charcoal canister

[woodster]

Just had my polo (yr2000) 1.6s estate serviced at main dealer. I asked them to investigate on/off smell of petrol. They have said that pipe is broken on the charcoal canister and that it needs replacement. I would like to do this myself. Where do i locate the canister on the car and is it a straight swap job or does doing so result in air getting into fuel pipe system??? does it need to be primed or anything daft like that???. many thanks if anybody can help me.

[vwjoe]

You can usually locate the charcoal canister under the front right corner of the car. Just pop up the bonnet and look down there, it looks like a big black plastic can connected to a couple of hoses or pipes and it is hold by a metal or rubber strap. if you can´t see it then get under the car, many manufacturers place the canister inside the fender, between the wheelwell and the front bumper and usually on the right side. You can also follow the vacuum pipes which are connected to the intake body, at least one of them shall take you to where the canister is located. Changing it is not very difficult for the pipes don´t carry any actual fuel, but just the fuel vapors coming from the gas tank.
Good luck dude!