[vasillalov]

Originally Posted by Joshboody

The aluminum plate runs down the middle, so just put the wool on the inlet side. I think it runs the entire can length... ask BSH to confirm.

No, it does not. When I was installing mine, I shone a green laser inside the occ and I could clearly see that the perforated metal plate is not extend fully to the length OR the width of the cylinder.

Think of this aluminum plate that's inside more like a splash screen put in front of the air stream. The oil fumes/droplets hit the perforated splash shield and they are supposed to drop down. In actuality, air simply goes under and around that splash shield and escapes through the outlet pipe.

I criticized their design in my initial installation thread a while back. BSH came on the board, said that their design is good and that there is no need for the separator plate to extend fully... As evidenced from my experience, that does not work well at all.

[Joshboody]

Originally Posted by vasillalov

No, it does not. When I was installing mine, I shone a green laser inside the occ and I could clearly see that the perforated metal plate is not extend fully to the length OR the width of the cylinder.

Think of this aluminum plate that's inside more like a splash screen put in front of the air stream. The oil fumes/droplets hit the perforated splash shield and they are supposed to drop down. In actuality, air simply goes under and around that splash shield and escapes through the outlet pipe.

I criticized their design in my initial installation thread a while back. BSH came on the board, said that their design is good and that there is no need for the separator plate to extend fully... As evidenced from my experience, that does not work well at all.

Interesting... thanks for the confirmation. BSH conned us.

There is a balance between flow, vacuum, and filtering... good design is not so easy it seems.

[cstmx_ryder]

Waiting for BSH to chime in........

As I have the BSH OCC as well.......

[onefastman]

I am going to put steel wool in mine...

[pimple]

Interesting observations from vasillalov. Personally, I think the N54 crankcase ventilation system must be doing a really good job, which makes an oil catch can unnecessary. The N54 has 4 cyclonic oil separators integrated into the cylinder head cover:

http://www.e90post.com/forums/attach...9&d=1165592709 (pages 10 - 15)

[vasillalov]

Pimple,

Yes, I've read the exact same PDF as you are quoting. Those cyclonic separators do a good job, but clearly, they can't capture everything.

Here is another thing:

I talked to one of my buddies who owns a VW Passat with a 2.0 TFSI engine. He said that BSH had to revise their OCC and make it less restrictive (by making the perforated mesh smaller) because the liquid was freezing in the winter. Their engine bays are A LOT cooler than ours...

I am willing to venture a guess that all BSH did was take their occ for VW/AUDI engines and just designed a BMW N54 specific installation kit (plumbing and brackets) rather than evaluate the actual flow/temperature/pressure needs of the N54 engine.

[Joe@TopGearSolutions]

The stock system is definitely not efficient as you can pull anyones stock intercooler and intake tracts and find gobs of oil to drain out. That cyclone babble is another over-engineered product that is useless. If it is doing something its certainly not enough.

[vasillalov]

I am thinking of purchasing the 42Draft Design Stealth Unit for $115.00 and use my existing BSH plumbing kit:

[cn555ic]

Originally Posted by pimple

Interesting observations from vasillalov. Personally, I think the N54 crankcase ventilation system must be doing a really good job, which makes an oil catch can unnecessary. The N54 has 4 cyclonic oil separators integrated into the cylinder head cover:

http://www.e90post.com/forums/attach...9&d=1165592709 (pages 10 - 15)

This is basically a useless post as you see other threads in which people are collecting alot of oil in their catch cans! If BMW crankcase ventilation system was really doing its job then there would be no thread as such!


Take a look at this thread for reference!
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=514438

[PeteW84]

Originally Posted by cn555ic

This is basically a useless post as you see other threads in which people are collecting alot of oil in their catch cans! If BMW crankcase ventilation system was really doing its job then there would be no thread as such!


Take a look at this thread for reference!
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=514438

You're comparing two different catch cans. Looks like one is working better than the other. I was about to get the BSH can, but after reading this thread I might look into other options. How's the RSD oil catch can?

[cn555ic]

Originally Posted by Pete84

You're comparing two different catch cans. Looks like one is working better than the other. I was about to get the BSH can, but after reading this thread I might look into other options. How's the RSD oil catch can?

No i wasn't directing my post to any specific catch can, I was just letting the person who posted that the OEM crankcase ventilation system is not effective at all because of the amount of oil people have captured with these catch cans!

[aus]

Sent BSH an email. Hope they can shine some light on this.

What kind of steel wool are you guys going to use in the can?
Will it be safe to stuff in there? Don't want bits of wool going back into the intake side.

.

[Former_Boosted_IS]

I think we should wait to hear from BSH before making definitive statements. Do we have any testing on other oil catch cans to see if the return line has any oil in it? This would indeed prove if the BSH was an inferior design to another can. BSH did feel very comfortable that the design works very well allowing sufficient flow while still doing a great job of catching oil vapors and the even showed its effectiveness on other designs. Like everyone else, I hope this is not a case of a bad design, but we need BSH to come in here to state their case.

[Zasquatch]

I got rid of my BSH because it was catching some oil, but not enough to really matter... and the inside of both my inlet and outlet hoses had oil residue on them. I was also getting some idling issues that may or may not have been related to the OCC. If you look at the stock hose ID compared to the BSH fittings and inlet/outlets you will see that there is some restriction introduced into the system. I will be rollin raw-dog until I can find a better option.

That being said, does anyone have experience with 42 Draft Designs? They make two universal catch cans, one at the price we are used to seeing ($200+) and one somewhat reasonable ($100+, see post #53).

http://www.42draftdesigns.com/catego...catchcans.html

Like BSH, they use a perforated screen as a seperator - the difference being that the 42DD uses 4 of these screeens, and they cover the full diameter of the can. There is no way the vapors can bypass the screens. On top of what seems to be a better filtration system, the cans use a full 3/4" OD inlet and outlet, which seems to be pretty close to the stock diameter.

Visillalov - I wouldn't use the BSH plumbing kit as that is where most of the restriction is introduced. I'd get full 3/4" ID tubing and clamp directly onto the OEM check valve. Then figure out how to connect to the intake side. Maybe a 90 deg 3/4" elbow or something.

[RedlineMotorworks]

So here's what I have to say...

You should keep in mind that NO recirculating catch can will be 100% effective at catching oil without becoming a restriction and causing back pressure. The recirculating catch can was chosen for this platform because it is emissions compliant and it does what it's designed to do at a high efficiency rate. In designing this catch can the proper testing was performed to ensure sufficient flow was available to keep the engine running properly while also keeping in mind the need to filter out the blow by. By adding things like steel wool or additional baffling you will be running the risk of creating back pressure which will ultimately cause your turbo seals to go out.

A vent to atmosphere catch-can would be 100% effective but they are not emissions compliant or road legal. There will also be oil vapor released into your engine bay and the atmosphere which can be smelled inside the cabin in certain circumstances.

The video and comments posted by the original poster simply show that the catch can is doing its job. What isn't taken into account is the many other variables such as how well the engine is sealed, the climate the OP lives in, or the driving habits of the OP, etc. When BMW or any car manufacture makes an engine, there are dimensions and measurements with tolerances. What this means is that when the piston rings seal up against the cylinders, some engines have a tighter fit than others. This may be a case where the engine is actually very well sealed.

There's no way for anyone to conclude that the catch can is ineffective from the testing that has been presented nor can we conclude that his car is one of those factory freaks where the seals are near perfect. There are over 1000 N54 oil catch cans in circulation and with several posts showing plenty of oil being removed and we along with BSH have yet to see sign of concern until now.

The best thing anyone can do is contact BSH or the dealer you bought it from directly so they can compile all the data and make the best decision on what to do.

[vasillalov]

Funny you say this, as I bought the BSH OCC from you.

Oh and yes, I disagree entirely on your claims that no recirculating OCC will be 100% effective. Allow me to demonstrate:

This is the Mann/Hummel Provent 200 seriels oil separator and recirculator. These guys make oil separators like that for heavy duty diesel trucks and commercial fleet vehicles. They are 100% effective. Furthermore, these are actually designed with high-boost applications in mind: think giant ass turbos on the 18-wheelers that generate upwards of 40PSI.

These things are specifically designed not to create back pressure AND capture and separate 100% of all oil fumes. The truck engines these are most found in run for million hours between opening the heads/manifolds/etc.

http://www.cfpfilters.com/store/provent200.html







I proposed this idea almost a year ago, but most people frowned the idea that they had to run their own plumbing and also figure out a way to deal with the captured liquid which in trucks is diverted back to the oil pan.

[EastBayE90]

Originally Posted by vasillalov

Funny you say this, as I bought the BSH OCC from you.

Oh and yes, I disagree entirely on your claims that no recirculating OCC will be 100% effective. Allow me to demonstrate:

This is the Mann/Hummel Provent 200 seriels oil separator and recirculator. These guys make oil separators like that for heavy duty diesel trucks and commercial fleet vehicles. They are 100% effective. Furthermore, these are actually designed with high-boost applications in mind: think giant ass turbos on the 18-wheelers that generate upwards of 40PSI.

These things are specifically designed not to create back pressure AND capture and separate 100% of all oil fumes. The truck engines these are most found in run for million hours between opening the heads/manifolds/etc.

http://www.cfpfilters.com/store/provent200.html







I proposed this idea almost a year ago, but most people frowned the idea that they had to run their own plumbing and also figure out a way to deal with the captured liquid which in trucks is diverted back to the oil pan.

This is sheer genius. I used to work on heavy duty diesel engines and I was honestly asking myself the same thing last week. If the heavy duty diesel engines can last over a million miles they had to have dealt with some sort of carbon build up in the intake ports at some point. Especially with over 40 PSI of boost and huge EGR flow. We should be taking a second look at what the heavy duty diesel engines have been doing because we could have a lot to learn from them. Yea I agree with you, maybe just build some type of catch tank at the bottom to collect the oil that drains out and we are good to go. We need a guinea pig, shit I may just have to give it a try.

[cstmx_ryder]

So that won't work on our cars? Because that can probably utilize the bracket from the BSH, it looks like.....

NM, just saw that the holes are on a separate bracket and not welded on the CC.....lol

Originally Posted by vasillalov

Funny you say this, as I bought the BSH OCC from you.

Oh and yes, I disagree entirely on your claims that no recirculating OCC will be 100% effective. Allow me to demonstrate:

This is the Mann/Hummel Provent 200 seriels oil separator and recirculator. These guys make oil separators like that for heavy duty diesel trucks and commercial fleet vehicles. They are 100% effective. Furthermore, these are actually designed with high-boost applications in mind: think giant ass turbos on the 18-wheelers that generate upwards of 40PSI.

These things are specifically designed not to create back pressure AND capture and separate 100% of all oil fumes. The truck engines these are most found in run for million hours between opening the heads/manifolds/etc.

http://www.cfpfilters.com/store/provent200.html







I proposed this idea almost a year ago, but most people frowned the idea that they had to run their own plumbing and also figure out a way to deal with the captured liquid which in trucks is diverted back to the oil pan.

[vasillalov]

Originally Posted by (-(ellblazer420

This is sheer genius. I used to work on heavy duty diesel engines and I was honestly asking myself the same thing last week. If the heavy duty diesel engines can last over a million miles they had to have dealt with some sort of carbon build up in the intake ports at some point. Especially with over 40 PSI of boost and huge EGR flow. We should be taking a second look at what the heavy duty diesel engines have been doing because we could have a lot to learn from them. Yea I agree with you, maybe just build some type of catch tank at the bottom to collect the oil that drains out and we are good to go. We need a guinea pig, shit I may just have to give it a try.

Those can be had brand new for under $100 if you search deep enough. What we need to do first before we test it is obtain the manufacturer spec sheet and figure out if these will be too much of a restriction. Perhaps this particular model may not work well for us, but there are dozens of other models that might work fine for N54/N55 applications.

I do know for a fact that a lot of VW/AUDI guys are using the Provent 200 oil separators in their cars with great succcess. It requires some ingenious rigging but it works.


EDIT:
So I found more information on those units:

* Includes filter element
* Up to 200 l/min blow-by gas (I think this EASILY outflows the N54 PCV system)
* Integrated pressure regulation for crankcase (This is to eliminate back pressure. We will need to experiment with this setting)
* Tool-free element replacement with protection against incorect insertion
* Suitable for use with open or closed CCV system

Here is the full PDF:
http://republicsales.com/documents/M...ovent%20en.pdf

[vasillalov]

Another thing that I noticed from the PDF brochure above is that they are listing different models for different engine power outputs. This makes sense as the more power your engine is making the more blow-by gases you will see. So it would appear that for stock cars, people should go with Provent 200 (up to 335 hp output) and for tuned engines people should go with Provent 400 model (up to 670 hp output).

I might end up getting a Provent 400 and rigging it up.

[Just_Justin11]

What do you think that the gas in the blow-by is going to do to this replaceable cotton element? at $50 a pop I think you guys complaining about your heard earned money are gong to be pretty upset. I'm pretty sure there is a good reason this 1.4 billion dollar a year company doesn't market this product to Gas engines.

I also want to see where this oil separator is labeled as being 100% effective. I have read about 5 reports on it and i see the term highly affective thrown around but have not seen 100% anywhere.

[kiteboy]

i don't know if a catch system is really efficient for N54 ??