Our '95 four cylinder sedan was a great, trouble-free car for many years, until it developed a modest fuel leak. Little did we know how much of a problem this would be! First the dealer replaced the gas tank; the leak stopped, only to return a short time later. With no apologies or discount, the dealer then said it was a rusty fill pipe, and replaced that, with the same result: the leak stopped for a while, then returned.
I'm sure that some of you have guessed what comes next. Next time around we were told that it was "probably" the evap vapor recovery canister leaking gas. The price for the part was so high - about $400 for the part alone - that I went to to Ebay and got one for $100 from a reputable seller. The part *looked* authentic, and when installed the problem again went away, this time for about a year. Last month the leak started again, and the local shop said it was the canister O-rings, and replaced those. Yes, you guessed it, the problem came back again last week. The local shop said it was the canister leaking. The problem occurs either mainly or only after filling the tank completely, something we obviously try to avoid doing if possible. The only other clue I can offer is that the fuel gauge became inaccurate after the tank was replaced, and now reads a little high. This makes it harder to
*almost* fill the tank.The car has 190k miles on it, but we hate to junk it, because both the engine and transmission are still tight and smooth, the body is still fine, and we had timing belt/water pump/CV joints/brakes done last Fall. The new brakes are the first ones the car has had that actually felt strong and smooth! The car still averages 30+ mpg per tank. So, does anyone have a a solution? I'm cross-posting this to the Volvo newsgroup because there are several clandestine Camry owners there. ;-)