god knows

[waynes sri]

Im told theres a canister in the wing ant a clue wat for but mines been took off and pipes blocked.but other day am told it will run loads better with it on but this true???

[wwmnw]

Iirc its called the Carbon canister and its to do with the emissions, I've no idea about the running with it taken off.

[7ova]

i've got one on my K reg GSI when i was rebuilding it i just put it back on
in the offside front wheel arch under the headlamp.

[mowgli]

it is simply the breather from the petrol tank.. they came up with a stupid EEC rule about engines only having one 'exhaust' so breathers had to be run thru the engine, and if it is removed, the car will not run any different.

find out if it is an mot requirement

[7ova]

no its not part of the MOT test mate, as long as it will pass the emissions test, all good!

[phazer]

The pipes shouldn't be blocked the tank vent goes to the carbon canistor - it absorbs the nasty fumes. That is it's sole purpose.

If you block the tank breather it can vacuum which is likely to stress the pump and cause poor fuel delivery or at worst kill the pump - you had one fail didn't you?

Perhaps this is the cause of your bad running?

To remove the carbon canistor properly you will need to block the vacuum take off at the inlet (then you can also remove the vacuum switch). The blue pipe that runs along the floor pan is the vent IIRC. Take this back to the fuel filler neck, loop it up and over and run a couple of inches down the filler and cable tie (like an inverse hook). This ensures you have no drips should any fuel escape into the vent pipe.

Sorted. No problem with the MOT and nothing else engine running or emissions wise changes.