Need advise, Catchcan oil color

[Guusgeluk]

Hi members,

During a routine check on the passagier side catchcan i found after 5k km as expected some oil, however the color seems odd to me (like sludge). The oil fillcap is clean, and i do not lose coolant (or very minor). And yes, i see like 15 misfires too during basically cold start.

Is this normal or something to sort out?
Mustang GT 2021, Coyote 5.0, gen 3, 35k km,

Thank you

Sponsored

 

[BullittBoy]

totally normal for this time of year. In fact, during the winter months you should see way more "watery" solution like that as there is so much more water in the air. My F150 with a whipple, I get about that much every third tank of gas. Once spring gets here, it goes back to very small amount and it is a more oily than coffee w/cream looking.

 

[robvas]

That is what it is supposed to "catch"

How does the oil on your dipstick look?

 

[Guusgeluk]

The oil is clean (5000km), and looks/smell fine (0W30) on dipstick.

 

[Snakebyte]

As @BullittBoy said, this is normal for this time of year in the colder hemisphere climates. Condensation mixes with the oil, creating this nasty looking concoction. In engines that don't make as much heat to turn water vapor, it can look even nastier. Driving long trips is helpful to prevent reduce this problem.

@robvas, the catch can is designed to catch oil vapor from the PCV system, have them condensate into the catch can, thus minimizing oil regurgitated into the engine. (Regurgitated oil can contribute to buildup in the intake system and thus reduce engine cleanliness/efficiency over time.)

 

[350 Feet]

Hi members,

During a routine check on the passagier side catchcan i found after 5k km as expected some oil, however the color seems odd to me (like sludge). The oil fillcap is clean, and i do not lose coolant (or very minor). And yes, i see like 15 misfires too during basically cold start.

Is this normal or something to sort out?
Mustang GT 2021, Coyote 5.0, gen 3, 35k km,

Thank you

I have heard of this happening, but I am not convinced it is nothing or normal. I have never seen anything but slightly used oil in my Ford Performance can. It has to be moisture or some other contaminant, but can’t blow it off as normal. Check your coolant level and maybe drain a bit of oil from your pan to check it out.
Better safe than sorry.
Cheers,

 

[Snakebyte]

I have heard of this happening, but I am not convinced it is nothing or normal. I have never seen anything but slightly used oil in my Ford Performance can. It has to be moisture or some other contaminant, but can’t blow it off as normal. Check your coolant level and maybe drain a bit of oil from your pan to check it out.
Better safe than sorry.
Cheers,

Depending on what part of CA a person lives, they may or may not experience this phenomena. If one lives in the northern mountainous part, probably they will experience it, if they live in San Diego, probably not. In Amsterdam where the OP lives, this is definitely is a possibility, a probability, and especially if the OP takes shorter trips.
While this is common (normal as stated) in cold climates, it is not optimum as indicated. But such is life. Driving sufficiently to get the engine well into operating range, vaporizing condensates is one way to combat the milky sludge. Oh yes, and try to limit winter drives to "dry humidity days" so that air back-filling the crankcase is not moisture rich.
Of course a car sitting in very cold storage is not immune from condensation. (That is why many folks perform an "annual" oil change at the beginning of their "summer" season instead of the end of their driving season.)

 

[BullittBoy]

2 winters in Mid Atlantic with my 2024 F150 with Whipple and a UPR catch can, it is normal-I am convinced, I live it-

I just got my Bullitt and ordered a UPR for it and it is going on soon.

 

[Boosted Pony]

That is just condensation mixing with the oil the can has collected nothing to worry about, if you have a problem pulling the dip stick would show the same color oil.

 

[Ironrob]

Since we are talking catch cans, I installed one on passenger side, is it recommended to have on driver side also or overkill?

 

[Guusgeluk]

Based on reports from other users, a catchcan on the driver side seems to be a overkill.

 

[Zooks527]

...during the winter months ... there is so much more water in the air.

Uh, no. There is far less water in the air in the winter.

As an example, at 32F and 100% humidity, there are 0.004 pounds of water in a pound of dry air. That's the same water content as a 70F day at around 25% RH. An 85F summer day at 60% RH (around 70F dewpoint) has around 0.016 pounds of water in a pound of dry air, around 4 times as much as the winter day.

Sponsored