Rusted pan above spare tire?

I am in the process of installing rear shocks. I removed the spare tire. However, on the driver's side, there is a very rusted pan/tray holding two black objects (I have no idea what they are). Can anyone help me out in identifying what these black objects are and if the "pan "is safe to remove/replace? I need to remove it in order to get access to the upper bolts.

Here is a picture:


For some reason, the embedded picture stopped showing...so here is a link:
Picture Link


Any help is greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance!

You can access the drivers side upper shock bolts with out removing the pan. I just did the rear shocks on mine last week.

It is a little tricky but can be done.

Those black objects are the charcoal canister(s). They are part of the Evaporative Emissions system. I think the "pan" is actually kind of a skid plate to protect the canisters.

You must be in the rust belt. :

Updating your profile to include your vehicle details and your location is very helpful when people are reading your posts. The more information you include the better the answers.. Although your member name is self explanatory we have had various members in the past with several vehicles and the topic was confusing as to the vehicle in question..

Thanks everyone for your help. I called the stealership and they wanted $186 for a new vapor/charcoal container bracket!!! I called 5 junkyards all to no avail.

And Dan, yes I was able to finally get the top bolts off without removing the pan. Removing the pan would have made it easier though . I didn't feel like getting robbed by the dealership, so I finished putting the shocks on and just threw the spare tire back up there. Now I just have to worry about hitting a bump and sending the vapor/charcoal canisters into the spare tire

Thanks!

later model Exploders have plastic ones, I swapped mine over

since the picture is already in this thread, does anyone know what size/type bolts are used to secure this to the frame?, mine were lost after a leaf spring replacement at a local college shop.