dpallenman Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 Hi there. I hope all is well with everyone. My wife and I have a 2000 ES300 Platinum Edition. The car has been simply wonderful in our three years of ownership. Recently however, the check engine/trac light illuminated and after a quick scan code PO446 was discovered. I started by tightening the gas cap and disconnecting the battery; the engine light came back on after a week. I then changed the gas cap (new) and disconnected the battery. Again, the light came back on. I have taken a look at the vacuum lines at the charcoal canister and up underneath the engine cover. Everything looks OK. I do all my own work, and I HATE being a “parts replacer”. I’d rather source the exact problem and fix just that particular part. Having said this, my research on this site has indicated that the PO446 code could be one of many things, including the charcoal canister itself, the VSV attached to the canister, or the vacuum valve up underneath the engine cover. First question: I was going to replace the charcoal canister next. Does anyone here know if the new OEM charcoal canister includes the VSV valve? If it does, then I can pretty much kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. Second question: Do you think I am way off base with my intention to replace the charcoal canister next? If so, what would you do? Obviously, I am trying to avoid my dealer at all costs. Perhaps someone here could help in my quest to repair this problem. Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd332 Posted July 11, 2007 Share Posted July 11, 2007 If your Charcol canister is bad , lexus has to replace it for free. Just had mine replaced about a month ago for free. The emmision warrenty is 10 years and 150,000 miles. I was getting the same code as you have . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpallenman Posted July 11, 2007 Author Share Posted July 11, 2007 If your Charcol canister is bad , lexus has to replace it for free. Just had mine replaced about a month ago for free. The emmision warrenty is 10 years and 150,000 miles. I was getting the same code as you have . Hi Todd. From what I have heard, this extended coverage only covers model years 1996-1998. Do you have any literature pertaining to this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd332 Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 I did have , I will check and see if I still have it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blk_on_blk Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 I'm having the exact same issue on my RX300 (same basic drive train as the ES300... it's the FWD model). I've found the same information you've found, dpallenman. If all the hoses are good to the charcoal canister, then it's probably the canister itself. Yes, when you replace the canister and it comes with the VSV and it all new, so if it's something related, you should catch it all by replacing the canister... although the canister is like $400 or something. The RX300 has a TSB on it about the P0446 code being a 'phantom code' and having problems with it coming on when nothing is wrong with the canister, but I don't think that's the case with mine (since it has 100K on the odo). I don't know if there are any TSB's for the ES300, but it sounds like there is something since Todd332 says it may be covered under the extended warranty. Hey, if it doesn't end up being covered, can you let me know where you end up finding the canister and for how much? I've seen prices vary, but I haven't seen any particularly good deals on them. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd332 Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 I cant find the information I had , Sorry . :cries: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpallenman Posted July 17, 2007 Author Share Posted July 17, 2007 I ordered a Charcoal Canister from lexus-parts.com at a cost of $229.00. I will install it soon and post my results. Thanks to all those who replied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpallenman Posted July 24, 2007 Author Share Posted July 24, 2007 I ordered a Charcoal Canister from lexus-parts.com at a cost of $229.00.I will install it soon and post my results. Thanks to all those who replied. Hi everyone. Well, I finally installed the charcoal canister in our 2000 ES300. I just wanted to let everyone know that the installation was very easy. The trick to it all was dropping the exhaust system hangers in the vicinity of the rear of the car. I searched like crazy for information or tips for my install, but I came up with nothing. If someone else decides to tackle this project themselves I hope they read this post. Again, you don't need to remove the exhaust system. You just need to drop the exhaust enough to slide the charcoal canister out from the passenger side of the car. It is WAY too early to let you know if the check engine light will return. It is off as of this writing, but I need to keep my fingers crossed. By the way, I bought the canister at Sewell Lexus online and it included the VSV valve and stuff. Price was $229.00 plus $10.00 shipping. My Canadian dealer told me the canister was $497.80 and did not include the VSV valve, which would be an additional $86.60. ;) Again, I'll post my results at a later date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpallenman Posted July 26, 2007 Author Share Posted July 26, 2007 Two days so far and over 200 miles...no Check Engine Light yet! Keeping my fingers crossed! Darren Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpallenman Posted July 31, 2007 Author Share Posted July 31, 2007 Two days so far and over 200 miles...no Check Engine Light yet! Keeping my fingers crossed!Darren Another week and another 250 miles...I am sure it is now fixed! Thanks for everyone's help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JokeDog Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Two days so far and over 200 miles...no Check Engine Light yet! Keeping my fingers crossed!Darren Another week and another 250 miles...I am sure it is now fixed! Thanks for everyone's help! Thanks for the Info/result Darren. Your posting might be useful for me someday. I'm a soon to be owner of a 2000 ES300, so I'm just checking out what's kind of problem do people run into with a Lexus. What is a charcoal canister anyway? I'll be paying US$8k for a 102,000 miles car. Is that a good deal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philbe1 Posted November 8, 2007 Share Posted November 8, 2007 Ok i'm getting the po446 code on my 97 es300, i read that theres an extended warranty? Does that warranty include if i'm not the original owner??my car is now 10 yrs and about 130,000 miles. would i be covered under that warranty. The code that came back to me was Code PO446 EVAP Vent Solenoid Problem. Now would that be the same problem that was first listed on this topic? changing the charcoal canister?? Weird also that someone posted that the Check engine light and Trac Light is on at the same time, its exactly that way for me too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kahnN Posted June 22, 2008 Share Posted June 22, 2008 If your Charcol canister is bad , lexus has to replace it for free. Just had mine replaced about a month ago for free. The emmision warrenty is 10 years and 150,000 miles. I was getting the same code as you have . There are very informative membes on this site, and I thought I would post my question in hopes that someone can solve my problem. I had a similar problem as listed above. Below is a receipt from the lexus dealer: Code: P0440, PO441, PO446. The charcoal canister was changed and I was billed $352 at 74,000 miles. The car is now at 140,000 miles and the check engine light has come back to haunt me. I have replaced the fuel cap and have disconnected the battery three times but the light always finds a way to come back. What should I do? Is it true that the emissions warranty is for 150,000 miles. Is it true that they defrauded me last time, and should I report this to lexus? I still have the receipts of the three visits it took to solve the problem last time. Thank you in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbirdtnt82 Posted July 21, 2008 Share Posted July 21, 2008 I ordered a Charcoal Canister from lexus-parts.com at a cost of $229.00.I will install it soon and post my results. Thanks to all those who replied. I have the same exact car and having the same problem. how did you order the charcoal canister? I went to lexus-parts.com and called them up and they want to charge 288.79 + shipping. After the asked for the VIN number, they told me that the charcoal canister is sold by itself for the above cost. Did you buy the VSV and the charcoal canister or just the charcoal canister? Thank you for any assistant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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