they test the gas cap for escaping vapors.
 

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