Catch Can nay sayers

Agreed. Even if it was indeed beneficial, my truck will be long gone before I see it.

 

Definitely getting one now

 

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Pictures of how and where is installed please. Hose connections with pictures in details appreciated.

 

Here you go

 

10/10

A product that exists thanks to business savvy aftermarket accessory companies and enthusiasts willing to buy in just for “peace of mind.”

There are benefits, and cost is low, so it’s an easily justified accessory. There’s a few million motors that have gone decades and decades without them and still get by. The few dozen owner/believers aren’t selling me a thing.

Glad they dig it though! Just doesn’t fit a NA/DD situation whatsoever.

 

I'll take the piece of mind. Lots of money into this truck and I plan on it being my last truck.

 

And I like data points. Agree, if you like it, it certainly does not hurt. If you don't run one, evidence is not there to say you need to. King Solomon says split the emergency spare in half, and see how far you get!

 

Pretty Savvy business people indeed. Found this online enjoy

There is a large debate as to whether or not oil catch cans are worth the money or not. This article is dedicated to providing a very detailed explanation showing why a catch can is highly recommended in direct injection engine applications.

First, let's go over what is currently happening in your engine without a catch can installed. All internal combustion engines that run off gasoline are 4 stroke engines. This means that the piston has to go up and down a total of 4 times to complete a cycle. The piston first goes down with the intake valves open creating a vacuum. This draws in the cool dense air for combustion. At the same time, fuel is injected into the cylinder. The intake valves close and then the piston rises up towards the top of the cylinder. This compression creates an immense build-up of pressure in the cylinder. The only things containing this high pressure are the cylinder itself, the piston and the piston rings that seat against the walls of the cylinder. The intake and exhaust valves are obviously closed as well. The pressure is so high that a very small amount of the air escapes around the piston and piston rings into the crankcase. This is called blow-by. The amount of blow-by increases as the engine RPMs rise. Also, an engine with more cylinders will have more blow-by. Obviously not all of the air escapes or else combustion wouldn't take place. A diagram of the 4-stroke cycle can be seen below. Only the first 2 steps are relevant in regards to the catch can.



Inside the crankcase, you have the crank which is turning in the oil pan which is full of oil. This keeps it properly lubricated. PCV or positive crankcase ventilation is necessary to ensure there isn't a build up of pressure in the crankcase. This would cause the crankcase to possibly crack under the pressure and create a huge mess of oil on the street. So the PCV system removes the pressure from the crankcase and reverts it back through the intake tract via crank case vents. This pressure isn't made up of 100% air. It will also contain a very small amount of oil as well since there is so much in the oil pan at a high temperature. This air and oil mixture is then entered somewhere after the intake system, passes through the intercooler (if you car is turbo or supercharged) and then re-enters the combustion chamber (cylinder) through your intake valves to be re-burned. The oil will actually coat everything on its way back to the combustion chamber. It will develop in the intercooler, boost hoses, intake manifold and intake valves. Just on the other side of these valves is where the combustion is taking place where the temperatures are extremely high. This is what actually causes the oil to solidify on the valves. With the oil passing through the intercooler, it can actually coat the cooling fins which will hinder the intercooler's ability to cool the air therefore lowering the efficiency.

The caking on intake valves is only a problem with direct injection engines. For all other engines that use port injection, the gas is introduced before the combustion chamber which means it flows over the intake valves and enter the combustion chamber premixed with the air. This action of the fuel flowing over the intake valves actually cleans the valves from any oil that make already be on there. The oil never has the chance to cake on the valves in port injection engines.

Having oil caked onto your intake valves can cause the following symptoms:

• Knocking
• Pre-ignition
• Loss in power
• Loss in fuel economy

Here is an image of carbon build-up on valves. Yes it's nasty.



This is mainly due to the fact that the air that comes through your intake system and goes into the combustion chamber won't just be air. It will contain some oil particles which cause the combustion process to be slightly less efficient.

You might ask why do car manufacturers revert this crankcase pressure back into the intake tract? Well, for starters there isn't anywhere safe to revert it to and you can't expel it into the atmosphere because it's not environmentally friendly and is considered to not be street legal.

Another question that arises is why isn't a catch can included from the factory? Well it's pretty simple actually. Most people don't even change their oil (scary but true) so will they think to empty the catch can regularly? The answer is obviously and unfortunately, no.

An oil catch can does just that. It catches or prevents the oil from re-entering the intake tract. A catch can is placed right after the PCV and before the intercooler. This means that a more pure (sometimes 100% pure) air mixture will go through the intercooler and intake valves. A more pure air mixture entering the intake valves means no caking and none of the symptoms listed above.

An oil catch can typically uses steel wool or a baffle system that removes the oil from the air-oil mixture. Higher quality cans use the baffle systems since it is less messy and better at separating the mixture. The oil falls to the bottom of the can where it is stored until the can is emptied.

An oil catch can doesn't add any power or make any cool noises so it is often overlooked when modifying vehicles. However, a catch can will ensure you are always running the most power possible by having a cleaner intake tract free of oil

 

But if your truck lasts 15 years and 300,000 miles without it....just sayin

 

I don’t always quote advertising material, but when I do..





Nobody argues with the science. It just a low return for lifetime of 99% of vehicles, even at $40 from China’s finest. It’s totally unnecessary for a daily driven, unmodified engine.

 

Agreed. However it was relatively inexpensive, I will sleep better knowing its there and that helps with the ocd.

 

Oh, we be modifying in the future. Spec U exhaust, power extractors, ov tune. Cold air intake is in. Now when they release a supercharger - well you get the picture

 

That's the main reason on my street /strip car that I removed the PCV and went to a Pan evac set up .This works more efficiently than a oem pcv system and no more oil contamination

 

Thanks.
In stock form, hose A is connected to port down (red line) that goes to PCV and from there to oil can IN, right? SO where is the OUT going to? In your diagram it shows OUT to PCV port IN. Will check mine tomorrow but I like to have knowledge in advance.

 

I have no opinion either way but I would like to add that our trucks are direct and port injection and according to the referenced article port injection systems are not subject to oil buildup on the valves which was the biggest concern.

 

Yes there is a hose from A to B stockwise, its part 12261. Remove that hose at pcv valve @A and run new hose to in on catch can. Then run a hose from out on catch can to location B

 

The guy who put a million miles on his Tundra didn't have a catch can.

 

Would Porsche fitting every 911 (since 1995 I think?) with an air-oil separator (basically a catch can that drains back into the sump instead of collecting in a cup) be good enough to qualify as a "real manufacturer" to you? I can guarantee they threw more than dozens of engines and tens of thousands of hours at that, and even weighed the cost/benefit analysis on it.



I think a lot of the debate revolves around people not knowing, or having misconceived notions, on both ends of the spectrum. Snake oil salesmen and die-hard skeptics abound.

For instance there are the people who see the milky color of the collected oil and panic, thinking something very foul is afoot. Someone else has already covered the point about direct injection, as the V6 is Dual injection you need not worry about the same level of valve fouling. Engines will run for a long time without one, and they'll run just as happily with one.
There is no downside, other than the meager cost, to adding one unless you hamfist it and develop a vacuum leak.

I think it's a lot like the K&N filter debates we have on here a lot, regarding performance vs longevity. Will a truck happily blow past 300K with a paper filter or an oiled filter? Sure, but that won't stop the never ending argument about how one or the other sucks.

And while I'm in the "put one on, it won't hurt anything" camp, the only time I would put it in the absolute 100% necessity column is for an intercooled turbocharged car, as the intercooler will condense the blowby inside- I can't tell you how many intercoolers I've removed that promptly puked a healthy dollop of oil onto the floor when you rotate them. This is a big problem because it greatly reduces the effectiveness of the intercooler over time.

Oh, and diesels. Diesels love to get clogged with sooty blowby in their EGR:

[VW mechanic quietly sobbing emote]

 

Good point, and I just so happened to dig up the pictures from the teardown! Sadly no shots of the intake runners where most of the fouling would occur, but there's some good glamour shots of the pistons!




You can clearly see where the blowby has come in through the runners and hit the crown, but it hasn't accumulated to the point where I would say it affects power. Cylinder 3 looks like its got some ick going on but still pretty mild all things considered.

Spoiler: Unrelated thought

mmmmmm that's some good shit. Good shit right there. I've popped open motors with 1/10th that many miles that looked worse. Someone really took care of that Tundra.

TL;DR are you going to die without one? No. Do you need one to hit 300K? No. Are you stupid for putting one on? Also, no.

 

Looks like a delicious Oreo.