TimberVD
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I haven't seen anyone put an oil catch can yet on a B8 TDI, so thought I'd share one or two things from my experience on the 3.0 TDI CAPA engine. Added some pictures as well to go along with the post.
Why a catch can? Well, to stop oily fumes from joining the soot and coating everything in sticky tar. Probably the worst enemy of a Diesel. I appreciate having an older turbo with leaky seals can still introduce oil into the system but this is a reasonably cost effective way to keep a load of rubbish out of the engine.
The previous owner changed both intake manifolds and swirl flap motors so I'd like to keep the carbon buildup to a minimum if possible.
In a way, I'm not surprised I haven't seen this fitted before as there is almost no space with the TDI engine. It looks like even the high power "RS TDI" guys are not running one. Doesn't look like even the B8.5 has a cyclonic oil separator.
Regarding space there is literally only one place you can put a can, at least on my TDI, as the other locations are either too far away or require tubes running behind the turbo, which have to be heatsleeved and custom mounting in order of prevent heat damage.
I've got a bi-tubo intake pipe so the bracket holding the DPF sensor and everything could be pushed and cable tied out of the way to make a little more space for the can.
Apart from having a small enough catch can to fit I also wanted the ports to be the same or slightly larger diameter of the stock PCV system (which is 16mm enlarged to about 22mm turbo damper side). The other requirement was that it had to have some internal baffles to separate the oil in suspension.
The only only one I found that ticked all the boxes was the ECS tuning 6oz one. Not the cheapest one but with 10 AN ports (19mm barbs purchased separately) and quadruple reversible baffles, it was the one to buy. After shipping to the UK and the right screw barbs, it was even more expensive. I didn't go for the $49 universal mounting brackets and my wallet took enough pounding as it was. Didn't need them in the end anyway. I was surprised I did not need to pay import taxes and clearance fees. Inc. shipping it was £167 for the Brits. Ouch.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...779ecs05a01~a/
I figured that if the catch can port and hose diameter would be too much of a restriction, the potential damage would be far greater then a one off purchase of the right catch can. I'm saying if, as I'm not sure that would be the case, but most cheaper catch cans had a fair percentage in reduction over the stock system piping. (Turbo) Diesels seem to have higher flow PCVs anyway so larger ports was a safe bet. Especially since it's remapped already and will get the hybrid turbo treatment in future.
The Mann/Hummel provent looked the most promising but then I realised just how large the right one is for the right power bracket. No way it was going to fit. Also, I didn't quite like the sound of the filter element having to be replaced.
I also wanted a little dipstick thingy as well so i don't have to take the can out every time.
So the ECS tuning one is very well engineered and just what I wanted.
I purchased the 19mm barbs to go along with it and some 19mm internal diameter radiator hose (EPDM SAEJ20R3). Mikalor clamps are good clips in my opinion as they will shrink or enlarge depending on the temperature. Keeping the connections nice and snug. Even though the screw in barbs have O rings on them, I added some Teflon tape on the threads for an even better seal.
I cut to size some neoprene adhesive backed sheet to stick on the actual can with some cable ties around it to doubly secure. Because it is in contact with the strut I didn't want the chance of metal rubbing on metal. Added bonus is it should marginally protect the can from heat of the engine and from freezing over in winter.
I added some duct tape as well to the strut for added protection against rubbing. As you can see from the pictures, it's such a snug fit, I don't even need a bracket made up. I can pull it up when I need to empty the contents. I might manufacture one in future but seems like it stays in place even when hard cornering and acceleration.
I reused the stock PCV hose from the can outlet to the intake as it's got a nice 90degree bend on it. Even though the stock hose diameter is slightly smaller it slid over the barb pretty easily. I might make that 19mm in future as well.
I used black 32mm Mikalor clamps in case anyone is wondering. Together with the black hoses and spray painting the logo out on the can, it looks stealthy and OEM.
I am waiting for some black exhaust heat wrap and black stainless cable ties to come in to properly protect the hose running closest to the turbo heat shield. Again, I'll try and make it look as stock as possible. For now, I cut open the stock sleeve and wrapped it around the larger hose. The plastic cables ties should last long enough for the other parts to come in.
I'll update with results regarding what it catches. I appreciate it's in close proximity to the engine so I'm not sure how much condensation effect there will be, but the baffles should take most if not all the oil out of suspension. Keeping the piping as close to stock as possible can be only a good thing. I might even dunk a stainless pot scrubber in there for an enlarged surface for anything that remains in the vapours.
I'm not sure if there would be a performance benefit apart from keeping the existing system clean from carbon buildup.
I don't think there has been anything publicly published regarding PCV oil fumes reducing Diesel cetane, but I know on a petrol a catch can has some benefit regards octane rating and knock/det.
Anyway, I hope this helps some of you to keep the engine intake manifolds clean.
Why a catch can? Well, to stop oily fumes from joining the soot and coating everything in sticky tar. Probably the worst enemy of a Diesel. I appreciate having an older turbo with leaky seals can still introduce oil into the system but this is a reasonably cost effective way to keep a load of rubbish out of the engine.
The previous owner changed both intake manifolds and swirl flap motors so I'd like to keep the carbon buildup to a minimum if possible.
In a way, I'm not surprised I haven't seen this fitted before as there is almost no space with the TDI engine. It looks like even the high power "RS TDI" guys are not running one. Doesn't look like even the B8.5 has a cyclonic oil separator.
Regarding space there is literally only one place you can put a can, at least on my TDI, as the other locations are either too far away or require tubes running behind the turbo, which have to be heatsleeved and custom mounting in order of prevent heat damage.
I've got a bi-tubo intake pipe so the bracket holding the DPF sensor and everything could be pushed and cable tied out of the way to make a little more space for the can.
Apart from having a small enough catch can to fit I also wanted the ports to be the same or slightly larger diameter of the stock PCV system (which is 16mm enlarged to about 22mm turbo damper side). The other requirement was that it had to have some internal baffles to separate the oil in suspension.
The only only one I found that ticked all the boxes was the ECS tuning 6oz one. Not the cheapest one but with 10 AN ports (19mm barbs purchased separately) and quadruple reversible baffles, it was the one to buy. After shipping to the UK and the right screw barbs, it was even more expensive. I didn't go for the $49 universal mounting brackets and my wallet took enough pounding as it was. Didn't need them in the end anyway. I was surprised I did not need to pay import taxes and clearance fees. Inc. shipping it was £167 for the Brits. Ouch.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...779ecs05a01~a/
I figured that if the catch can port and hose diameter would be too much of a restriction, the potential damage would be far greater then a one off purchase of the right catch can. I'm saying if, as I'm not sure that would be the case, but most cheaper catch cans had a fair percentage in reduction over the stock system piping. (Turbo) Diesels seem to have higher flow PCVs anyway so larger ports was a safe bet. Especially since it's remapped already and will get the hybrid turbo treatment in future.
The Mann/Hummel provent looked the most promising but then I realised just how large the right one is for the right power bracket. No way it was going to fit. Also, I didn't quite like the sound of the filter element having to be replaced.
I also wanted a little dipstick thingy as well so i don't have to take the can out every time.
So the ECS tuning one is very well engineered and just what I wanted.
I purchased the 19mm barbs to go along with it and some 19mm internal diameter radiator hose (EPDM SAEJ20R3). Mikalor clamps are good clips in my opinion as they will shrink or enlarge depending on the temperature. Keeping the connections nice and snug. Even though the screw in barbs have O rings on them, I added some Teflon tape on the threads for an even better seal.
I cut to size some neoprene adhesive backed sheet to stick on the actual can with some cable ties around it to doubly secure. Because it is in contact with the strut I didn't want the chance of metal rubbing on metal. Added bonus is it should marginally protect the can from heat of the engine and from freezing over in winter.
I added some duct tape as well to the strut for added protection against rubbing. As you can see from the pictures, it's such a snug fit, I don't even need a bracket made up. I can pull it up when I need to empty the contents. I might manufacture one in future but seems like it stays in place even when hard cornering and acceleration.
I reused the stock PCV hose from the can outlet to the intake as it's got a nice 90degree bend on it. Even though the stock hose diameter is slightly smaller it slid over the barb pretty easily. I might make that 19mm in future as well.
I used black 32mm Mikalor clamps in case anyone is wondering. Together with the black hoses and spray painting the logo out on the can, it looks stealthy and OEM.
I am waiting for some black exhaust heat wrap and black stainless cable ties to come in to properly protect the hose running closest to the turbo heat shield. Again, I'll try and make it look as stock as possible. For now, I cut open the stock sleeve and wrapped it around the larger hose. The plastic cables ties should last long enough for the other parts to come in.
I'll update with results regarding what it catches. I appreciate it's in close proximity to the engine so I'm not sure how much condensation effect there will be, but the baffles should take most if not all the oil out of suspension. Keeping the piping as close to stock as possible can be only a good thing. I might even dunk a stainless pot scrubber in there for an enlarged surface for anything that remains in the vapours.
I'm not sure if there would be a performance benefit apart from keeping the existing system clean from carbon buildup.
I don't think there has been anything publicly published regarding PCV oil fumes reducing Diesel cetane, but I know on a petrol a catch can has some benefit regards octane rating and knock/det.
Anyway, I hope this helps some of you to keep the engine intake manifolds clean.
