Oil-Air Separator

camo · **Posted:** Sun Apr 22, 2012 10:26 pm

Petah812 wrote:

Great find. Just ordered one on Ebay
http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_f...i+4.6is+Alpina

I'm wondering if it could be mounted inside the air box with just one hose going through the air box from the puck. Have a hole in the bottom of the air box for the bottom half separator to stick out and a drain valve on a length of hose.
Keeps it out of sight and doing it's job.

In two weeks I'll be reporting on the 5k miles with the cyclone. I am planing to put up some pictures and YES mine is mounted inside the air box, so you will be able to check it out.

joshuadn · **Posted:** Mon Apr 23, 2012 2:07 pm

camo, looking forward to seeing the photos. I found a provent for $117 here, thinking I'm just going to do that: http://j.mp/IjMlv8 but I'd like to see how you placed it in the air box.

camo · **Posted:** Mon Apr 23, 2012 11:05 pm

all good, like I said, 15 days for full report at 5k miles with cyclone install inside the air box. Still the provent is more efficient at separating the oil from the air.

camo · **Posted:** Sun Apr 29, 2012 11:21 pm

OK. Here it is 5k miles with the cyclonic BMW separator installed inside the air box.
I used to collect about 5 1/2 oz with the provent and I collected 3 1/2 oz with the cyclonic separator. I'll keep it anyway, I check the boost hoses and found no accumulation of oil so I guess i am happy specially since the cyclonic separator does not take space on an already crowded engine compartment.
here are the pics.
with engine cover air box cover and snorkel

without engine cover, air box cover, and snorkel.

cyclonic separator out of air box with drip in container.

Petah812 · **Posted:** Tue May 01, 2012 10:26 am

camo, Great to see yours working. Have you noticed any oil on your air filter ? Just wondering about the extra 2 oz that the provent was catching.

Mine arrived today, I installed it a little differant to you. Should have the same effect.
Took me a bit over an hour to fit.
I've also fitted a 5kpa vacuum switch to the air box and LED before this install, to keep an eye on the filter.

I just drilled a hole through the bottom for the drain.

And a hole through the front for the inlet.

I've fitted a snorkle, thats why the intake is blocked.

This is a 3/4in s/steel screen filter.

Plastic jar lid with some holes.

I used a bit of geotech material around the screen filter as a coaliser.

This will hopefuly catch a little bit of the mist.

I'll drain it after 1000Km and measure what i'm getting from my 2.5Lt

Hope this helps anyone thinking of doing the same.
I't a very easy install, and out of the way.

Regards
Peter

camo · **Posted:** Tue May 01, 2012 9:36 pm

looks awesome!!! I have a K&N filter and it is handling the bit of oil in the air nicely, At that rate I think I'll cleaned it out when it starts dripping which base on what I see I thing it would be in other 5 to 6k miles. I have not notice any differences in power nor MPGs.
Cyclonic Pros.
1.fit nicely inside the airbox.
2.$$$ about 180% cheaper.
3.adds a bit of a hiss to the already nice turbo sound.
4.Still catches enough oil in a 5k mile stretch to keep the boost hoses from oil accumulations.
Cyclonic Cons.
1.Not as efficient catching oil as the provent 3/2 fl oz VS 5 1/4 fl oz.
2.can not be disassembled with out damages to install an extra layer of filtration.
3. 5/8" hose is a bit to small for its inlet/outlet and 3/4" is a bit to big to gain an snug fit without screw clamps.

I might try them both in the future to see what conclusions I can draw from it :mrgreen:

Petah812 · **Posted:** Wed May 02, 2012 4:29 am

I used 3/4in PVC hose, same piece of hose i had going all the way to the tow bar from the puk. Wife didn't like the smell.
Now, no smell.
PVC is a nice fit on the barbs. Only need cable ties to hold, as theres no pressure.

Peter

CATCRD · **Posted:** Sun May 27, 2012 8:20 pm

CATCRD wrote:

A quick update on the cyclonic separator.
I installed one on the wife's jeep 1000 mi ago and there is 1 3/4" deep of trapped oil at the bottom of the 1/2" dia drain hose. I'm pretty satisfied with it for ~$30.

Another update, after 2000mi there is 5" of oil in the drain tube. I haven't drained anything out yet. And most importantly, I inspected inside the CAC hoses and they were nice and dry. I'm declaring this thing as good as a provent, at least on my vehicle.

Chamba · **Posted:** Tue May 29, 2012 12:24 am

This looks like a fantastic way to go. I was toying with the idea of running it into the airbox and into a jar but I like this idea much better. I agree that the Provent is the best tool for the job, however it is just too large to be easily/cleanly placed in the engine compartment. I'm running a K&N as well and a bit of oil mist on that is not a problem at all; simply makes cleaning it a job for every oil change instead of every other oil change.

What are the Gurus' thoughts about whether or not more suction is needed to effectively utilise the cyclonic filter and CCV? Does the design of either require that the 3/4" hose be hooked back up to the turbo intake to create sufficient suction or will the very minimal suction found in the airbox (3-4 PSI I'd guess?) going to pull enough of the fumes out to allow the cyclonic filter to work? Does the CCV put out much pressure?

Along the lines of what was mentioned here earlier - if the tube from the CCV puck rises 3-4" in its first 12" of travel, does anyone have any idea how much condensate returns to the engine? Is there any reason this would be bad, assuming no dirt can enter the tube from the cyclonic filter end? At 3-5 oz per 5000 miles as some are reporting, that is a pretty significant oil loss. It seems like it would be a good thing if some of it could be returned to the engine at the source.

Chamba

CATCRD · **Posted:** Tue May 29, 2012 6:44 pm

Chamba wrote:

What are the Gurus' thoughts about whether or not more suction is needed to effectively utilise the cyclonic filter and CCV? Does the design of either require that the 3/4" hose be hooked back up to the turbo intake to create sufficient suction or will the very minimal suction found in the airbox (3-4 PSI I'd guess?) going to pull enough of the fumes out to allow the cyclonic filter to work? Does the CCV put out much pressure?

Chamba

I think placing the separator in the airbox defeats most of the cyclonic benefit. There is no vacuum in the airbox, below the filter. There is only a little in the intake tube, but that's where most of the benefit comes from. I have mine plumbed into the factory location. It's so much easier than going into the airbox, I don't know why you wouldn't.

ChooChooman74 · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 7:10 pm

I manage to do mine today. While doing it, I took off my airbox to turbo hose and my turbo to intercooler hose to check them out. They looked to be in OK shape for the time being.

I had a hard time finding 1/2 and 3/4 inch hose that was oil/fuel rated. The FLAPS only had heater hose, which would not last with the oil IMHO, and theirs. So, I took a 20 min drive to my FLHDTPS (Friendly Local Heavy Duty Truck Parts Store). They had some nice stuff there, although expensive. But, I want to do it right.

For my collection can, I used a Nalgene 8oz pill bottle. Seeing that it is the same type of plastic that oil bottles are made out of, #2, I figure it should be good for a collection can. I also use them for my Howes treatment. Anyways, I drilled a hole in the cap and installed a 1/2 in barbed fitting with 1/2 in electrical connector nuts securing it. The local Home Depot guru said that they are the same thread. He's da man!

Install went well. Here are a few pics.

Maiettan · **Posted:** Sun Jun 10, 2012 9:55 am

Choochoo,

How did you mount it back there? Is it connected to the reservoir?

ChooChooman74 · **Posted:** Sun Jun 10, 2012 10:14 am

Maiettan wrote:

Choochoo,

How did you mount it back there? Is it connected to the reservoir?

Just a wire tie to the coolant tank. I was looking for something more permanent. Then I figure every oil change, i would be emptying the catch can, so might as well make it easy to get to.

CATCRD · **Posted:** Sun Jun 10, 2012 12:04 pm

ChooChooman74 wrote:

Maiettan wrote:

Choochoo,

How did you mount it back there? Is it connected to the reservoir?

Just a wire tie to the coolant tank. I was looking for something more permanent. Then I figure every oil change, i would be emptying the catch can, so might as well make it easy to get to.

Looks nice, that's right about where mine is. I ran the drain hose all the way down and forward so it ends up near the radiator draincock.

GreenDieselEngineering · **Joined:** Sun Jun 07, 2009 5:10 pm **Posts:** 1111

choochooman74,

I noticed the line from the CCV puck to the cyclone is going uphill. Over time the oil that precipitates out before reaching the cyclone may flow back and build up near the puck. After some miles you may want to pull the hose at the puck to see if the oil is pooling there. Just a concern.

Chamba · **Posted:** Mon Jun 11, 2012 8:21 am

GreenDieselEngineering wrote:

choochooman74,

I noticed the line from the CCV puck to the cyclone is going uphill. Over time the oil that precipitates out before reaching the cyclone may flow back and build up near the puck. After some miles you may want to pull the hose at the puck to see if the oil is pooling there. Just a concern.

Why is this a concern? Why won't it simply drain back in to the valve cover through the puck when the engine is shut off and the suction stops?

Is there any reason why having the oil run back (assuming it would/does) is a bad thing? It seems to me that so long as it is not vented to atmosphere (ie, not exposed to dirty air) then having the oil return to the engine would be desirable.

I look forward to your thoughts.

Chamba

ChooChooman74 · **Posted:** Mon Jun 11, 2012 2:06 pm

GreenDieselEngineering wrote:

choochooman74,

I noticed the line from the CCV puck to the cyclone is going uphill. Over time the oil that precipitates out before reaching the cyclone may flow back and build up near the puck. After some miles you may want to pull the hose at the puck to see if the oil is pooling there. Just a concern.

Keith,

I am guessing that the puck has a valve to not let anything back? If this is the case, then I will have to reroute my hoses and move my cyclone down a bit.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

imclumzy · **Joined:** Fri Jun 15, 2012 11:30 am **Posts:** 48

I'm willing to give this a try. Can these be had at any BMW Dealership? Would I just need to give them the part number (11151705237)?

CATCRD · **Posted:** Mon Jul 16, 2012 4:41 pm

imclumzy wrote:

I'm willing to give this a try. Can these be had at any BMW Dealership? Would I just need to give them the part number (11151705237)?

Yes, but they would probably have to special order it. It's probably not something most dealers keep on the shelf.

Chamba · **Posted:** Mon Jul 16, 2012 5:16 pm

I got it online cheaply from an outfit in Il. or In. I think. Just go to Ebay and put in that part number and it comes up (the name is an abreviation: TRA Performance or ISA Performance or something like that). I reckon it was about $28 plus a few quid to ship. It was genuine BMW and works great; 1,000 miles and it has produced about 1/2 oz of oil.

Chamba

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