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2010 Prius gas tank won’t fill

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Team_Geek, Mar 8, 2021.

  1. Team_Geek

    Team_Geek Member

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    Hi!
    Bought a new-to-me 2010 Prius III a few weeks ago. It has about 174k miles and has been running really well.
    It has problems filling the gas tank though. I’ve tried a few different stations but I can’t put more than about 1/4 gallon in at a time without the shut off clicking. I’ve tried pulling it out some, turning it sideways (both directions). I can hear the sound of the air change like the gas is running up the neck even though the tank is quite empty.
    Thought it might be the charcoal canister assembly. I picked up a used one on eBay and installed this weekend but it didn’t help at all.
    The eBay module looked great and came off a working unit but it is possible I got a dud from the seller. Could the smaller vapor canister filter be causing the problem?
    Looking for any suggestions on what else it could be?

    Thank you!
    Tom
     
  2. pjksr02

    pjksr02 Active Member

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    Has the vehicle ever been in an accident? Maybe there is something stuck in the filler tube, or even in the tank. (Are you sure the tank is empty?) This generation of Prius does not have the expandable-bladder fuel tank issues of the previous.

    After you figure this out, read about the EGR systems on these vehicles.

    Welcome to the boards.
     
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  3. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    A mechanics "bore scope" might be helpful to inspect the filler neck.
     
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  4. Team_Geek

    Team_Geek Member

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    Thanks for the reply. Carfax is clean but it has been bumped in the rear before. Nothing structural looks out of sorts under the rear of the car.

    I’ve got a borescope and am thinking similar to you that I need to have a look down the filler neck and also check the lines themselves for clogging.

    I had quite a time getting some of the clamps off the lines. Is there a trick to releasing them?
     
  5. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    When you look in the Repair Manual at the problem symptoms table for the fuel system, under "Unable/difficult to refuel", you see that the EVAP system/canister was indeed the right place to start looking.

    However, if just picking up a used one and slapping it on didn't resolve the problem, the next steps will probably be to get the repair manual in front of you (more info) and follow the steps there methodically to identify the issue.

    Another option is to have a dealership or shop do it. Diagnosing EVAP/ORVR systems can be tricky, and they have specialized tools for it, like very safe fractional-psi pressure regulators and nitrogen for pressure checks. Ordinary shop tool regulators aren't reliable enough at low pressure to avoid damaging the system, and testing a fuel system by adding pressurized oxygen-containing air can qualify for Darwin awards.


    tank.png
     
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  6. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Info:
    Bad Flywheel | PriusChat
     
  7. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Once again proving the law of nature that any thread on any topic whatsoever becomes an EGR thread, just before metamorphosing into a Best of Queen cassette.
     
  8. Team_Geek

    Team_Geek Member

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    I can appreciate the EGR bunny trail when folks see a newbie post about a high mileage car. I think folks just want to be helpful since a head gasket failure can be a death-blow for an older vehicle. I’ve been lurking on this site since I bought the car and the full maintenance package is on my todo list as soon as the weather warms up. I can say this oil appears to have 4K miles on it, is right at the full mark and is still a nice amber color.

    I’m going to try the borescope and pull a few hoses this weekend to see if anything interesting shows up. The diagram ChapmanF provided is very helpful in showing where the potential choke points could be. Not much else besides physical restrictions now that the evap unit was replaced.

    My only other thought was the little box in the bottom right of the diagram. I think that has a filter of some sort inside and will probably have to take that off for inspection as well.
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    I really like Queen II, great album. :)
     
  10. Team_Geek

    Team_Geek Member

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    I think I finally figured this one out.

    Right at the end of the filler neck is yet another charcoal canister. It is the last stop the vent hose has before it makes it to the atmosphere (venting behind the rubber lip at the top of the filler neck). I blew a shot of compressed air through the line at the bottom of the car and was treated to a cloud of dirt from the filler neck that filled my shop so much it felt like I was in a Dukes of Hazzard episode.

    At that point I decided to pull the entire filler neck and do a deep clean. After discombobulating the full line and both vent hoses I was able to extract the filler neck assembly from the car. I managed to get the charcoal filter removed from the filler neck and ran some hot water through. I got enough gravel out of the poor thing to build myself a playground.

    I flushed that little bugger out for about 5 min until I got nice clean water out from both directions. Dried it all out with compressed air and reinstalled. Unfortunately my wife filled the tank yesterday so I’ll be able to test this out in about a month when it finally needs gas again!
     
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