ADD-W1 Oil Catch Can OCC Install How To

[speedfreak44]

Well I looked at a few different companies OCC install directions and they all were pretty decent but I felt maybe typing one up would be some contribution to the forum since I have pulled a lot of knowledge from everyone on here.

Being that the ADD-W1 catch can is really well priced and parts to connect it are cheap I went this route vs purchasing a complete kit from a manufacturer. I did not like the look of most of these kits and I really liked the size of the ADD one as well.

This install was on a gen 2 2013 speed 3. I am skipping the how to remove the underside engine cover as if you can't figure that out you probably shouldn't be installing this.

Let us get started with the parts list. I will list prices based on advertised price not what I paid. I got things a little cheaper per items by knowing people, using best offer, and buying open boxed stuff. Even with that though I didn't save more than about $10 total.

ADD W1 OCC - $90
10 feet 5/8" Heater Hose Advance Auto - $15
(Per suggestion from others you may want to source fuel type hose since fuel and oil will be touching these lines however I have had no issues with heater hose on other platforms. Do as you please with this step)
1/2" Brass T Flair hose fitting home depot - $5
9 3/8"-7/8" SS Hose Clamps home depot - $10
Total Price - $120 + tax

Tools Needed:
Small Pliers
Pick tool
Flat head screwdriver
Drill and drill bits
Sharp Knife
Zip ties (2)
Jack
Jack stands

So to start make sure your motor is cooled down as your hands will be in places where you don't really want them after a spirited drive. We will proceed by jacking the vehicle up on a level surface. It does not have to be too high just enough for you to get under it and remove the under tray. Then we will remove the under tray. All 10mm bolts and 2 plastic tabs that must be popped off with your flat head or a pry tool. I never reinstall these I do not feel they are needed and they will probably break on you anyway. Pop the hood too for some added light.

If you have an aftermarket intake just remove the filter section. If not then remove the factory air box and be prepared to install and aftermarket intake because it just makes life easier.

Next, remove the factory valve cover hose that runs to the intake. Also, remove the green and blue plastic pieces on both ends that secure it by using your pick tool and carefully prying them off in case you plan on ever reinstalling.

At this point we have the intake out of the way, the splash shield under the car removed, and the valve cover breather hose removed.

Let us now climb under the car again. You may want someone with small hands to do this job. I have medium sized hands and barely got up in there to remove the hose connected to the pcv valve and manifold.

Under the car you will see a hose that looks like an "S" connected to the manifold and to a black box on the block. Find where the dip stick is on the block and follow it up to the manifold. It is right next to the hose.

IMG_1664.JPG

This is the hose you will be removing. You will need small pliers to pull the hose clamps off and then carefully wiggle the hose off the manifold first then the pcv valve. The pcv valve is made of plastic so be extra careful. Once this was off I connected a long piece of 5/8" hose to the valve and breathed in and out to make sure the pcv valve was still operating correctly. When blowing out it should seal when breathing in it will open and allow air flow. You will feel the valve opening and closing as you inhale and exhale. This may not be necessary but I wanted to make sure it was flowing correctly before spending time finishing this install.

IMG_1655.JPG

Above is the picture with the long 5/8" hose running to the pcv valve. You can leave this connected once it is on and just make sure you install one of the factory hose clamps on it to keep it connected. A little further into the install I will go over how to route this line. Make sure it is at least 4 feet long so you do not kink it and the hose will reach the catch can.

Next we need to cap off the intake manifold. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not use normal vacuum caps on this as you will be back under there diagnosing a vacuum leak within the next 6 months. Take a length of 5/8" hose and place a bolt or something rather large into it where it can not be sucked into the manifold. In other words it should have a washer that allows it to sit up against the outside diameter of the tubing with just the threaded bolt portion inserted. You want this to be a tight fit prior to install a hose clamp around it. Blow air into this tube once it has the bolt inside and hose clamp on. It should be air tight. If you do this correctly it should last a long long time. Now install this onto the intake manifold so it is capped off and tight another hose clamp (reuse the factory one) on to the manifold.

IMG_1663.JPG

In the top right of that picture you can see the plugged hose I was just describing to you installed on the intake manifold. In the picture just before the above one you can also see a little better the bolt sticking out of the hose and how it seats against the outer portion of the tubing. This will insure it will not get sucked into the manifold. I repeat, please do not insert something that completely falls into the tubing and expect the hose clamp to hold it there forever. If you do then may god be with you on that one. You have been warned.

So now we have a 4 foot length of 5/8" hose clamped to the pcv valve and the intake manifold port blocked off with a 4" length of 5/8" hose that has a bolt clamped into it. You are now done with the intake manifold and we are going to route the 4 foot hose over to the the driver side near the intake.

IMG_1658.JPG

IMG_1660.JPG

IMG_1661.JPG

In the above pictures you can see the routing of the 4 foot length of hose. You can also see the two sections I zip tied to make sure it wouldn't hit the fan or rub against any metal brackets. Just use your brain while doing this part and double check your routing. Make sure nothing sharp is touching the line and that the line is as level or even aiming slightly down toward the catch can. You do not want to route it below the level of the catch can or you may pool residue inside the line instead of it draining into the catch can.

Now on the top side of the motor we are going to install about a 3 foot section of 5/8" heater hose to the valve cover and use a hose clamp to hold it there. Route this section of tubing over the top of the intake and down the side. It will be going into a brass T where it connects to the pcv valve hose and then into the catch can itself.

IMG_1657.JPG

IMG_1659.JPG

Cut the 4 foot length of hose to reach the T fitting appropriately as well as the 3 foot length coming from the valve cover. You will set up the T fitting as seen in the picture. The pcv hose will have a direct shot into the oil catch can and the hose from the valve cover will connect into the top portion of the T fitting. So in simple terms the hose from the valve cover will be facing down toward the ground. The center of the T fitting will be facing up toward the hood. Also, make sure the valve cover hose is now aimed up at any point so we can facilitate drainage from that end as well toward the oil catch can. I forgot to mention that earlier but it should be a no brainer.

Now we have the hoses connected to the T fitting and ready to be attached to the oil catch can. I do not have pictures of the install of the catch can but I will describe them in text as it was quite simple.

[speedfreak44]

Now we will install the oil catch can. In the box you will have 2 different fitting choices. Obviously go with the larger ones. Use teflon tape to secure them correctly to the oil catch can. We want this air tight.

On the driver side of the car there is a hole that is right in front of the piece that says CAUTION HOT on it. I believe that is for the headlights but someone correct me if I am wrong please.

We will need to find a self tapping bolt that fits in that hole. Make sure it is a strong bolt as you will need to use some muscle to get it to hold. Next, drill out the mounting tab on the oil catch can. I only used the lower mounting hole as it lined up that can perfect for me to access the bottom for drainage and for the lines to not hit the radiator hose. Drill it out to fit the size of the self tapping bolt you obtained.

Now attach the mounting bracket to the catch can with blue loctite. Without the bottom portion of the can installed mount it to the car. You can see in some of my above photos the mounting location. Once that bolt is tight go ahead and install the bottom portion of the can. No teflon tape or loctite needed it has an oring on it.

At this point the hoses for the catch can are routed to it and the catch can is mounted. We are almost done.

IMG_1651.JPG

IMG_1652.JPG

Now we will reuse the plastic elbow piece that connects to your intake. Flip it around so it points down instead of up. You will be attaching about a 1.5 foot section of 5/8" hose here with a hose clamp and routing it down to the OUTLET portion of the catch can. Now cut it to length so there are no kinks and it is a rather straight shot. Clamp it onto the catch can OUTLET.

Now where the T fitting is you will need about a 1/2 foot length of hose here to run to the INLET on the catch can. Cut a length to fit and clamp it to the T fitting and to the INLET of the oil catch can.

IMG_1659.JPG

Take the time now to verify all your connections are tight and not rubbing anything to the point it will cause uneeded stress or cut the lines at all. You also do not want any vacuum leaks so make sure all connections are clamped correctly. Reinstall your intake and the splash tray at this point. Drop the car down from the stands. Start your car and let it idle down. Make sure there are no vacuum leaks. Feel around all the connections. Pull on them slightly to make sure they are strong. Again I can not stress enough check over your routing so it isn't causing any problems or hitting anything that you don't want it to. Pay close attention to your fan and hose clearances.

Congratulations you have now installed your oil catch can that cost you about $100. Very good price in my opinion for something that will definitely help you in the long run.

[tegxsi]

Nice write up.
I wouldn't use heater hose though. It's not fuel and oil resistant. I recommend -10AN 5/8 Push-Loc hose.

Something like this: JEGS Push-Loc Hose

[Tyhackman15]

Best part about that catch can, it comes in "pupple"

Add W1 Baffled Universal Aluminum Oil Catch Can Reservoir Tank Ver 2 Pupple | eBay


Nice write-up and looks like a great OCC for the money, I'll likely be purchasing one for my miata.

[speedfreak44]

@tegxsi;

I have been working on...I do not even want to say this...flame suit on...h o n d a s for a long time and boosting them. We have always used heater hose and have many cars that have been boosted for years not have any issues with them.

That being said, yes the AN fittings are much much nicer.

[speedfreak44]

Impression of the can post 100 mile drive...yes I drive a ton poor car

I think the car actually idles and runs smoother overall. The car seems to vibrate less on idle and when normal driving occurs it seems to rev smoother as well. WOT I can't really tell any difference. I need to pull some logs now to compare to my older ones just for shits and giggles.

I am very happy I installed this and there already is slight moisture in the can. I ran it just the valve cover hooked up for about 1500-2000 miles with just about nothing in the can so the definite place this needs to be attached to is the block. If you can not do that it is kind of pointless.

[Raider]

It's documented years ago about the hose and check valve by @MATT DAMOND; in his designing of the kit.

[speedfreak44]

Why would I use a check valve in this install? The can never sees boost @Raider;

[superman]

I've had this same catch can (blue) for over a year now. I tapped the bottom and put a ball valve on it to drain from the top without having to take the can apart. It's a nice chunk of aluminum. The baffling isn't amazing like Matt's or JBR's kits. It has a tiny little baffle compartment right under the inlet (only 2 layers). It has nothing to prevent oil from being sucked out the outlet. I'm using heater hose as well because it was free and there isn't a ton of fluid flowing through it. It will probably last as long as the car.

[superman]

Originally Posted by Raider It's documented years ago about the hose and check valve by @MATT DAMOND; in his designing of the kit.

-His setup is copying corksports design which blocks off the intake manifold and uses the TIP for suction (no boost pre-turbo) There is suction 100% of the time the car is on.
-The check valve version uses the intake manifold for suction until you start to boost and then the valve closes. I personally like this design better, but for most purposes i would imagine either one would work.

[Blk_pu]

It is a sturdy chunk of aluminum and well made. As for filtration I hear some guys have unscrewed the baffle and insert stainless steel scotch brite scrubber pads to improve filtration performance.

[Raider]

Originally Posted by speedfreak44 Why would I use a check valve in this install? The can never sees boost @Raider;

There is a reason every company supplies pressure/fuel grade hose. Because it is under vacuum/pressure when on/off the throttle.

[stockms3]

I thought about doing this myself but MD OCC kit is very well priced for what you get. I bought a vented can with a check valve and price would be nearly identical if I sourced parts myself.

He has done a lot of research and his product is proven so in the long run one might actually save money.


Nice write up though.

[Raider]

I built my OCC off of a used MD can I got used. Read about the need for marine grade hose, and check valve (for that style of OCC installation. It's not heater hose in any of these kits. But hell, not my car.

[speedfreak44]

In a system like this the hoses are not going to collapse. The 5/8" diameter is too large for enough resistance to build up and collapse it. 25" mercury of suction isn't much at all when the entire system is free flowing. I work in the medical field and we using rubber tubing for suction systems that see well over that amount of vacuum upwards of 100 and they do not collapse. The only time that will happen is if the resistance is too high. For example if I used a very small diameter hose.

Here is my test for you. Take a 5/8 hose and suck on the end of it. Then take the same 5/8" hose and plug one side then suck on the end of it. The open free flowing hose will not collapse due to low resistance and the plugged one will because of increased resistance to the air movement. Same as if we used a way under sized turbo inlet hose. It would collapse if it can not flow the needed volume of air.

The system above will NEVER see the amount of resistance to collapse the hose unless you pcv system failed and at that point the catch can wont be working anyway.

Also, heater hose is fuel and oil resistant. All under hood automotive hosing is.

And for the record, I did state the hoses tegxsi linked were a better option in terms of quality.

We have built many cars running these types of setups between nissans and homdas and they have lasted years. The reason heater hose isn't used as a fuel line is the burst pressure.

Edit: I have updated the OP to include the suggestion of fuel hose as well as my own personal experience with heater hose. This gives people a choice of which route they want to take

[Raider]

Yeah, you are right. Everyone else is wrong who did this years before you joined.

\unsubscribed.

[speedfreak44]

Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed today lol

I love how every thread on every forum has to turn into a he said she said debate

For the record, before you decided to get upset, I had already put your suggestion in the OP to use fuel line @Raider;

This was intended to be a how to not a debate over if a heater hose will collapse or explode which in all reality over the course of several years I guess it could be a possibility? I am just stating that in my own personal experiences I have not ran accross this.

Edit: the company that makes the hose I used states a 30-50psi max pressure rating and that it is resistant to chemical corrosives and abrasives so take that as you will and as said prior I already updated the OP and this is a how to over anything else. Take everything you read on the internet with a grain of salt. I will update my long term findings on here as I go for who may be interested.

[btstarcher]

Why not use a check valve and connect it to the IM? It's never seeing vacuum unless it's under boost, and even then not much vacuum at all.

[speedfreak44]

If you think it isn't seeing much vacuum while not under boost then take your air filter off and try to plug the intake with your hand. It is sufficient enough vacuum to suck fumes from the block.

[btstarcher]

1 or 1.5 psi, measured, under boost. Vs. 11 at the IM.

[speedfreak44]

Which is more vacuum than a check valved setup would see. Under boost the check valve closes and there is absoluetly no vacuum seen at the can.

[Reedy]

So many catch can solutions, yet nothing for the valve cover breather!

I have ordered a Mishimoto catch can that I will be plumbing into my valve cover. I already have a JBR one on the PCV system but it is really damn hard to find a neat valve cover setup that doesn't require six miles of hoses without making a custom setup. Which I will be doing.

[speedfreak44]

Originally Posted by Reedy So many catch can solutions, yet nothing for the valve cover breather! I have ordered a Mishimoto catch can that I will be plumbing into my valve cover. I already have a JBR one on the PCV system but it is really damn hard to find a neat valve cover setup that doesn't require six miles of hoses without making a custom setup. Which I will be doing.

The setup I have documented above does include the valve cover. If you wanted more of a vent you could go with sp63 valve cover breather too.

[speedfreak44]

First oil change and this is what I have collected
image.jpg

Lines are all holding up well but I am thinking about trying the check valve to intake manifold just to compare the results between these two designs

[Reedy]

People collect some of the weirdest shit in their catch cans. I empty mine much more regularly and it always just has blackened oil in it. All the condensation and other sludge that people get is strange. Even if it's relatively normal.

[Tomas]

When I empty mine only Unicorn piss comes out.
Dat catchcan.

[Reedy]

Now that I have a second catch can on my valve cover breather i'll be interested to see what kind of shit that catches. I need to go to the racetrack and spend some proper time on boost as it's still dry as a bone inside.

http://i.imgur.com/hgJNWRYl.jpg

This is all that was in my PCV catch can after a track day last week. my newly built engine is producing less and less shit as time goes on which is good to see.

http://i.imgur.com/pCMfwJ2l.jpg

[speedfreak44]

My motor produced next to nothing. About 5ml in 3k miles. I use standard oil nothing special. Oil changes every 3k religiously

[Reedy]

Yea the way your catch can is plumbed in doesn't allow fresh air to flow in through the valve cover when off boost tho. That will have nowhere near the off boost efficiency as a dual catch can setup will have. You'd expect that setup to catch less and for oil to get dirtier. Which is why those regular oil changes matter so much.

[speedfreak44]

1 hp 1 tq...I can guarantee efficiency is not changed. If anything it is improved from impurities removed

[Reedy]

Not talking about engine efficiency, i'm talking about the efficiency of the crank case ventilation. As soon as you start mucking around with T pieces and blocking off parts of the system then something is going to get compromised. Off boost you should normally have clean, metered air coming in through the VC breather but with that setup the VC breather and PCV vent are both sucking against eachother.

You'd probably get much better on-boost crank case ventilation than with the standard setup, but off boost doesn't allow for a clear path for air to be drawn through and out of the block anymore, and that's in addition to the much smaller vacuum that the intake gives compared to the manifold that's already been talked about. This is backed up by the fact that you're catching next to nothing with it as well.

It's a compromise that has to be made when you try to do it all with just 1 catch can. It's certainly keeping unwanted shit out of the intake system, but it's also keeping more of it within the crank case which will be contaminating your oil.

[speedfreak44]

So far the heater hoses are holding up fine just over 2 months in.

I think the absolute best catch can setup would be 2. One for the valve cover and one for the crankcase like @Reedy; said

The one for the crank case would need to be plumbed into the intake manifold via a check valve BUT would also need a ball valve like the sp63 valve cover breather has on the top of the catch can so that when under boost excess pressure can be vented.

Doing it this way under part throttle driving the system would be sealed (still catching oil) and under WOT driving it can vent off any extra pressure and still catch the oil. Without the vent on the top of the crankcase catch can then under boost the check valve will close and not allow the crankcase to be vented at all.

I am thinking about ordering a sp63 valve cover breather and installing it into the top of another catch can and routing everything like this eventually. Not going to be a cheap catch can setup though when all said and done.

Either way however, my oil has not been tested from a lab but I have 50k+ miles on my motor and the oil still looks pretty fresh 1k miles after an oil change (still yellow in color not black). The catch can does catch stuff just not tons of crap like I see some others do. I do believe I have a pretty healthy motor though since I have owned the car since new and know exactly how it has been cared for.

[Reedy]

Been a while running both catch cans and still haven't caught a single drop in the valve cover breather one. First track day with it is planned for early September so we will see how it goes then.

PCV catch can is actually catching a little tho. Makes me think the VC breather one is only necessary for people who race or run very high boost.

[speedfreak44]

Yea I don't believe the valve cover one is really needed but the "perfect" system I was describing would utilize one just in case. I never caught anything from the valve cover either but it doesn't hurt to have it connected

[Code Monkey]

I noticed some oil in my intake and will be adding a valve cover OCC before the next track day, will report back on the amount of oil I catch.

[Reedy]

Originally Posted by speedfreak44 Yea I don't believe the valve cover one is really needed but the "perfect" system I was describing would utilize one just in case. I never caught anything from the valve cover either but it doesn't hurt to have it connected

I ended up with a quart of oil in my intake and an oil soaked air filter after a track day when my engine was suffering from epic blow by. Even my brand new engine was piling the intake after a track day or 2 so it is definitely beneficial there.

[speedfreak44]

I would say you had bigger issues than how you wanted to route a catch can at that point lol

[Reedy]

Yea, a catch can would have been handy at the time tho because I would have been able to monitor the increase in blowby as the engine eventually wore out.

[speedfreak44]

So about a year later and 20k miles and the heater hose is still holding just fine. Catch can works great. I did recently swap to a vented valve cover breather and am just using the occ for the pcv system. Suction is still obtained via the turbo inlet pipe. Still going strong!

[venneh]

I have been long debating the corksport style setup wondering how efficient and safe it is. I think pcv to IM may not be enough when running higher boost even on k04. I'm not sure though, considering my original engine had compression issues from the get go when I purchased it unknowingly. I'm on a new motor new turbo thanks to mazda warranty and want to keep that shit clean but really don't want to run 2 occ if not needed. Egr will be taken care of but still debating the occ setup, gunna reinstall this weekend (originally I ran pvc to IM only but had insane valve cover vent oil into my intake likely due to compression issue).