David Buschur

iTrader: (53)

I've had this idea and had it for awhile now. Today I finally got busting butt on the project and got the first prototype done and installed/dyno tested.

So what is it? Well quite simple and yet quite complicated, it's an oil catch can.

Big deal right? Yes, actually. I hate catch cans. They get filled with oil and then you have to dump them. Some of them are designed to have a tube running back to the turbo inlet (like the factory hose does on the valve cover of the EVO) but that is a horrible idea because that oil, just like on the factory hose, ends up filling your FMIC with oil contamination and completely kills the efficiency of the FMIC.

We do not sell, use or suggest oil catch cans because non of them work the way I wanted them to.

Now, I want to give some credit to Crawford Performance because they actually make a catch can for the Subaru's that works. I used one on my Subaru from them and it worked perfectly.

I have always thought that was a great product but nothing like this is available for the EVO. The biggest problem is there is no place to return the oil from the catch can to the block on the EVO.

I suggest to everyone who comes through our shop to just install a hose on the valve cover and let it vent to atmosphere. The larger builds we do we will also vent the port for the PCV to atmosphere. The hoses of course will get some oil to drip from them over time.

I built a can today for my EVO that puts both valve cover ports into the can. I also figured out a way to drain the oil back to the engine, so nothing is lost, no drips, no vapors. I then was able to vent the entire can back into the turbo inlet.

Now here is some intersting things I found today.

First thing I did was put my additional 5 bar map sensor into the hose that I had running to the turbo inlet. During a run with 35 psi of boost the car was able to pull -.7313 vacuum on that line. This was actually much less than I anticipated but it does show that it pulls a vaccum through that line.

The next thing I wanted to do was hook that same line up to the catch can and put my map sensor in the other end, what I was hoping for was to measure the amount of crankcase pressure under boost that ended up in the can. Well, that was a **** poor mistake haha I started the car, was reviewing a log with it idling and then started to run the car through 1st and 2nd gear going up to 3rd for the dyno pull. I looked up in my review mirror and noticed everything behind me was "white". I could smell smoke. I shut the car off and could hardly see. Trent came running back to the dyno bay, he thought the car was on fire. I knew as soon as I saw the smoke what happened. I pressurized the crankcase, by putting the map sensor in the vent line I plugged off the vents. I got out and pulled the map sensor out of the vent, the amount of pressure that had built up was rediculous. I was not running the logger so I didn't get a PSI measurement but I can tell you it was atleast a few PSI after maybe 2 minutes of run time.

After pulling the map sensor out of the line the car continued to smoke, it took another 3 minutes or so to burn the oil out that had been pushed out the exhaust and get it running clean again.

OK, so on with the testing. First pull I left the hose off the vent and just vented the can to atmosphere. Car ran fine, no smoke, everthing was normal. The next two runs I ran the car with the hose attached to the turbo inlet.

The car made the best torque it has made to date with it's current set up. HP was basically unchanged.

637 whp 517 ft lbs. The torque is up quite a bit. The air temps today were at 100degrees, so not at all ideal compared to what I have been testing in the last week, where they have been as low as 68 degrees. I attribute the increase in power from helping to reduce the crankcase pressure.

The main goal was accomplished. I pulled the hose off the turbo inlet when I was finished and it was bone dry.

I am not posting pictures yet, I want to run the car more to make sure that all my oil ends up returned to the block and the line going to the turbo inlet stays dry.

The can itself is made from 304 grade stainless steel. The fittings on the can will also be 304 grade SS.

I intend to offer this catch can in the very very near future (like within a week). I have SS tubing coming in to build more and it should be there Friday.

The kit will come with the can and enough hose to run all the lines you need.

The main purpose of this was to build the only proper functioning catch can there is for an EVO. Power gains or no power gains but from what I can tell there has been an increase.

Good testing and other than the DEVO driveshaft install and dyno test that is about it for my RS for the rest of the summer.

Pricing, before anyone asks, I don't know yet. The first can took me quite awhile to figure out and fabricate. The next one won't take nearly as long. I will know something for sure after the next one and once I see the pricing I am going to get on the parts I need to build it.

Thanks for reading.

Gary@MellonRacing

iTrader: (74)

great info dave, good news for me i need one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

M3EvoBR

nice post ... I'm a fan of your cars and tunes ...
Greetings from Sao Paulo, Brazil.

GTijoejoe

iTrader: (25)

Hahahaha you know better. I've done it quite a few times on my GTi when my crank case hose got kinked accidently. That white smoke is annoying isn't it?

I'm glad to see you are taking the time to establish an effective oil vaper collector which you don't have to empty repetively.

Keep up the great work!!!

Turbo Kyle

iTrader: (33)

Cool, I took off my LICP pipe today and saw a decent amount of oil in it...I have a helix intake pipe and I have the vent like stock...so its sucking a decent amount of oil in and pushing it through the IC pipes and IC....any Idea how to clean the IC with the IC on the car...I was thinking a leaf blower and some break clean

Ivan@AMS

Dave, maybe you could try experimenting with the tube going into the intake pipe. Try extending it into the air stream angled towards the turbo to get a venturi effect creating more vacuum.

AWD Motorsports

iTrader: (211)

Nice work!! You have to give credit to a guy who actually does REAL WORLD TESTING not just using theories.. I have seen vacuum pump setups and setups similar to this on the subies as you said.. Nice to know you are going to make a ready to go bolt on product!!

deadbeatrec

iTrader: (9)

so whats different about this one u produced, than other ones u can buy? and how are u putting the oil back into the motor? dont know how i feel about putting the oil back into the motor that incase it was dirty or had contaminats in it.

whitey4d

iTrader: (1)

Back in the DSM days we took gas and poured it into the core and let it set for awhile. Then shake and pour out and use it in ur lawn mower etc.

Turbo Kyle

iTrader: (33)

^ thanks...I was thinking about using meth...I got a few gallons

LoKiEvo

iTrader: (4)

Thats a good idea. I had to make one for my car because the motor was built loose. I was having so much pressure that oil was blowing the PVC valve off the valve cover. I had to get my catch can cutom made, using big fittings i bought at Lowes. I need to figure out how you got it to go back to the block though. I have to empty mine pretty regularly.

Synapse

iTrader: (1)

Great work. Aside from the fact that you don't want to have an oil filled intercooler, most people don't know that oil has a very low autoignition point. Sir Harry Ricardo found that olefin based oils are great for producing detonation. So, oil in your IC is a timebomb waiting to go off when ingested under peak cylinder pressure.

Which is why, any proper race car that runs a light tension ring pack runs scavenging to eliminate pressurizing the crank case and having oil blow by on the intake stroke and autoignite on the compression stroke.

scheides

iTrader: (10)

Dave, I there is a guy on here with a product you NEED to try with this. His username is s2kracka and he has a product he calls Kracka Vents; they're basically one-way check valves for the lines as they leave the valve cover, and they help increase the vacuum in the valvecover and crank case but not allow boost pressure back into them. PM me or him for details, i do not want to clutter your thread.

DG Motors

iTrader: (6)

Thank you for the great information. I am interested since i am running a decent amount of boost with no catch can and only a breather on my valve cover.

03whitegsr

iTrader: (8)

Just get a belt driven vacuum pump on her. You'll be pulling 15inches in no time... along with all the oil out of the motor because of it...but that's not important.

One downfall to draining the can back into the motor is that much of the by-pass gas is fuel vapor, which has a tendency to break down oil.

After my experiences with external pumps, I'm a fan of the Tony Palo mentality.
Lots of really big hoses and filters into a big catch can to store all the oil that gets pushed out under 50 PSI of boost.