from all the reading in previous threads about thermodynamics, and heat transfer, and coefficients and...oh jeez, I'm back in Pre Med again

Here's what I'd love some honest answers to - is an oil catch can a good thing to have for general maintenance of the SC? Or is it a lot of baloney?

I don't run my car on a track. I do drive it in a spirited fashion when I am not commuting on the freeway in it. Is the Alta CC a decent one for me to get? Does anyone know how Randy Webb installs them vis-a-vis the umpteen varieties of installation I have read about in the previous threads? I did see one a friend's car recently, and what it had in it did not resemble pure oil, rather it was a milky watery liquid. The owner of the car was a bit perplexed at this as well, since it was ostensibly designed to "catch oil"...

 

For the extra $100 it is worth it as it does help. After 2.5 months my can is nearly full. I am glad that blow by isnt clogging my throttle body or IC.

Go for it, see my pics in the album link in my sig...

 

I was having trouble with my car running smooth and have done several things to "help" it. The CC is one of those mods. the car does run smoother. What convinced me is when I saw the "gunk" on my sensors.

Is it helping.....I don't know....it looks cool and it can't hurt and the car....is running better.

 

I have the GT Tuning unit.
It works.

 

Is it mostly a peice of mind part?

 

Really what convinced me was the problem I was having with my sensors and that has gone away........Is the CC the reason........not sure but it is cheap insurance. If your not having troubles don't fix it....take your wife or GF out for a nice dinner.......there are benefits to be gained there as well

 

After 3 months I did not see it catch anything!!

 

Mine has been on that long and I have no visual in the tube

 

Same here...it's maintance free:smile:

 

I was @ a Pulley Party recently and a guy was showing how his can was showing signs that it was full. So I guess for the peice of mind it was amazing that that much oil was in the can rather then clogging up the works.

 

The logic makes sense but I have a hard time justifing the price of these cans, especially since many people do not seem to "catch" much or anything at all. Yet others do see results which brings into question the "right way" to hook it up. From what I have read the car can use two cans but this is still not clear to me.

When I installed my boost gauge, I had to take off the intercooler and did not find it excessively oil coated so its been a low priority. I've been toying with the idea of making a can out of PVC plumbing parts (you guessed it - Home Depot) - just to see what my MCS produces.

BahamaBart

 

Some time back I posted a link to plans for one made out of PVC.

 

Old news: I've been running the E-bay aluminum unit with no problems at all ($40, shipped); a nicely made piece. It does collect a funky mix of water and oil, maybe a cup every 3000 miles.

My guess is that when you shut off the hot engine, as it cools, it draws outisde air back into the crankcase. If the humidty and ambient temps are high, that will produce water vapor in the oily miasma flying around in the engine. The catch can can condense it out, rather than pass it into the combustion air system.

 

The real question is how are you guy's hooking it up? Maybe those that don't get anything aren't tied into a different line...I know there's more than one way to hook it up. Are you tied into the left PCV or the right breather (or both)?

 

I agree with JLM. OCC-yes. Over $100+ definitely not. I got a really sweet brushed aluminum Greddy can from an internet rice-only shop at about $40. Works great, greaat quality and even has a sight glass. Do the can just don't do the unnecessary markup (sorry vendors, my opinion). Go shop around. It does keep more bucks in your pocket.

 

Bouray, I sent you a PM...

 

I took out my IC and it's clean not a single drop of oil inside, but I can't see any thing in the catch can as well....where did it all go?

 

just a question about these oil ccs, can we fit one of those 'universal' ones ? eg greddy and a bunch of others on ebay.. or is there fitment problems??

 

minime, and others: here is some history...

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ighlight=catch

 

Skuzy,

I wondered the same thing...

 

Thanks for the link

Very interesting read ( and good vendor bashing too, haha i love it! )

Anyways after reading through that thread, it would seem that the OCC is worth the while, as to what brand (alta, m7, gt tunning , ebay etc ) - well thats all debatable.

Still not sure about fitment problems tho? it would seem they should be ok, provided the tubing was the right length? can someone confirm.

Cheers./

 

an interesting observation is

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...261#post605261

NB. no oil in the IC after 21 miles of driving (per the thread)
vs. the amount of oil in the IC (per jlm's link to another thread).

 

I took the IC off recently (6K miles), and there were maybe a few ml of oil caught in the curves of the rubber IC connectors. Seems like a bit more upstream than downstream, but in any event oil mist must have been blowing thru the IC. The inside of the IC looked like it had a thin oil film on it. I doubt this has much effect on heat transfer, but as others have posted it might gunk things up in the engine. For this purpose, a cheap CC (e-bay) is probably a cost effective mod. Personally, I don't think it is enough of an issue to warrent the price of the Alta or M7 CC.

Based on the previous CC thread posted above, I'll connect this only to the PCV valve side. I doubt any oil comes out of the crankcase breather side anyways -- I've had the HAI on for ~1500 mi now, with this breather vented to the atmosphere thru a small filter. No oil has come out of it yet.

 

What was the title of this thread? I wonder what MiniMelSF's conclusion is.

 

I have mine connected to the SC side only and I have caught a fair amount of oil residue. typically during track days. You can get a M7 like OCC on ebay. I think I paid $30 for mine. Looks exactly like M7's except it did not have the M7 logo. I have an Alta/Perrin OCC connected, but I am going to use the ebay OCC for the air intake side as well. That means 2 cans. Good insurance. Just make sure you get no leaks in the system.

MTC,
arly