Greetings,

I've been having problems with my evap system. I've replaced the purge flow valve and the canister valve. The check engine after clearing still comes back with P0497 so it looks like the next step is the canister itself. Has anyone done a replacement on this vehicle and have any tips or potential gotchas? It looks like I'm going to have to drop the fuel tank so was hoping to get some research done to prep first but this doesn't appear to be a well documented process unfortunately.

Thank you in advance.

 

Before jumping to replace a part that may not be defective, how about we do a little more looking?
From the code listed it would seem there is a problem with the purging of the canister and not necessarily the canister itself.
You replaced the purge valve, but do you know if the valve itself is working ?
I would confirm there is no problem with the wiring and connections to the purge valve. There are certain conditions that must be met before the purge valve can do it's job.
Among them are;certain engine temp, certain engine RPM, certain vehicle speed and of course clear lines from the canister to the purge valve.
A capable scan tool can check most of the requirements and make the job quicker and easier. The purge valve can be energized to verify functionality. Replacing good working parts can become expensive and disappointing. Suggest you consider having a good shop at least check that much out before you spend a lot more $$$ and still have the problem, what do you think?

 

I should have provided additional info, I did take it into the dealer and they noted the canister was clogged but didn't pull it and that the valve was no longer functioning. As such I went for the low hanging fruit (canister purge) as it was cheap/easy access in comparison and wasn't 100% the canister issues were severe enough. I apologize for confusion, but based on what they said canister was the last part to check as well.

 

No apologies necessary,but here is a reminder.
A good portion of the problems with the vapor canister are created by OVERFILLING the fuel tank when refueling. When adding fuel to the tank , and the nozzle shuts off , do not continue to top off the tank. Doing this allows liquid fuel to get into the canister that is supposed to handle ONLY vapors. If a previous owner did this or you might have been doing this , that is how the problem is created.

 

So I had the canister and canister valve replaced. Unfortunately P0497 returned and I'm now skeptical of the dealer's "diagnostic" on the problem - or at least that it encompassed everything. I'm thinking about revisiting the purge valve itself and seeing if it might still be related somehow. Any advice where I should start digging?

Performed so far:
Purge Valve replacement (confirmed bad, could blow through it)
Canister Valve replacement
Canister replacement (likely was bad, had gas station pumps that refused to shut off and over filled)
Cap replacement (was complaining about being loose)

 

It seems we checked everything except the lines from the tank (and vent valve) . If they are restricted in any way , charcoal granules etc., it could produce the code.