I thought I’d post some pics of what the inside of the charcoal canister looks like on my 1996 Jaguar XJS with the AJ16 engine.

I cut it from the top using an oscillating tool. I probably shouldn’t have cut it from the top. A chop saw right in the middle would have spared the two filters at the top.

The inlet side (with the double ports has the mesh filter set inside the blue plastic screen. The outlet, with just one port, has none.

I cannot tell if there’s anything underneath that black metal screen on the bottom. There’s definitely a gap, but it’s a single piece that has some kind of center support allowing me to slightly swing it side to side, but without cutting more, not enough to remove it. I believe it’s just an air gap.

You would need no more than 6 cups of charcoal to replace what’s inside.

questions?

 

What was the reason for destroying this charcoal canister?

 

Destroyed? It's being repaired and placed back into service. No other way to replace the charcoal inside!

BTW, I did shove an endoscopic camera below the metal screen and there is simply a spring clip keeping the screen floating about 1/2" above the bottom.

 

In my opinion, the charcoal canisters never fail unless damaged from outside, they work for life.

 

Maybe true. I'm still chasing fuel fumes, so this is something I had to cross off the list.

 

I assume you have already checked the Purge Valve?

The charcoal canister is filled with activated carbon, but you probably already knew that.

 

Yes, I bought Premium Activated Carbon - Aquarium Carbon for Fish Tank Filter to replace it with. Oddly enough they come with filter bags that seem to be a perfect fit for each of the two compartments!

Thought it would be good to share what the insides look like and the volume of charcoal one might need to replace.