Whats that Black canister under the passenger front seat side of the van for ?

 

It is a lead(pb) lined cannister for transporting radioactive material clandestinely.

Or

It might be the charcoal cannister where gas fumes are stored before the Purge solenoid activates a vaccum path, and sucks the fumes into the intake.

Take your pick.

 

Ahhhh u got joles..lol. u should be on Adult Swim maybe the second one...

 

I thought it was the powder charge for the passenger ejector seat.

 

You're all wrong -- it's the Cocktail Shaker. The hoses lead to the dash so you can dispense adult beverages after they've been shaken, not stirred.

 

A good way to have a snort and not violate those pesky open container laws.

 

If one had removed said canister, what would one do with the fuel tank line? Vent to atmosphere or cap it off?

 

One should do neither, seeing as both are dangerous moves.

 

Let's pretend that one was stuck in the desert with a '73 Dodge van with a 360ci engine and no canister (charcoal canister?). Which of these scenarios would be most likely to get one back to civilization without a fire?

1. Vent gas tank line to atmosphere.
2. Vent with a check valve on gas tank line so pressure can escape but nothing gets in.
3. Plug gas tank line.
4. Plug gas tank line and drill very small hole in gas cap to relieve pressure.

I fully understand that none are ideal but I'm pretty much in this situation right now. My charcoal canister was disconnected by a previous owner and I just found it yesterday while tracing disconnected vacuum hoses.

 

But watch out for sparks.