tool: wire stripper
parts: electrical wire connector, hose clamps (optional)
I've been getting a p0446 cel code for some time now and it took me a bit to figure out how to fix it so I thought I'd contribute back to the forum.
First, I'm a visual person and need to see what I'm trying to fix. I found a lot of EVAP diagrams showing the system, but really you're looking for the black charcoal canister on the rear passenger side near the rear tow hook. Between that and the bumper is a drain valve with a connector hooked into it.
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Most of the threads I read talked about disconnecting all the rubber hoses and unclogging them with compressed air. If you're like me and live in new England, you'll find that that certain hose clamps have since turned into a pile of rust so you might have to cut them.
Surprisingly, my hoses were mostly clear, so I moved onto checking the connector itself. other threads complained about cleaning the connector/checking for rust, but this didn't work for me. I cleaned it, plugged it in, cleared the code with a scangauge, restarted the car and the p0446 immediately came on again.
Read a few more threads that talked about the actual connector wire itself rusting apart, so I started unraveling the electrical tape on the connector. about 4-6 inches in, I discovered my problem:
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like Alaska, one of these is a bridge to no where :D.
continued unwrapping a couple more inches...
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Read some conflicting threads about how the connector actually splices into two. not sure if someone can confirm if that is the case and the reasoning behind why I have two source wires? If so, it looks like maybe someone has already tried to fix this before me. I got out my trusty wire strippers and stripped both source wires. it looked like one was heavier gauge than the other.
There were some threads about testing for continuity. I still haven't figured out how the hell to use a multi-meter, so I just bridge the disconnected wire to the connector harness with the heavier gauge source wire by wrapping the exposed wire around each other temporarily. cleared the code with a scangauge, restarted the car and the p0446 immediately came on again.
Next up, was trying the other source wire. This time I was feeling lucky so I used a wire connector to bridge the wire to the connector harness with the other source wire.
![]()
This time after I cleared the code and restarted the car, no more cel code!
I wrapped the two connector wires up with electrical tape and put the wires back in the plastic sheeth, then wrapped the sheet around with electrical tape to prevent dirt/mud from getting in.
parts: electrical wire connector, hose clamps (optional)
I've been getting a p0446 cel code for some time now and it took me a bit to figure out how to fix it so I thought I'd contribute back to the forum.
First, I'm a visual person and need to see what I'm trying to fix. I found a lot of EVAP diagrams showing the system, but really you're looking for the black charcoal canister on the rear passenger side near the rear tow hook. Between that and the bumper is a drain valve with a connector hooked into it.
Most of the threads I read talked about disconnecting all the rubber hoses and unclogging them with compressed air. If you're like me and live in new England, you'll find that that certain hose clamps have since turned into a pile of rust so you might have to cut them.
Surprisingly, my hoses were mostly clear, so I moved onto checking the connector itself. other threads complained about cleaning the connector/checking for rust, but this didn't work for me. I cleaned it, plugged it in, cleared the code with a scangauge, restarted the car and the p0446 immediately came on again.
Read a few more threads that talked about the actual connector wire itself rusting apart, so I started unraveling the electrical tape on the connector. about 4-6 inches in, I discovered my problem:
like Alaska, one of these is a bridge to no where :D.
continued unwrapping a couple more inches...
Read some conflicting threads about how the connector actually splices into two. not sure if someone can confirm if that is the case and the reasoning behind why I have two source wires? If so, it looks like maybe someone has already tried to fix this before me. I got out my trusty wire strippers and stripped both source wires. it looked like one was heavier gauge than the other.
There were some threads about testing for continuity. I still haven't figured out how the hell to use a multi-meter, so I just bridge the disconnected wire to the connector harness with the heavier gauge source wire by wrapping the exposed wire around each other temporarily. cleared the code with a scangauge, restarted the car and the p0446 immediately came on again.
Next up, was trying the other source wire. This time I was feeling lucky so I used a wire connector to bridge the wire to the connector harness with the other source wire.
This time after I cleared the code and restarted the car, no more cel code!
I wrapped the two connector wires up with electrical tape and put the wires back in the plastic sheeth, then wrapped the sheet around with electrical tape to prevent dirt/mud from getting in.