Is an oil catch can needed? Just hopped on the Unity Group Buy for the HEL Oil Cooler.

[matttheazn]

Should I also think about getting an oil catch can? I just hopped on the group buy from the HEL oil cooler and was wondering if an catch can would be worth getting? I plan on running track days with 30 minute sessions. Thanks for any info on people that have done a catch can mod on the FL5.

Sponsored

 

[RacingIsLife]

I typically do a dozen or so track days a year. On my '23 BRZ and '15 EVO X, I have catch cans and they catch a decent amount of oil. For my FL5, I haven't tracked it yet, but I have access to desolate roads and I've been flogging it, and my catch can hasn't caught anything yet. This is after 1,500 miles. I have the Bull Boost catch can, which is built for the FK8 but fits the FL5 just fine. It is exactly like the Mishimoto catch can, and it is only installed on the PCV side.

Its cheap, like $130. Cheap insurance.

 

[Jester04]

Should I also think about getting an oil catch can? I just hopped on the group buy from the HEL oil cooler and was wondering if an catch can would be worth getting? I plan on running track days with 30 minute sessions. Thanks for any info on people that have done a catch can mod on the FL5.

Always good to have one, it will help slow down the accumulation of oil on the valves.

 

[TW00Si]

Great question. More stuff to buy. Thanks guys.

 

[TypeRD]

Always more stuff to buy, Wazowski. Always.

 

[NoelPR]

Waste of money with honda di engines.
No proof of sludge accumulation.

 

[PointByPatrol]

I plan on getting the dual catch can setup for mine. Hopefully a bigger turbo and injectors down the road, so this is naturally a step in the right direction.

 

[Jester04]

Waste of money with honda di engines.
No proof of sludge accumulation.

There will always be a bit, especially depending on how much blow by the engine has and how hard you are on the engine.

Edit: @Two Step Performance provided some insight so make your own choice in what you want.

 

[EJHonda]

The tough thing with catch cans is that all designs aren't equal. I had 4 different catch cans on my Evo 8, and they ranged from being bone dry to needing emptying on a regular basis. It's all based on how well they are designed and baffled to capture oil vapor. My first can, a Perrin, collected nothing. Zero. Zilch. I ended up replacing it when a component of it failed. Next bought a Saikou Michi based a good reviews, and I was surprised at what it produced. That thing regularly needed emptying. As it was a metal cylinder(s), I couldn't see in, but under stood it had some sort of media in it (think brillo pad), to capture and collect vapor out of the air passing thru it. The Perrin was literally a silicone tube with two aluminum caps - nothing else in it. Air went in and out, and apparently any vapor stayed suspended in the air that flowed thru it. Useless.

With that said, it'd be great to have someone do a comparison test of the model specific catch cans offered for the FK8.and.FL5 platforms.

 

[Two Step Performance]

I ran the Radium PCV side can for several thousands miles on my FL5 including a track session and hardly caught any oil, just a drop or two. The car makes approximately 500whp and I do not take it easy. I have a hard time recommending one after all of that. I took it out of the car when testing a flex fuel kit that mounted in the same spot.

 

[Jester04]

I ran the Radium PCV side can for several thousands miles on my FL5 including a track session and hardly caught any oil, just a drop or two. The car makes approximately 500whp and I do not take it easy. I have a hard time recommending one after all of that. I took it out of the car when testing a flex fuel kit that mounted in the same spot.

Thank you for the info! Good to know that the k20c1 is not having a lot of blow by.

Most of the cars do make good use of catch cans though. Apparently this is not the case for this platform.

 

[Jester04]

The tough thing with catch cans is that all designs aren't equal. I had 4 different catch cans on my Evo 8, and they ranged from being bone dry to needing emptying on a regular basis. It's all based on how well they are designed and baffled to capture oil vapor. My first can, a Perrin, collected nothing. Zero. Zilch. I ended up replacing it when a component of it failed. Next bought a Saikou Michi based a good reviews, and I was surprised at what it produced. That thing regularly needed emptying. As it was a metal cylinder(s), I couldn't see in, but under stood it had some sort of media in it (think brillo pad), to capture and collect vapor out of the air passing thru it. The Perrin was literally a silicone tube with two aluminum caps - nothing else in it. Air went in and out, and apparently any vapor stayed suspended in the air that flowed thru it. Useless.

With that said, it'd be great to have someone do a comparison test of the model specific catch cans offered for the FK8.and.FL5 platforms.

Only way to do this is test the products and see what works and doesn’t.

I have had good results with radium products in the past.

 

[EJHonda]

Only way to do this is test the products and see what works and doesn’t.

I have had good results with radium products in the past.

Yeah, if someone had the patience, skill set, and resources to do a test, it'd be awesome. The scientific method would be for a series of catch cans be installed on the same test mule and then do a repeatable test cycle on each, recording the results. If you're collecting something in yours, and you don't know of any blow-by/rings issue with your car, I'd say that feedback is worth something.

 

[Jester04]

Yeah, if someone had the patience, skill set, and resources to do a test, it'd be awesome. The scientific method would be for a series of catch cans be installed on the same test mule and then do a repeatedly test cycle on each, recording the results. If you're collecting something in yours, I'd and you don't know of any blow-by/rings issue with your car, I'd say that feedback is worth something.

Agree but this would take considerable effort. I’m down for testing stuff for the community but just buying random stuff to test without working with a company’s support is tough.

 

[GV27]

I have the Mishimoto installed on mine. Measured and emptied it 1000 miles after installing - it collected 4 ml - exactly the same amount as Mishimoto said they saw in their testing after a 1000 miles.
About 5000 miles later I changed the oil and emptied the can again - it collected a further 18 ml, so it’s more or less a consistent 3.5-4 ml per 1000 miles. I drive my car hard, but always wait for it to warm up before pushing it.

Here’s what those 18 ml looked like when I emptied it the second time:

That’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing either. The can can only make things better in the long run, so I would still recommend it.

Supposedly the k20c1 has a built in oil-air separator - essentially a catch can that dumps what it catches straight back to the pan. That goes a long way towards explaining why not much is caught by the added can, and why inlet fouling isn’t commonly brought up in connection to that engine, despite it being a highly boosted DI without added port injection.

Regarding the radium cans, I recently saw a clip on YouTube where a car (don’t remember what it was) was smoke tested for leaks after some issues, and the pipe fittings on the radium can had smoke pouring out of them and were traced as the issue. The mechanic said it was a common issue with radium cans. Personally I never tried them.

Sponsored