I have been having problems with water getting into my 300E fuel system, causing various running issues and the replacement of the fuel distributor, pressure regulator and other parts.

Finally, having decided to explore the entire fuel system in a bid to find the problem, my mechanic and I discovered that the charcoal canister in the left front fender is a mass of rust due to the drain hose from the runoff below the windscreen dumping straight on top of it.

So, it needs replacing and hopefully will explain why water is getting into the tank through the vapour system. We only ended up pulling the canister after we were unable to get a vacuum at the tank. There are no leaks in the actual fuel system in our checks so logic suggests air was getting in somewhere.

A subsequent check of my little used Haynes manual recommends replacing every 72,000 miles or 4 years. Problem is, I can't find the part in the online catalog and would like to know how much its likely to cost. Anyone help with this?

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1987 300e manual 250,000 km (sold)