You must've seen the price for the bigger CH's right? Cause as far as I know the little ones, regardless of brand, are pretty much the same price.

 

No, they were the same size and everything, the huskies were cheaper

 

Just an oil seperator you can get at H/D the smaller one it take it, no pt.# needed.Will do,headed there soon.

 

Howie, I have pretty much exhausted the options given thus far...you have seen my set up...happy for those whose system works but the only true way to prevent this issue with our LS1,6's is with Rippies system diverting it back to the sump(pan) or what I was going to do...custom valve covers 1.5" taller(ours are incredibly shallow)...cheaper/labor intensive way 2-3x gaskets with rubber high adhesive cement glue caring for patience and good seal.

 

Ed, I did see it .......but that doesn't mean I remember or comprehend it

Anyways if you have the time refresh my memory and maybe pics. The rest of these guys haven't seen it


DH

 

I'm taking my '04 A4 LS1 Roadster to the dealer on Tuesday when a combination GM Tech solution and the double catch can forum mod may be installed. Before I knew of this problem and read about it here on the forum, I only noticed a strong smell of Synth Mobile 1 while the engine was running or driving down the road and this was my complaint to the Service Manager when I took it in last week.

The Service Manager told me that the mechanic got a GM Tech Case# for the repair which is, in part, to install most if not all of the LS6 PCV system and hoses and a new valley tray for inside the intake.

Anyone have an opinion? Has anyone "Been there! Done that!" and the fix still didn't work? My feeling is that if the Service Manager and the mechanic are willing to experiment with the double catch can mod if I supply the CH bowls and filters, couplings and hose, why not do it?

Junior

 

First of all, I thought all 04's had the LS6 setup already. Did you have a PCV valve going from the valley to the intake??

I am surprized your dealer would do any modifications to you emmisions. But if they would I would let them....then they can't blame you for any future problems where they could deny warranty.

Let us know what they do


DH

 

Why not just block off the intake side and vent it to the can and the atmosphere? Run a vent tube from the can to the undercarriage.

 

I have no idea what the mechanic and the GM Tech have come up with. All the SM told me was that the catch cans couldn't hurt if all they are doing is condensing oil vapors destined for the combustion chamber. I'll know more Tuesday.
Junior

 

Mine is a 2003 AE with 17K on the clock.

Decided that the catch-can mod could not be a bad thing so off to Lowes and AutoZone.

Mounted the CH can (in reverse flow) in the battery box, after the PCV valve.

WOW….I cannot believe that only after 50 miles of easy driving I already have oil in the bowl. It makes me wonder just how much oil is getting in there and exactly where it is going…or ending up !


Click to enlarge

 

I check out both small ones, home Depots Husky & Wallmart has the C/H they are identical except for the paint on the top,exactly same price too.

 

???? I don't see how what they're thinking of doing would address a smell of burning oil. Something must be venting into the atmosphere in order for you to smell something like that, or maybe something's dripping onto an exhaust part or manifold. I would venture to guess they're pulling parts off your motor for nothing, unless they know more than they're telling you.

I mean think about it... if everything's sealed, including the PCV system, how could you EVEN be smelling oil burning. It doesn't make sense. I mean something as little as the dip stick not being seated or not sealing could be causing the smell.

Just thoughts, as I am by far, no expert, but this one seems more like logic than anything else.

 

MrLeadFoot, you're absolutely correct!! It doesn't make sense.

I'm not a professional mechanic, but when the SM tells me there's oil in the intake and that the mechanic has a GM Tech Case #, something is up. I took the car out for a drive yesterday (Saturday) afternoon for about three hours of non-spirited driving. The smell was noticeable the entire time. I've check the valve covers and headers for oil spills and have looked for frame oil from underneath - I don't see any as everything is dry.

The Forum is very informative and how I found this thread was doing a search for "oil in the Intake". I've searched for other problems like a leaky transaxle that was very helpful. So when I found this mod, I mentioned it to the SM. I may well have the LS6 setup(fix) in this '04, so why is there "oil in the intake" if the LS1 to LS6 updated PCV system is present?

Since the car is in warranty for another 16 months, I'm thinking I'll just let them apply their fix for now and hold the Catch Can mod for later. I haven't seen the parts that were ordered, nor the parts these are supposed to replace so I can't even give a good description of what they look like or where they are supposed to go. But I know I smell oil fumes - not burning fumes - but similar to what you would get if you sniffed a can of open oil but all the time the engine is running.

Thanks for your comments. I'll find out tomorrow.
Junior

 

I just wonder if the "Y" in the back of the manifold is apart causing the smell. MrLeadFoot is correct in that somewhere it is venting into the atmosphere......just where is the question.

 

That's possible, and if it's only a slight air leak, it might not be so drastic that the PCM can't tune itself for the increase air condition, so the motor still idles fine.

FWIW, JRCV, I don't think the Z06 parts will completely eliminate oil from getting into the intake manifold, but what the heck. If everything's going to be covered, I guess no harm will be done, unless they drop a bolt inside the intake or something, you know what I mean?

And, even if it doesn't help, you'll have new gaskets, and now that they've been in there somewhere, like Dirty Howie said you'd pretty much have something to fall back on in case something DOES go wrong after your warranty expires.

Another positive thing I see here is that you may have found a good dealership, and those are indeed hard to find. If these guys are willing to go the extra mile to actually remedy something that's wrong, they must pride themselves on customer service. Additionally, they're undoubtedly going to learn more about C5s while they're at it, which is a plus for you in case you need them again in the future. In my book, there's nothing better than a dealership that is up on C5s and take customer service seriously. I mean, I expect a Chevy dealership to more about Corvettes than I do, and it's not often that they really do.

Good luck, and keep us posted, because I'm sure many of would be interested in learning what might be causing your condition.

 

what is a catch can, why do you need one and how do you know if you need one??

 

Almost all LS1 engines pass oil through the PCV system into the intake. To slow/stop this, install a catch can.

 

The dealer has one mechanic who is about 26 y/o that is Goodwrench Corvette certified. When I gave him the info from the forum for a leaky transaxle seal and mentioned that I thought it would be practical to replace the one-way pop-off valve at the same time, he agreed and added that to the covered warranty repair. It's been five weeks and no drips/leaks.

The dealer's slogan is "The little dealer with the big deals!" and they mean it. Small community, friendly people and it helps when you've bought five cars and an SUV from them over the years. I am the second owner of this Vette and it wasn't purchased from this dealer, originally, but the SM and I have become friends over the years and he's happy to have the business. He's also using this as a means to increase his allotment for more Vettes.

Junior

 

Now, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout!

 

Here's the pictures of the parts that were removed and replaced for the GM Warranty repair recommended by the GM Tech for my '04 A4 roadster.



The 1st and 2nd photos are the parts that were removed and replaced with new ones. In the second from the left, the mechanic thought that oil had been pooling in the lower intake and baffle area and creeping in through the knock sensor well seals. He estimated approximately 4oz of oil pooled in the intake valley. The curved PCV hose is from the low pressure off the passenger side valve cover and the "U" shaped was from the high side off the throttle body to the lower intake inlet. If you notice, there's no PCV valve to be seen anywhere in the first two photos.

The 3rd photo shows the completed work with the longer PCV hose replaced from the passenger side valve cover to the throttle body and the "U" shaped hose now has a PCV valve installed from the throttle body to the intake inlet.

The far right picture is with the mechanic pointing out a rubber plug on the driver's side valve cover. There is no hose out of this side of the engine going to a "Y" connection in the hard to reach area behind the passenger side valve cover at the firewall like you guys with the LS1 setup. It's a curious setup that still baffles me and makes me wonder just how much oil this engine has injested it its 8k miles.

The Service Manager, mechanic and I have agreed we would inspect the repair after 500 miles and see whether this has made any difference with oil pooling in the intake before procedding with any catch can installs. With nicer days on the horizon, 500 miles will be in about a week or so and I'll still have 15 months of warranty left.

I am still puzzled why there was no PCV valve! Makes me wonder what else is missing! The "U"shaped hose was pre-formed to fit - not like it and the PCV valve were replaced with just a piece of ordinary PCV hose. Another curios aspect of this is that a friend of mine compared his '04 Z06 with my setup this afternoon. We concluded that his is identical to mine and is also missing a visible PCV valve. Now he's wondering how much oil is sitting in the valley tray of his intake.

That's my report. Stay tuned for updates in 500 miles and i'm sorry for the long post.
Junior