I've been reading up on oil catch cans and I was wondering if it would be a smart thing to install on my XJR to help keep the intake cleaner...

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

Hi AlbBolivar,

I've done just a small amount of research and think it could be a great idea. The one thing to be aware of is that the crankcase vacuum designed into the engine is important, and it is controlled by the crankcase breathing system and is tuned by a small restrictor ferrule that mounts in the breather hose fitting on the air intake elbow. See the last photo in the album at the first link, and the 6th photo at the second link:

Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page
Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page


Crankcase vacuum is important for a number of reasons and is tuned by the engineers to achieve the best performance. Here are a few web pages I had bookmarked that may or may not be of interest:

Automotive Crankcase Ventilation Systems Diagram PCV

Crankcase Vacuum Facts - Racing Engines & High Performance Oil Pumps

Crankcase ventilation system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


I think if you can install an oil separator or catch can without negatively impacting the breathing system and crankcase vacuum, a lot of Jag owners will want to hear about your success!

Please keep us informed.

Cheers,

Don

 

I raised similar question a few months back. I ended up fitting a genuine Jag oil separator kit (sourced cheap on UK ebay) designed as a modification to the X300 crankcase breather pipe. Instead of modifying the dipstick tube to recycle the oil, I fitted a catch can outboard. I also eliminated the restrictor valve that came with the kit, it felt like the engine had a collapsed lung with it fitted. After removing it the engine breathes beautifully and has performed faultlessly.

You will find more comments in this thread:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...arator-131087/

 

This is what I was considering as well. The separator kits are still available NOS here and there, and aren't expensive. But none seem to have the modified dipstick tube anymore, so as above a simple catch can could be adequate. .... or if you aren't environmentally sensitive, you could in theory just let it drip. After all it isn't a lot of oil.

 

Thanks for the useful links Don.
For my XJ6 I don't remember seeing that restrictor in the elbow. Should I notice something dramatic with it being removed?

and for my XJR I can't really see where the two ends of the hose coming from the valve cover lead to.

The bigger end looks like it leads underneath the intake intercooler and the smaller hose disappears underneath the intake but looks like it goes into the throttle body assembly?
Below is a diagram of the hose




Have you noticed that your intake is cleaner after installing the catch can?


I'm also just thinking about fitting a cheap ebay catch can but not exactly sure where to cut the breather house. (Before or after the hose splits..?)

 

With the oil separator fitted, the catch can itself is not too important, all it does it catch oil vapor / residue after traveling through the separator via the drain pipe. Keeps the garage floor clean!

In this set-up the separator unit is spliced into the main breather pipe below the pipe union (i.e. main pipe is cut downstream of where it divides into two). The separator is designed to fit neatly between vanes on the intake manifold. Not sure what happens on the XJR, but on the NA engine the bottom end of the main breather pipe fits onto the air intake just before the bellows, and the smaller vacuum pipe connects directly onto the intake manifold.

I searched high and low for a modified dipstick tube, seems they are no longer available (??!!). Hence the catch can, which I made from a small empty can with screw top, and made a hole in the top for the drain hose to fit tightly. It is suspended beneath, and fastened to the air intake piping. (See pics)

Have only driven it a couple of thousand km's since I did the job and so far there's nothing measurable in the can, and nothing in the intake. I expect that any real amount of oil would take a long time to build up in the can.

 

Would you kindly post a link or two as to where one could find one of these oil diverter systems? Thanks.

 

Here are a couple of suppliers.

I bought mine from the first one as it was much cheaper and is a full kit including hoses. The one from Britishparts is the separator unit only.


XJ X300 Jaguar OE Oil Breather Kit NEW JLM20709 | eBay

Egr Oil Seperator - NNB2102AA | Jaguar X300 - XJR | Jaguar | British Parts UK

 

My X300 NA have not a crankcase vacuum at all. The breather hose fitting on the air intake elbow is closed and the small hose too.

 

Thanks for the description and pictures Tony, I have just fitted exactly the same system to my x300 and they were a great reference. I wasn't sure what you used as the catch can to collect the oil vapour, so have left mine hanging down near the dip stick. (have you made note of how much oil it collects).

 

The original TSB as issued by Jaguar.

I did a bunch of these mods 'back-in-the-day'.

I have a few used (non modified) dipstick tubes I kept from the modifications.
The mod tubes have a welded 'drain-back' section added.

bob gauff

 

Hi Michael,
I used an empty bug remover tin, cleaned it out & sprayed it black, then cut a hole in the screw top for the drain hose to fit tightly. It's suspended on a simple bracket I made to fasten onto the intake pipe retaining clip just below the MAF (you can just see it in pic #3). The drain hose is a bit long but it goes down hill all the way and the can is accessible. I haven't been using the car very much, only a couple of hundred K's since doing the job, so there's nothing noticeable in the can yet. I reckon the oil I found in my intake pipe had probably been building up from new, so it may take a very long time before the can needs emptying. At least I know that nothing can contaminate the air intake now, which never seemed right to me (so long as the separator unit is actually doing its thing!).

Did you fit the restrictor valve or leave it out?

 

As I mentioned above, she has only travelled about 200k's and not 2,000 as stated in my earlier posting - it was a typo.

 

Hey guys so for about a week now I've had my catch can installed. It's a name brand NRG one but it seems to be a generic design with no baffling like the expensive Mushimoto catch cans have but it seems to be catching a lot of things. Not sure if it's a sign of something wrong or not....
I've driven about 500 miles with it installed and already has what I think is a significant amount of oil that's sort of watery.... not sure if it's condensation getting in somewhere?

But attached are some pictures

 

Yes it's water, condensate that forms on the inside of the valve cover, particularly in cold weather. I'm going toorder a separator for mine today.

 

The kit is no longer available. I'll have to build my own.

 

Thanks for the reply. I'm glad to see it's doing it's job then

 

Sorry to hear you missed out on the kit. I notice the ebay listing has ended, it was a really good price. I guess you've searched for other suppliers?

 

Which "kit"?

I see the Jaguar kit (less the modified dipstick tube) all the time on eBay for cheap.

If you use an aftermarket kit, how are you verifying you are maintaining the correct crankcase vacuum? Are these kits sealed such that it isn't an issue?

.

 

The kit I'm referring to is the genuine Jaguar part on UK ebay - see post #8 above. It didn't come with come the mod dipstick tube, I've never seen a kit that does and I believe they're unavailable.