Gutsiest move I ever saw man...

 

I started this off with the same feeling about the media in the can.. I also started this off with the same larger volume - lower pressure mindset. I will for sure document my findings. Part of my commitment to this set up is that I knew this could help round out the test. You have none, I believe bdcheung is running wool only inside the baffle system. Now I am running scrubber pads and using the baffle system as a way to prevent any possible scrubber pad failure from getting out of the can. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I think our efforts are going to pay off greatly in the long term health of these cars.

I will attempt to learn more about the potential capacity of this set up. I know the scrubbers do take up a lot of space. If I get around to it, I will fill the catch can with rubbing alcohol, then pour that into a measuring cup to check capacity. At this point, I just want to catch some oil, LOL.

I actually LOL'd at this. I hope mostly to be funny, but if you do see something terrifying, let me know.

 

Looking closely at the design of the Earth Dreams direct injection engine few things become apparent:
-An air/oil separator is already there from the factory
-The design of the intake port and the placement of the multi-hole injector in relation to intake valves does indeed allow for some fuel to be sprayed at the back of the valves IF timing is advanced sufficiently.
So I as understand it when high octane fuel with sufficient detergents is used and revs are kept high often - the combination allows for some of the cleaning action.
-Frequent (high quality) oil changes keep impurities in check, so the mist that gets returned into the intake port should be fairly clean and thin as it will (hopefully) contain mostly unburned fuel, water condensation, and little oil. Kind of like washing your hands with dirty water... which is questionably better than not washing them at all.

So UNLESS the car putts around at 2,000 rpm all the time (CVT?), drive cycles are short so engine never gets hot, low octane fuel causes retarded timing and contains no detergents and oil is old, thick and full of crud... in theory this should be no issue for our engines.
Consequently I am quite surprised that those catch cans are still catching so much liquid.
Did any one let it sit and settle to see how much of it is actually oil?

Also, I only found one documented report of intake valves coked with sludge (with pictures) on this forum and while most catch can vendors illustrate the issue showing BMW valves completely coated with carbon for added dramatic effect, needless to say it is a completely different engine. I have experience with it, my previous car was a 135i with the N55 (twin scroll turbo) motor and for those, the issue is very real. And N54 was even worse.
So in closing - is it really possible that a simple twenty dollar generic catchcan is all that is needed to fix an issue multiple manufacturers have been struggling to rectify for nearly a decade?
Well, at the very least it should not hurt anything, I guess.
I might eventually give it a try.

 

Terrifying...? No, not terrifying... However one big red flag from my perspective is that your so called catch can does not include the proper etching. "Genuine" oil catch cans are easily identified by the etching on the cover, as seen below. Your can may be a counterfeit. Did you source the can from a reputable vendor like eBay, AliExpress, etc? Just trying to help; EvilChargerFan will back me up on this.

 

First - Even though I have heard that BMW 135 could be a complete pain to own.... when they run right, it's supposed to be glorious! I'm jealous.

As for manufacturers fixing this.... I can actually speak very professionally on this topic and default you to what I wrote in a previous post in this thread. https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/3rd-...ml#post1407948

At this point, I am not sure a cheap can, acting alone, will be enough, but we will have fun finding out.

I was just telling a coworker, who is also a car nut, about doing this on my car and he said the dealer just tried to get him to schedule a walnut blast - intake runners and valve cleaning for his 30,000 mile service. This is on a Buck Regal 2.0T.

 

You certainly have two things going for you....
1. 100% certified "oil catch can." You are right, mine may be a syrup catch can, or even weirder, a Canadian Maple Syrup catch can... For now I just hope..
2. You have ram air cooling across the top of yours... this is probably assisting in the rapid deatomization of the hydrocarbon mists flying through yours. Lucky.

A concern I have for you though.... Yours may only catch oil and there is fuel and condensation in there too..... Good luck with those!

Old Jeep club rule.... Purple = Sarcasm

 

My 2012 135i 6MT with BMW Performance Power Kit flash and BMW Performance Exhaust (320hp and 340 ft/lb) was using a quart of oil every 2,000kms at 20K on the ODO.
This was perfectly normal according to BMW and acceptable.
It run like a charm and was a blast to break speed limits with, but I had it inspected and walnut blast was suggested sooner than later.
After less than 20k miles !!!
I had it for just over a year and decided not to pay for previous owners uneducated mistakes as the car just run out of warranty.
But it was glorious for sure.
Except my wallet would disagree.
I now have a Honda and an Acura in my garage... both will full warranty... time will tell if this was a good move.
So far I am as happy as it gets.
But I digress...

 

Love it; the ram air cooling... rapid deatomization of hydrocarbon mists... Nice. Interesting note on the purple lettering; I usually choose to let the reader decide. Once in a while I'll stick a smiley face at the end...

 

Your name isn't Dustin, is it? My old buddy that I see about one time a year had a flashed 135, new off the lot... I think it spent a month at the dealer in the first two months. Last couple of times I have seen him, he was driving an older Honda and a pretty cool Acura SUV. It must be a cycle 135 owners go through! LOL

 

as of 32453 miles, back on team catch-can

will report back in a few days with oil collected and if power loss issue has been addressed

 

I approve; and I am honored...

 

It's a step in the right direction, but the lettering doesn't meet contrast standards for easy visibility, I'm still a skeptic

 

lets see some numbers people ..... I know some of you guys got some collected oil in those cans!

lets get some figures, I'm dying to see how many ML/OZ you guys collected in however many miles of driving

 

08/04/2018
32453 miles odometer = Installed Rick Approved "Catch Can"

08/21/2018
33281 miles on odometer = about 7.5 ML of oil caught, after 828 miles/17 days worth of driving.

 

whoops, I didnt follow the format. lets try again:


A. 2015 Fit LX
B. 33281 Miles On Odo
C. 6 Spd/MT Transmission
D. Catch Can Type = Baffled And Authentic "CATCH CAN", Rick Approved
E. About 7.5ML caught after 828 miles, pics in prev post
F. Driving style = 90% Mpg Friendly, 10% Heavy Footed

 

 

Evilcharger, just a small tidbit of thought here. The oil seperator causing restriction at high rpm is nearly impossible, the pcv valve requires vaccum to operate, as we know there is very little to no vaccum present under full throttle/high rpm conditions, leaving the oil seperator a very unlikely cause of the restriction, seeing as the pcv valve would be closed. I would lean more towards your ecu trying to figure out the change in airflow from that throttle spacer, and chances are it learned a new long term fuel trim for it by the time you removed the seperator, causing the "restriction" to feel like it went away coincidentally. At WOT/high rpm, the pcv valve closes, and the crank pressure literally reverses the path of the valve cover breather and forces excess pressure and crankwaste into the fresh air port on your intake, before the throttle body. Also, those in line seperators are meant to flow more cfm than our pcv system does for darn sure. A good indicator of flow is the fact that it is still collecting oil, if it wasnt flowing, oil would not collect, and the filter would require cleaning.

 

Had my oil catch can on for a bit over a month now, mostly highway and some city. I got maybe 4mL in mine.I got about 1040 miles . A bit less than Evilchargerfan has. Looks like its doing its job!

 

Just a side note here, these catch cans are strictly sealed loop oil separators. Some refer catch cans and get a clouded idea of catching oil, and relieving pressure.

A sealed catch can will not change, or remove any pressure, if its closed loop, the pcv system draws on vaccum during low rpm, partial and closed throttle driving. The pressure relievers are called breather boxes, these can be routed from the block, completely ditching a pcv system altogether, but you can vent from the valve cover, to a box with a filter, AND keep the pcv valve to block breather setup, that way u get a crankcase evacuation during day to day driving to keep oil clean, and during WOT conditions, when the pcv valve is closed, crankcase pressure can easily escape into the valve cover and out the breather box, instead of rerouting back into your intake. If you use a high quality filter like a small k&n, the air drawn into the valvecover during normal high vacuum driving will be clean.

The reason honda uses a metal line, ran parallel to the small coolant line, is so the heat from the coolant will warm the fresh air stream going into your valve cover, preventing oil diluting condensation from a rapid temperature change that cool air would cause.

 

that inline filter one I used did have a one way flow, do you think it not letting the crankcase pressure go in reverse was the cause of the power loss that I felt?