HELP - Some weird extra parts in the engine bay 308QV

Looks like a charcoal canister.

 

+1 -- an added fuel evaporation control system.

OP -- It may also have a frequency valve and aftermarket ECU added somewhere (to add a crude "with Lambda" functionality) as the rubber line at the center port of the fuel distributor (in addition to the banjo bolt) is a common place to add it into the control pressure plumbing. Have you ever followed the small rubber line connected to the fuel distributor center port and see what it is connected to? Do you still have an O2 sensor mounted somewhere in the exhaust system (it may not since you report having no cat now)?
This is how the (unmodified) fuel distributor plumbing looks on a euro 308QV (K-Jet without Lambda):
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Charcoal filter for vapors from the fuel system. Tore mine out of my GT4.

 

It is hard to tell from your photo, but the oil cooler looks like it is missing or hidden by extra hoses going to some mysterious place in the vicinity of the side scoop on the left side of the car. It should provide air to the oil cooler.

 

Nice car Stephan, welcome to the forum.

As already mentioned the canister is a charcoal filter. If the car came to the US in 1987 it would have to have been "upgraded" to US smog and lighting specs. The charcoal filter captures gasoline vapors from the fuel tank then sends them to the engine to be burned. The hoses probably are related to the vapor capture system. The light "upgraded" you already know about. There may well be crash beams installed inside the doors as that was one of the requirements at the time.

There was somewhat of a cottage industry of modifying non US spec cars for importation. Some cars were modified with excellent engineering and execution, most were hacked just enough to get by less than knowledgeable government inspectors. One of those places was local to me. I remember when the DOT/EPA/FBI raided the place, they seized about a dozen exotic cars and sent the business owner off to jail. My boss at the time (mid 1980's) had been in early negotiations for one of the cars. He lucked out, had he bought a car there they would have seized it from him.

 

This is super helpful as I have an 83 euro qv and I am doing an engine out light resto/mod on. I have the charcoal filter and want to delete. Assuming that I do, where do I vent the gas vapor or does a euro car not have a t for the line? Not sure if that question makes sense.

 

Hi Stephan, I think most of your answers are above. I have a US QV and the proper place for the carbon canister is behind the right rear wheel well cover (from memory) and they are a little smaller than the one that was fitted to your 308!

 

Yes the evap charcoal canister on a US car you'd be hard pressed to even know it was there. It's hidden pretty well.