My 83 XJS has 3 vent tubes on the upper right corner looking at it from the trunk. These go to this little cannister with 4 outlets. 3 in and 1 of the 4 goes to the charcoal cannister I guess. My question is why 3 vent tubes? I would like to toss the cannister and just have one hose from the tank going to the charcoal cannister. Would there be a problem with blocking off any 2 of the 3 tubes on the tank?
I have replaced all hoses, pipes to and from the tank. The tank was repaired by Renew, a franchise in the states. The only thing left is the sump tank. Dave at everyday jag has one but I haven’t been able to get a reply after he said he had a good used one. New cap, O-ring at the filler tube, new fuel pump and I still have the fuel smell after the car sits. I know it is a problem that some have talked about here. So I want to get rid of that cannister above the tank.
I believe the vent tubes go to different places in the tank where vapor pockets can occur.
Fuel odors in the boot plagued me for years. I did the Renew process which gummed up the fitting threads so eventually replaced the tank entirely. Also coated the sump tank. In the end, it was the permeation through the hoses walls. They MUST be replaced with barrier hose, the most available being Gates CARB (Calif Air Resources Board) marked products. You can read all about it at my web site. Be sure to listen to the recording of the “sniffer” when held over the various hoses.
This device should reduce the amount of vapour going to the charcoal canister. The idea is that part of the vapours will condensate in it and will drain back to tank through thicker hoose. 2 smaller hoses go to each top side of the fuel tank (there are pipes inside) 3rd connects to the pipe that goes to the charcoal canister.
Here’s pictures of the inside of fuel vapour seperator:
That is a very nice web site you are building. I did go and checked out your various jag sections. I did go to ebay and ended up buying a sniffer last night like the one you have. I too wondered about the newer fuel lines and the permeability of them. They seemed so much cheaper by feel.
And John. I see from the inner view of the cannister that there are vapors of both fuel and a little water too. I read Ed Sowell’s web site and ended up buying the sniffer. I hope I can track the odors down.
Hi Ed. I was writing down the spec for the fuel injection hoses you recommended on your website. This is for my 1983 XJS Coupe. You say CARB spec but I see a lot of SAE spec hoses listed with the same 30R9 rated fuel line. You are right, that hose is expensive but I don’t want to give up on fixing the fuel smell.
Are CARB and SAE ratings equivalent? If the rating for both are still the 30R9 spec? I am finding some on Ebay since no local auto parts stores seem to even know what I am talking about.
Russ,
The 30R9 means the hose is certified for EFI pressure. Basically, that means it has hi-grade fiber reinforcement. The CARB rating means it meets standards for vapor permeation through the walls established by the Calif Air Resources Board. Basically, that means it has a special “barrier layer” on the inside. You have to use hose that meets both specs on the high-pressure side of the pump. For the low pressure side, you could get by with a lower SAE number, but it still must have the CARB rating, or equivalent. I say or equivalent because the OE hose was made by the Germans long before there was a CARB. It must have had some kind of a barrier because it tested well with the sniffer. However, Jaguar no longer supplies it.
Thanks. It turns out that NAPA carries a line of this type fuel injection hose called Barricade. Comes 1/4, 5/16, 3/8 to 1/2 in carbureted hose and 1/4, 5/16 to 3/8 in fuel injection. I can tell a difference already after changing all my lines and clamps. I haven’t actually driven it yet and let it sit up over night but with the sniffer, I can now detect smaller leaks instead of all of the hose permeated with fumes. The only lines I left alone were the original vent tube lines.
I wish my oil pan gasket was as easy to replace now.
