Q: Gas pump stops every few seconds while re-fueling. It takes a very long time to fill up the tank.
For several weeks now, I have been having a problem filling up my car with gas. It doesn't matter what gas station it's at. Every 10 seconds or so, the pump stops as if the tank is full. It takes 20 to 25 minutes just to fill up my tank. I have followed the advice of a couple of things I saw on the Internet including blowing pressured air through the line and replacing the vent valve, but it has not fixed the problem. The next thing that it seems like I'm supposed to do is replace the charcoal filter, but it's about a $200 part and I want to make sure that's the problem. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
My car has 126591 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.
As you may know, the charcoal canister is what absorbs and stores the fumes in the tank. If the charcoal canister is not working correctly, the fumes will still be present while refueling and cause the gas pump to kick off as you have experienced, so this may indeed be your problem.
In order to provide a more accurate diagnosis, I would recommend having a certified mechanic, such as one from YourMechanic, come to your location to determine what is wrong with your fueling system and determine the exact source of the problem. One of YourMechanic’s professionals can also perform a 75-point safety inspection to make sure your car is as safe as possible.
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