This DIY tells you how to install a Mishimoto "Compact" baffled 2-port catch can (http://www.prospeedracing.com.au/produc ... -port.html) on the passenger-side strut tower (RHD vehicles) for the crank case vent / PCV part of the oil breathing system without drilling any holes in your car.

A full-height catch can will not fit in the selected space.



You will need:-

Tools & Sprays

- socket sets (mainly 3/8" and 1/4" drive but 1/2"drive can be handy)
- screwdriver set
- allen key set
- multi-grips
- nips / wire-cutters
- sharp knife and/or shears to cut rubber hose
- WD-40 (good for everything, including wetting barbed fittings before putting hoses on)
- assorted clean rags
- work light and/or head lamp.
- throttle body cleaner spray (optional - if cleaning PCV valve & other crusty parts as you go)
- degreaser spray (optional - if giving your intercooler a thorough clean while it's off)
- heatgun (optional, if cleaning the inside of your intercooler with water)
- sandpaper and/or files (to tidy up fabricated bracket)
- spray paint (to tidy up fabricated bracket)
- enough gear out of a "tap & die" set to tap a small thread (optional)
- thread-locking fluid (optional)
- measuring & marking gear
- electric drill & high-speed steel drill bits
- saw & bench vice for cutting bracket to length

Parts

- Mishimoto "Compact" baffled 2-port catch can
- at least a metre of 1/2" (12.7mm) inside diameter ("ID") rubber hose - low pressure fuel hose preferred
- about half a metre of 5/8" (16mm) ID rubber hose (heater hose was the best I could get in that size)
- less than 20cm of 3/4" (19mm) ID rubber hose (" ")
- less than 50cm of 3/8" (10mm) ID rubber hose (for drain hose) low pressure fuel hose preferred
- a 9-11cm long x 2cm+ wide, 2mm+ thick piece of alloy or steel to make into a bracket
- 2x M6 bolts (allen-head handy but not essential)
- 2x narrow-diameter bolts that will fit through the Mishimoto bracket holes.
- nuts for the narrow bolts (unless tapping a thread in your bracket)
- 1x 3/4" (19mm) outside diameter ("OD") 90 degree barbed hose-joiner elbow (probably only plastic available)*
- 1x 1/2" (12.7mm) OD 90 degree barbed hose-joiner elbow (probably only plastic available)*
- 2x 3/4" (19mm) to 1/2" (12.7mm) straight barbed hose adapter (brass or plastic)*
- 1x 3/8" NPT thread to 3/8" (10mm) OD barbed (for drain hose)
- 1x 3/8" (10mm) OD barbed-both-ends ball valve (for drain hose)
- 2x hose clamps to fit around the drain hose
- cable ties (various)

[* if you will not be removing the heat shield bracket from the top of your gearbox (discussed below) then you may need more elbows, adapters, joiners, etc. to send hoses around the heat shield bracket]

PART 1 - MAKING YOUR BRACKET

Making the bracket is the hardest part of this fairly easy DIY. The bracket is not that hard. Disregard the complexity of the bracket in the photo. I wanted multiple fitment options in case fitment issued mattered to the centimetre (it doesn't as it turns out). I ended up using the middle-row large holes (on the strut tower) and the same-row small holes furthest away (to bolt on the catch can). One set of small holes closer to the front would have also worked.



We are making a short bracket to bolt (with M6 bolts) onto the strut tower:-

(i) using the hole that the wiring loom bracket bolts into (we'll be unbolting the wiring loom to put the bracket under it); and

(ii) using the unused M6 threaded hole behind the wiring loom bracket hole.

We will then bolt the catch can (using small bolts through the supplied Mishimoto rotary bracket) onto the cantilevered section of the bracket. As I discovered after making the overly-complex bracket, the two M6 threaded holes on the strut tower are not horizontal. As such, my bracket and catch can don't sit horizontal. It doesn't matter to the functionality but you are welcome to adjust for this by offsetting your big holes to make the bracket level (or cut the big holes as slots, or offset your small holes, or whatever you want).



If I made a bracket again (simpler) I would:-

(a) obtain a short piece of steel or alloy (say 9-11cm long, 2cm+ wide, 2mm+ thick) from Bunnings or free as an off-cut somewhere. You'll need more physical size (especially thickness) for alloy than steel because it's a weaker metal. Grab a long piece to cut-up with a hacksaw if you want to give yourself a chance to mess-up, re-position things, etc.

(b) drill your big holes 23mm apart slightly oversize (to allow easy fitment to strut tower). A drill-press would be a luxury, but not essential.

(c) drill your small holes to match the Mishimoto bracket far enough along so that the catch can sits in enough free space (noting that the inlets and outlets poke out non-parallel, BUT the catch can design allows easy rotation of the whole assembly on the spinning Mishimoto bracket)

(d) tapping threads into the small holes on the bracket is optional - you can use small nuts & loctite on the back of bolts through your small holes (although, if using small nuts, it will be easier to assemble the catch can to the bracket on the bench rather than in the engine bay )

(e) check fitment, then sand & paint before final bracket installation.

There is a surprising amount of room to work with. Apart from making sure your bracket holes match the car & the can, you don't need to copy what I've done to the millimetre (or even to the centimetre). We aren't assembling a Swiss watch here.

PART 2 - REMOVING THINGS & CLEANING PARTS

(a) Remove your engine cover (if fitted)




(b) remove your intercooler and stuff a clean rag into your turbo outlet.




(b+) OPTIONAL: remove the blow-off-valve and give the inside of your intercooler the best clean it's ever had.

I did the following:-

(i) generously spray degreaser into the ends and let it soak/work through;

(ii) use the garden hose to blast water & degreaser out of the intercooler

(iii) hang to dry then shake the intercooler to remove as much greasy water as possible. It's probably still pretty greasy

(iv) use hot water and detergent a few times through the inside, followed by hot water only until the water coming out seems clean, then shake out as much water as you can

(v) hang the intercooler from a rope or bungee cord at a comfortable working height

(vi) use a heat gun on the outside & inside of the intercooler (spreading the heat around evenly) until it's blowing steam out of the top hole. Keep going until the steam backs off.

(vii) stop using the heat gun and let the latent heat in the core evaporate the last of the water out over the next 5 minutes or so. Hold a mirror or your glasses lens over the top hole to check for fog. If you have any doubts that a big blob of water is still sitting in your cooler waiting to wreck your engine then repeat the head-gun process with the piece of glass method to check for more vapour.

(viii) while you're there, use a small flat-blade screwdriver to straighten any bent fins, casting aside any suspicions that you have become obsessive.

(ix) re-install the blow-off-valve




(c) locate the T-piece at the back of your engine (turbo side). Once you are familiar with "what goes where" in the standard setup, remove the T-piece. The hoses slide straight off. Note also the heat-shield bracket (?) in the same picture (discussed later)



Here's a handy guide to what goes where and the hose sizes of the standard setup (pretend i wrote "19mm" instead of "20mm"):-



Note from the photo that the oily gasses coming up from the crank case have to pass through this narrow restriction. For this reason I don't think you need to be too concerned about what hose diameters you select for your catch can hoses. Give the T-piece a clean with "throttle body & carby cleaner" while it's out.




(d) If you're not using it for anything, remove this heat-shield bracket to give your hoses more room and a more direct run. Replace the bolts in the gearbox threaded holes to prevent gunk and corrosion ruining the threads.

IF YOU NEED TO KEEP USING THE HEAT-SHIELD BRACKET THEN YOUR PLUMBING SETUP (WHERE THE T-PIECE USED TO BE) WILL DIFFER FROM MINE AND NEED TO BE MORE CREATIVE, WITH MORE 90-DEGREE JOINERS ETC.




(e) Locate and remove the 16mm ID short hose connecting the T-piece to the Positive Crankcase Ventilation valve (PCV valve) on the upper engine. You will not be re-using it unless you need to get creative with alternative routing. Disregard the handwritten notes in the photo.




(e+) OPTIONAL: Use a 19mm socket to remove the PCV valve, clean it with "throttle body & carby cleaner" and re-install it on the upper engine.

PART 3 - INSTALL CATCH CAN AND RUN "OILY AIR" HOSE TO IT

(a) Install the bracket and catch can (together or separately) on the strut tower. See the description in Part 1.

Place the wiring loom bracket on top of your fabricated bracket before putting the front M6 bolt through both.

Leave the Mishimoto swivel-bracket allen bolts a bit loose for the moment.

When you're finished, bend the top of the wiring loom bracket/plug so it's horizontal and looks right (if your fabricated bracket is thick enough to mess with that).



THIS NEXT PART MAY DIFFER FOR YOU IF YOU NEED TO KEEP YOUR HEAT SHIELD BRACKET

(b) push the 3/4" (19mm) 90 degree barbed hose-joiner elbow into the standard hose coming up from the crank case. Place a short piece of 19mm rubber hose on to the end of the elbow. Place a 3/4" (19mm) to 1/2" (12.7mm) straight barbed hose adapter into the short 19mm piece. This lets you use the more compact 1/2" (12.7mm) hose for most of your piping.



Cut an appropriate length of 1/2" (12.7mm) hose, push it on to the engine-side adapter, run it under the pitch-stop mount and all the way to the "in" hole of the catch can (into which you've placed the Mishimoto-supplied plastic fitting (a 1/2" barb to 3/8 NTP threaded fitting).

This is the hose that runs from left-of-screen to the front catch-can port in the photo below:-

THIS NEXT PART MAY DIFFER FOR YOU IF YOU NEED TO KEEP YOUR HEAT SHIELD BRACKET

PART 4 - DO "CLEAN AIR" RETURN LINE FROM CATCH CAN TO INLET & PVC, INCLUDING RE-LOCATING T-PIECE

The last photo above also covers "(a)" and "(b") below.

(a) Make sure the Mishimoto-supplied plastic fitting is connected to the "out" hole on the catch can.

Run a length of 1/2" (12.7mm) hose from the "out" fitting to just behind the heater hoses.

Place your second 3/4" (19mm) to 1/2" (12.7mm) straight barbed hose adapter into the end of the 1/2" hose coming from the "out" hole of the catch can (just behind the heater hoses).

Cut a second short 3/4" (19mm) piece of hose and place that on the other end of the 3/4" to 1/2" straight barbed hose adapter so that it emerges just between the heater hoses and the pitch-stop mount.




(b) To make room for the standard intercooler we are re-locating the T-piece to near the firewall (approximately between the heater hoses and the pitch-stop mount - see the pictures). The fat (19mm) part of the T-piece will fit in to the short section of 19mm hose. The 16mm part of the T-piece will point towards your PCV valve. The 1/2" (12.7mm) part of the T-piece will point parallel to the "oily air" hose.


(c) Place your 1/2" (12.7mm) OD 90 degree barbed hose-joiner elbow in the standard hose coming off your turbo inlet. Make sure that bent hose (with 90 degree elbow) is sitting nicely in relation to the crank case vent for what you need to do (see pics).

Run a length of 1/2" (12.7mm) hose between the relocated T-piece and the elbow joiner.





(d) Run a piece of 5/8" (16mm) hose between the T-piece and your PCV valve (that you re-installed on your upper engine earlier).




(e) TEST-FIT YOUR INTERCOOLER AT THIS POINT TO MAKE SURE IT STILL FITS WITH ALL YOUR NEW PLUMBING AT THE BACK OF THE ENGINE

If no joy, mess around with the positions of hoses, adapters, 90-degree pieces, the T-piece, etc. until it all works without too many design compromises.


(f) The swivel orientation of your catch can on the Mishimoto-supplied circular swivel bracket ("Mishi-bracket") should have set itself to its natural position for your hoses if you've kept the Mishi-bracket loose to this point. Now tighten the Mishi-bracket with an allen key.


(g) Add enough zip-ties to the hoses until you're confident that they are secure (probably unnecessary).

I didn't put hose clamps or zip ties on the various barbed hose connections because the factory setup is only push-on and the new setup seemed pretty secure (even with WD-40 used to help hoses slip on). I was also mindful of the pain-in-the-**** factor if I need to get at these hoses again. However I did use hose-clamps on the drain components (see Part 5) because they are fighting gravity.

If you have any doubts about turbo heat affecting the hoses closest to the turbo (or if you like doing race-car type things), heat-shielding reflective sleeves could be installed on those sections of hose.

PART 5 - DRAIN VALVE

The bottom part of the catch-can can be unscrewed in place, however bringing it out of that space is a pain even with the intercooler removed. Trying not to make a mess with accumulated oil would be a bridge too far.

The solution is to install a drain hose and valve.

(a) Remove the standard bung at the bottom of the Mishimoto can. You won't be re-using it. Replace it with the 3/8" NPT thread to 3/8" (10mm) OD barbed fitting.



(The bottom of your catch can won't look hollow like this unless you take out 35 grams with a milling machine.)


(b) Make sure the bottom of your catch can (with barbed fitting) is back on the car. Pre-position a hose clamp onto your length of 3/8" (10mm) ID rubber hose and press the rubber hose end on the barbed fitting. Run the tail of the drain hose to approximately where you want it and tighten the hose clamp around the barbed fitting.


(c) Run your drain hose exactly where you want it, securing with zip ties. I placed mine next to the gear box.

Pre-position your second hose clamp. Press your 3/8" (10mm) OD barbed-both-ends ball valve into the hose, checking you're happy with where the lever will go in the "open" and "closed" positions.

Tighten the hose clamp.

Make sure your ball valve is in the "closed" position when you leave it.

PART 6 - PUT EVERYTHING BACK TOGETHER

Reinstall your intercooler and engine cover.

Enjoy the stealthy & stylish catch-can installation and the reduced amount of oily rubbish going into your intake and upper-engine.





Remember to check/drain the catch can periodically.

Nice write up. I have had my cans in for bit and have notice if you leave them too long without draining, the ball valve gets gummed up with sh!t and nothing comes out, so you need to pull the can out to drain and clean.

Now that's detailed!

Will give it a try at some state

Cheers for the comment and extra info.

Out of interest, on what sort of interval (time and/or kilometres) do you:-

(a) empty a can via drain valve; and

(b) pull more things apart for a proper clean?

----

EDIT

The catch can has been installed for exactly one week at this point. The car has done ten urban commute trips, each of about 30-40 mins duration. There has only been a small amount of spirited driving in that time.

This is what came out of the drain valve this afternoon:-



It was much lighter than oil and seemed to be water-based. It had plenty of odour as well.