check engine light - evap faults
 

hello everyone! let me start by saying thanks for having me!

about 6 months ago i purchased a 98' oxford blue Rangie 4.6 with 76k miles on it and, as this car is 24 years old, i can usually find any answer to any question i have on these forums.

when i purchased the car, the instrument cluster was clear of any CEL (srs airbag fault light was up and although that gave me helll to figure out, it all got sorted eventually)

it wasn't long after taking the car on my first drive that the CEL showed up and lord did it drive me nuts. i purchased a nanocom recentely and got the faults read and i was getting 3 faults;

code 0451: Evaporative Emission System Pressure Sensor/ Switch Range/ Performance
code 1447 - Evap Emission Control System Purge Flow Monitor

i also get a code for the gas cap seal.

also, while checking out the carfax, i noticed that the evap system has been worked on twice since its reached 70k miles so not long before i purchased it which only leads me to believe the previous owner (or his mechanic) couldn't figure it out and just replaced the canister in hopes that the problem would go away.

im wondering if this is a common issue with a common resolution

Welcome to the forum and excellent vehicle choice.
I’m not the expert but I don’t think this is a common problem. I’m also suspecting, as you are, a leak somewhere in the fuel vent /tank system. Presumably you tried a new fuel cap. I haven’t used one, but a lot of people find such leaks using a smoke machine. These don’t need to be very expensive. Basically you tee it in somewhere in the system and it slightly pressurizes it with smoke so you can easily find the leak. I think the leak could be anywhere, even a loose fuel filler assembly.
Good luck and please keep us posted.