Hi ,2004 vue 3.5 v6 service engine not check engine light is on and had it scanned and the PO446 code came up and with evap canister vent selenoid as the problem.
Does anyone know the location of the selenoid?
Thanks for your time,Bill

 

When you fill your gas tank, do you tend to continue filling after the pump clicks off the first time? Are you having difficulty putting gas into the vehicle right now?

This code can be triggered by an actual vent valve malfunction but can also be triggered by a leaky gas cap. By leaky, I mean the seal is allowing vapors to escape the system.

I would first inspect your gas cap seal and the surface it seals to. If it is the original gas cap for the vehicle, just replace it. I recommend an ACDelco OEM cap as they pretty much always fit correctly. Wherever you purchase it from, search by the VIN of your vehicle instead of the make model and year as some of these vehicles had different gas caps and I certainly cannot tell you which is which. OEM Parts matched by VIN are pretty much never wrong. It'll be a bit more expensive but think about the fact that the last OEM gas cap lasted 16 years if it turns out to be the problem.

 

Hi derf, yes I replaced the gas cap just yesterday with an oem one.I disconnected the battery to clear code beforehand.
I have about 20 miles on it so far,and I'm guessing if the code is going to show back up again,it should at about 50 miles or so which I will hit this weekend.
I did buy the selenoid just in case it needs it.
I'll be shocked if it is the cap as I never have an easy fix on this car...for anything!
Thanks

 

If you have between 3/4 and 1/4 of a tank of gas, the EVAP system test that would throw that code runs every so often while you are driving. If the car has gotten up to operating temperature, hopefully you are in the clear.

 

derf I forgot to answer your first 2 questions.
A: I get allot of free gas with bonus shopping points ( my wife's nuts with it), and yes on more than one occasion I have overfilled my tank because I use an electric hand pump and accidentally overfill it. I since have stopped trying to fill it to stop that situation.

B: As far as putting gas in,I have no problem at all.
Last week I was working on the battery terminals after I had the car scanned and it took a couple of days for the service light to come on after a reset.

 

Ok,just dropped my wife off at work and the light came on at 38 miles. I'm wondering now if the gas cap changed things cause it's taken over 50 miles before for the code to pop up with the old cap.
Anyway changing the selenoid tomorrow.
Let's see......

 

How did The mating surface on the filler pipe look when you switched the gas caps? Was there any corrosion present? Anything that would inhibit a good seal?

I don't know how often the test is run although I know the gas tank level must be between 3/4 and 1/4 full. So I'm not sure if the mileage you traveled before the code returned is necessarily relevant.

Closely inspect the moving parts of the vent valve. It may be as simple as the valve occasionally getting hung up in the open position and not closing when commanded to close. There may be debris caught up in the mechanism or the solenoid may indeed be failing. Please post some pictures.

 

The mating surface on the filler pipe looked fine, actually the whole pipe up at the filler end looks perfect,no corrosion at all. I wiped it all off before installing the gas cap.
I'm still not exactly sure where this valve is.
I got a diagram and it's showing it on the evap canister under the car. Not sure it's correct though.
I will take some pics tomorrow when I have it up on ramps.

 

I'll attach a link to a 2003 Ion vent solenoid replacement posted on YouTube. My 2004 Ion looks the same as this (I just replaced the fuel filter on mine so am familiar with the territory down there). I can't imagine that the Vue would be much different. The valve fits into the canister, and releases with a quarter turn after you remove the connector.

 

I believe I read somewhere it is in the right rear under the vehicle near the tank. Didn't watch the video above because I am lazy