Fuel nozzel keeps shutting off

debaccos · 12-17-2009, 04:09 PM

Hi, My Dad has an 01 Optima and lately he is complaining of everytime he goes and gets gas the fuel filler nozzel keeps shutting off, I went with him and sure enough it wont stay on it take like 15 to 20 min to fill the car, I tried pulling the nozzle out and all the way in, I tried going slow and fast, I tried everything, And this just started, any Ideas what it could be? Any Help would be apperciated, Thanks in advance

pulsar86 · 12-17-2009, 10:04 PM

Welcome to the forums. I am not familiar with the exact fuel tank venting system of your Dads model, but this type of problem is usually to do with a oneway valve that is located on a vent line between the tank and the cars carbon canister. When the valves malfunction air is trapped in the tank and the fuel has trouble getting into the tank and the backpressure keeps tripping the pump. Go to www.kiatechinfo.com it is free to register and the site will probably have a online manual for your car in the shop section so you can view the venting set up.

skyroodv · 12-19-2009, 12:25 PM

This is my first post, but I've come here a lot. There's a ton of useful information on these forums.

As for your problem, I have the same issue and took it to a dealer to get checked out. He said the same as the previous reply -- some valve will need to be replaced. They also told me of 2 other parts which needed replacing - a canister and something else. I will try to get the paper to give you more detailed information about it.

I am going to get it repaired next month (january), so if you still need confirmation on if it fixes the issue I would be glad to post my outcome on the thread.

pulsar86 · 12-19-2009, 01:51 PM

The canister will most likely be the carbon canister that absorbs fuel vapours from the tank, they are meant to be replaced at certain intervals to comply with emmissions laws, though there are a lot of cars that don't get it done. It all depends on the area in which you live and the strictness of the local pollution and emission laws. If the car has been overfilled at some time it can flood the canisters and make them useless.

skyroodv · 12-20-2009, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pulsar86

The canister will most likely be the carbon canister that absorbs fuel vapours from the tank....

I believe that is what they said it was. Also, interesting note that wanted to mention -- as part of some of the repairs I'm doing on my 2001 Optima, I had to replace the spark plug wires which I did yesterday. After riding around with new wires for about an hour my check engine light came off and I thought on a whim it might have solved my issue with the fuel stuffs because the dealer said the CEL code was dealing with the canister. To my surprise it did! I'm guessing (not a car mechanic or anything) that the backup of carbon was causing that valve to stick, but once the emissions started working and burning again it burnt the excess carbon off and the valve works okay now.

I'm not sure if you mentioned your check engine light or anything, but if it has the CEL on, I would at least replace the wires (it might need them anyway as a tuneup) and see if it helps the issue any.

Also just so you know, my car has about 109,000 miles on it and the check engine light has been on since about 70,000 miles. Dealer quoted me around $400+ to get the CEL fixed and the fuel issue fixed. Doesn't hurt to try. Only takes about an hour and $50.