2002 NA s60, I asked the mechanic to do a smoke test on the evap system and he reported smoke pouring out of area around the top of the canister. How can I get a look at that area, is there access from the trunk or do I need to drop the exhaust?

 

You need to drop the exhaust.

 

I'd like to just have all the typical wear items on hand when I start the job, it looks like there are two rubber hoses on the one end of the canister and a third one with a bend in it, looking at the diagram. Anything else I should address while I have it all apart? Is it ok to just replace the rivet on the heat shield with nuts and bolts? Do I need to remove the muffler or just drop it?

 

It's likely a split in one of the hoses, so replacing them all would be a good idea.

You can use a nut and bolt in place of the rivet.

If you have a lift, you can lower the exhaust enough without actually removing it. If you're doing it on jack stands, it might be harder but I've never done it that way.