So i got a Steeda Oil Separator

[cekim]

not really.. what really maters is which side PCV spits out more oil than the other to make it worthwhile to install the separator on

Things get a little screwy when you add a blower - but with the stock setup the intenion of the system appears to be:

1. high vacuum is present on the larger hose on the driverside by virtue of its position behind the butterflies. Most of the time the engine is NOT at WOT, so there is significant vacuum here "most" of the time.

2. that vacuum sucks air in from the driver's side valve cover. That air has to come from somewhere, which is up through the head from the crankcase. That air also has to come from somewhere which is:
a. blow-by
b. the passenger side PCV which sucks in through the intake hose in front of the butterflies...

So, when the butterflies are not open very far air is flowing through the PCV "system" counter-clock-wise as you look at the engine. In through the pass. side, down to the crank-case, up through the driver side head and into plenum.

At high RPMS/throttle position when blow-by is greater, there is less vacuum in the plenum, but more pressure provided by the blow-by itself and it is possible that blow-by is flowing up through both sides at once under these circumstances...

Further when the car is stopped, the gasous content of the crank-case and valve covers goes "up and out" wherever it can. Which is why the "vapor trap" was there in the first place...

So, the answer to which side gets oil depends on what percentage of time the car sees:
1. idle/near idle
2. higher RPM/WOT

The greater the skew towards #1, the more I suspect you will see oil on the driver's side. The more highway driving you do, the more I suspect it will be both, but the driver's side is larger and the plenum is under vacuum "most" of the time - even on the highway, so I also suspect it will always get more...

 

[94tbird]

Drivers side wit ha supercharger. the passenger side is complete vacuum at all times as was tested by cali hp addict i believe. my passenger side hose is dry as a bone. the pass is oily

 

[cekim]

passenger side wit ha supercharger. the drivers side is complete vacuum at all times as was tested by cali hp addict i believe. my drivers side hose is dry as a bone. the pass is oily

Not too surprising - even at WOT - the airflow in the plenum could create a vacuum on that hose...

Also at WOT - the same goes for the tube on the intake elblow - so I suspect at WOT, between that suction and the blow-by pressure from the bottom - that both sides are seeing some vapor... But again, the pass should see more...

 

[MrClean]

not really.. what really maters is which side PCV spits out more oil than the other to make it worthwhile to install the separator on

i think i'm just gonna install this anyway since i already have it here, then look for better options later on. so what's the verdict.. driver or passenger side?

Gents: On an NA engine (no experience with the SC) the crankcase vent that the oil comes from is the one on the driver's side. The vent on the passenger side is bone dry on my car...and I collect 9 ml every 600 miles [EDIT: from the driver's side].

G.T: I would install it for now, while you get your larger can from Stef's or whomever...just to reduce the crap depositing on the intercooler residing within the Whipple's housing.

EDIT: I just removed the passenger side hose again to verify, and it is bone dry.

 

[Cali HP Addict]

Ron must have been drinking LOL! It is Saturday after all. Anyways, the drivers side is the ONLY side that will see oil since this is the vacuum side. Even under WOT this side will have vacuum because of 1- the hose dia is larger and 2- there is an engineered vortex which creates vac by way of a protruding pipe into the intake. An air/oil separator is a very worth while mod for ALL S197's. NA, TC or Supercharged.

 

[G.T]

thanks for the clarification Cali..
i'll install the separator on the driver side and hope for the best

which reminds me.. how does the throttle body get all gunked up at times?
even with the stock air intake (no oil).. i've seen TBs have build ups around the butterflies, and always assumed it was from the passenger side PCV

 

[Cali HP Addict]

It is actually from the drivers side. When it flows through it is a saturated oily "mist" that deposits oil on everything it comes in contact with. Hence the need for an air/oil separator. It just backs up and gunks the TB. The inlet on the vacuum side is dirrectly behind the TB. I only had 2000 miles on my car when I pulled the intake to add the SC and the stock intake was already fully coated with oil.

 

[G.T]

okay so on that note.. would a breather be sufficient on the passenger side PCV? or is it better to keep that hooked to the intake port?

 

[Cali HP Addict]

I highly recommend leaving the passenger side in tact. That way the air that is circulated through the motor then drawn into the intake has passed the MAF and been metered! Otherwise, you will be sucking in unmetered air.

 

[94tbird]

i wasn't drinking but i wasn't thinking either. which means i should have been drinking lol.. Correct drivers side is where you want it. pass side is vacuum

 

[Born To Run]

Oil Seperator

My oil seperator is on the passenger side in line between the rocker cover & the air intake piping going to the throttle body/kenne bell blower.Jim Bell saw my car at his shop & remarked how ugly it looked but did a functional important job.He gave me a air water seperator for free,you know one of those clear plastic things,draw back is it is for air compressors & requires draining.

 

[MrClean]

My oil seperator is on the passenger side in line between the rocker cover & the air intake piping going to the throttle body/kenne bell blower.Jim Bell saw my car at his shop & remarked how ugly it looked but did a functional important job.He gave me a air water seperator for free,you know one of those clear plastic things,draw back is it is for air compressors & requires draining.

All AOS (air/oil separators) require draining, but the clear plstic ones like mine (Steeda) require it more often...AND I noticed the downstream line still has oil in it, so it's not pulling 100% of the oil out...I SHOULDA LISTENED TO CALI HP AND GOT THE STEF'S UNIT...which I'll be doing now anyway.

BTW in case folks new to this subject get confused about the AN system for OD sizing of fittings/tubing, here the wep page someone refered me to a couple weeks back that converts to more conventional numbering...

http://www.anplumbing.com/thread.html