I’ve heard that over-filling the fuel tank in modern cars can damage something. I’m not talking about forcing fuel into the fuel tank under pressure. Just topping it off past where the pump shuts off. I can’t think of anything this would damage – permanently I mean. Where you’d have to fix so…

The activated charcoal canister is connected to the fuel tank by a group of tank vent hoses…The canister itself is usually located tucked away under the hood…By over-filling your gas tank, you can force liquid gasoline into this vapor collecting device…This canister was not designed to hold liquid g…

My wife utilizes one of the few remaining full service stations. She is under strict orders to tell the jockeys there to STOP AT THE FIRST CLICK!!! Since this is a co-op we belong to, they are well trained. However, I’ve seen gas jockeys try to get an even number of dollars in so they don’t have to…

“However, I’ve seen gas jockeys try to get an even number of dollars in so they don’t have to make change.” Make change? Who walks around with enough cash to be able to fill up a car these days?

Overfilling the tank can force fuel into the vapor canister–the device intended to store gasoline vapor until the car can purge those vapors and burn them rather than vent them into the atmoshere. Liquid fuel can deteriorate the charcoal in the canister, turning it into small granules that can in tu…

Although the charcoal canister is several feet away from the tank and even several inches above the top of the tank if the car is overfilled and on an incline so that the fuel is entering the vent line when the system is in the vent mode vacuum will draw the liquid upward. Fuel can become trapped in…

Thanks everybody. I guess my cars are so old — early 70’s & 90’s – that they don’t have this new fancy fuel venting eqpt to worry about. My 70’s Ford truck just has a canister which captures the extra vapors, and vents with a hose to the air cleaner, where the vapors get sucked into the air inta…

Most carbon canisters for the EVAP system on modern vehicles are mounted very near the gas tank and not under the hood. The EPA realized that overfilling the gas tank can damage the EVAP system thereby producing more emissions so they demanded the auto makers devise a method to prevent that from ha…

have there been any reported cases where you removed the pump nozzle when it stopped but are still told that you overflowed the tank. This is happening to us and we don’t ever top off the tank.

Is there supposed to be a stop valve or control mechanism such as a float in the tank that lets the gas pump know the car is full?

What gets damaged when fuel tank over-filled?

Maintenance/Repairs

the_same_mountainbike October 16, 2012, 9:46pm 11

Recognize that the charcoal canister that everyone is alluding to is the only method your gas tank has of breathing in to fill the void left as the gas is pumped out. Should it become saturated, the tank will be unable to breath in, the pump will struggle, the car may stall, and you might experience premature pump failure.

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What gets damaged when fuel tank over-filled?

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