Hello,

My dad has a 2010 Ford Escape XLT with the 2.5L 4 cylinder engine. It also has about 33,000 miles on it. Anyways I went with my dad to the Ford dealer because the check engine light was on. They told me it was the "purge valve canister". We would of gotten it repaired but was not covered under warranty and it was like $400 bucks to fix.

So I went to my local auto parts store so they could check the codes and got a P144A which relates to the purge valve. From there on I went home and looked up the part. It's only $40 bucks! So that's got me thinking maybe I can fix it for my dad. Only thing is were is the purge valve thingy?

 

Your dealer might be pulling your leg. If it's still under warranty and being emissions related, it should be covered. I believe emissions warranty runs longer than the standard coverage as well.

If you do a good search on that DTC, it can also be a blocked hose in the system as well.

 

oops......

 

Emissions Warranty is 3 Years/36,000 miles. The car is more than 3 years old. That's why Ford declined the warranty.

 

Some emissions items are covered for 8Y/80K. I looked it up but it doesn't cover your parts.

 

8 years or 80,000 miles (whichever occurs first) for catalyticconverter, electronic emission control unit (ECU), transmission control
module (TCM), and any other onboard emissions diagnostic module...

That's what the warranty manual says...

 

That's correct.

 

No such thing as a "purge valve canister." You have an "EVAP canister" and a "canister purge valve" though. There is a huge difference in the price between the two. Trouble codes do not tell you what component has failed, they only tell you that the computer has detected an error in a system. You must then perform tests to determine what component is at fault.

Having said that, the P144A code you had can be caused by the canister purge valve. But, there is a TSB that covers a specific diagnostic procedure that needs to be performed if this code is present. You can research TSB 12-03-19.

 

Okay so it's the canister purge valve not purge valve canister. I must of gotten the words mixed up.

Shouldn't Ford know about this TSB and already done the diagnostic procedure?

 

Did you pay them to do it?

 

No I didn't pay them anything?

 

How did they give you an estimate if they didn't diagnose the vehicle?

Guess I'm confused on exactly what went down when you went to the dealer.

Did you read over the TSB?

The canister purge valve is on the rear of the intake manifold. That puts it toward the driver's headlight assembly, near the radiator. You'll need an 8mm socket to remove it.

Now the problem is, even if you replace the valve you don't have the equipment to run an EVAP test as is required by the TSB to verify that the system is operating properly. Also, the check engine light will remain on for quite some time, on some vehicles the code will not clear itself for 80 warm-up cycles. On most vehicles since around 2008 you can't erase codes by disconnecting the battery, you have to use a scan tool. That may be OK with you since you are trying to save money.

 

My dad knows a lady in the service department. Took it in and check it out. The lady told my dad what was wrong and gave him a print out of the part and estimated cost of labor.

The part number is 9u5z-9f945-c?

I also googled TSB 12-03-19. I didn't see anything about where the canister purge valve is. It says you have to look into a workshop manual? Could you give me a link for what you where reading?

I can clear the codes. I found later on that my neighbor has a scan tool. He said I can use it at anytime so...

 

The 9F945 isn't a canister purge valve, it is the canister vent solenoid. A canister purge valve is a 9C915, so this changes things drastically. The canister vent solenoid is mounted on the EVAP canister, which is on the bottom side of the floor pan on the drivers side, just in front of the fuel tank. A couple of 10mm nuts and a couple more bolts hold it on. Carefully remove the hoses and unbolt the canister itself from the bracket. The canister vent solenoid is on the side of the canister. To remove the solenoid, hold the small plastic tab on the canister out of the way (you'll see what I mean) and turn the valve to the RIGHT about a quarter turn then pull out. Lube the o-rings of the new valve with a bit of oil and reinstall in reverse order.

Since you don't have a way to test the system, clear the codes and drive it to see if everything is ok. It will probably take a couple hundred miles to fully run the test enough times before you know the repairs were effective. In other words, even if there is still a leak the light will not come back on right away.

I can't give you a link for my source of info as I'm a Ford tech and get info right from Ford's system.

 

I looked under the escape today. I see a black box/cover right next to the gas tank. My guess is that it's in there? Sounds and looks easy to install. Thanks.