[Z OH 6]

Pretty good video on catch cans from a non-biased source.

[AZ_1LE]

Does anyone have any photos of "coked up valves" and "oil covered bricks" they can share?

I come from owning an RS4 which had this issue, I would clean the intake valves every other oil change. The biggest source of the problem was leaky valve seals. And from what I've read from multiple sources, the LT4's have valve guides that wear abnormally fast, kind of like the LS7's did/do. This might allow oil to seep past the seals and down onto the backs of the valves.

[Elite Engineering]

Originally Posted by Z OH 6

Pretty good video on catch cans from a non-biased source.

Very good video and information!

[Sysopz]

I was told "skipping the catch can was a back fire" and had to have a catch installed after blowing out my front crank seal because I didn't go with it as suggested. Also upgraded to the "LS style seal as it’s a better design", adding a catch can to help vent crankcase pressure to prevent any future failures is how it was explained to me so I went with it. I got the Mighty Mouse Wild Catch Can they did a nice job with the install, it almost looks factory. I'll post some screen shots of the install when I get a chance.

[Z OH 6]

Originally Posted by Sysopz

I was told "skipping the catch can was a back fire" and had to have a catch installed after blowing out my front crank seal because I didn't go with it as suggested. Also upgraded to the "LS style seal as it’s a better design", adding a catch can to help vent crankcase pressure to prevent any future failures is how it was explained to me so I went with it. I got the Mighty Mouse Wild Catch Can they did a nice job with the install, it almost looks factory. I'll post some screen shots of the install when I get a chance.

Mighty Mouse has a breather built into their catch can for this reason. If you buy a catch can without a breather built in, you can use a valve cover breather. I use a Mighty Mouse Wild. Another common catch can is made by Elite Engineering, both will serve their purpose. I'm not selling either of them so I have no vested interest in any of them other than letting people know they do exist for a reason and they aren't snake oil.

[Trak-Toy]

Originally Posted by AZ_1LE

Does anyone have any photos of "coked up valves" and "oil covered bricks" they can share? .

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...or-normal.html

Scroll down to post #4, Bill Dearborn’s post about his supercharger on his LT4 Z06. He has 15k miles on it at the time of that post, with 5k miles being hard track use. Check out how there really isn’t much oil there and the pics of the valves stems doesn’t look bad either.

[43Camaro]

What's funny is I haven't really heard anyone saying they don't work. The question is are they needed? That's an individual choice, do your research and see if you think they are worth it given the drawbacks, perceived or not. I own two supercharged Camaros, I have a catch can on my 2010 which does it's job well. It was installed four years after the car was built. When I installed the blower the vehicle ran strong and had no problems (didn't need a walnut shell blasting) . I have a catch can now and the vehicle still runs strong (built in 2009).

When my warranty runs out on my 2021 Ill probably install one on that car also. I'm just not that concerned about it on a new vehicle given the drawbacks, again perceived or not.

[hawk02]

Originally Posted by ZX-10R

It all boils down to 2 words: 1) laziness, 2) fear - but laziness is the biggest reason.

FACT - catch cans mitigate valve coking and IC brick deposits
FACT - catch cans mitigate oil contamination

Everything else is just bs excuses by lazy people who don't want to install catch can and/or are terrified they might have to uninstall it for the remote chance of a major warranty claim (even though a closed loop catch can cannot possibly damage your engine, so GM denying a claim is ridiculous anyway)

Science doesn't matter anymore. People believe whatever they want to believe.

So now we're into insulting people by calling them lazy if they don't install a catch can. That's a new low for the debate.

[Z OH 6]

Originally Posted by Trak-Toy

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...or-normal.html

Scroll down to post #4, Bill Dearborn’s post about his supercharger on his LT4 Z06. He has 15k miles on it at the time of that post, with 5k miles being hard track use. Check out how there really isn’t much oil there and the pics of the valves stems doesn’t look bad either.

Its really hard to say because you're trusting someone else that you probably don't even know. Without witnessing it yourself, just can't say for sure. We've had pictures posted here with oil on the intercooler bricks with less than 6k miles. Again, you're just trusting what some random person says on the internet hoping they don't have an agenda of their own. The very first post in your thread is more in line with what others have posted. Bill Dearborn's blower clearly has some standing oil puddles in the pockets of the blower so that tells me there's plenty in there. If you look really closely at the OPs blower, you can still see gaps in the fins on the intercooler bricks, on Dearborn's blower, the gaps are much harder to see in the fins, likely because they're coated with oil.

I've already posted a great video showing who catch cans work and why they're recommended. That's based on real world results from a non-biased party. I don't think you're going to find any better proof than that because this is just not a subject that the community wants to spend a lot of their own time and money researching.

[Gunkk]

Originally Posted by Z OH 6

I've already posted a great video showing who catch cans work and why they're recommended. That's based on real world results from a non-biased party. I don't think you're going to find any better proof than that because this is just not a subject that the community wants to spend a lot of their own time and money researching.

I'm sure very few people here or anywhere else outside of Elite Engineering's office actually have any interest spending MONEY on catch can RESEARCH.

Many folks in this community will agree that catch can's work (title of this thread), but many of us will also agree that we're not interested in:

a) voiding the warranty on our stock cars with just a catch can.

b) taking time and effort and money to solve a "problem" that doesn't really matter to us, even if it exists.


In 2015, Chevy made changes to the gen5 LT4 that dramatically reduced the rate of carbon buildup on the intake valves. To date there has been very little evidence* of any measurable performance degradation on stock 2015+ LT4s due to missing aftermarket catch cans.

Aftermarket modified/tuned/boosted LT1 and LT4 engines with obviously voided warranties are an entirely different subject and often do benefit short and long term from including a catch can in the build.







* actually, there is no evidence.

[Z OH 6]

Originally Posted by Gunkk

I'm sure very few people here or anywhere else outside of Elite Engineering's office actually have any interest spending MONEY on catch can RESEARCH.

Many folks in this community will agree that catch can's work (title of this thread), but many of us will also agree that we're not interested in:

a) voiding the warranty on our stock cars with just a catch can.

b) taking time and effort and money to solve a "problem" that doesn't really matter to us, even if it exists.


In 2015, Chevy made changes to the gen5 LT4 that dramatically reduced the rate of carbon buildup on the intake valves. To date there has been very little evidence* of any measurable performance degradation on stock 2015+ LT4s due to missing aftermarket catch cans.

Aftermarket modified/tuned/boosted LT1 and LT4 engines with obviously voided warranties are an entirely different subject and often do benefit short and long term from including a catch can in the build.







* actually, there is no evidence.

I'm not debating whether someone wants or doesn't want to install a catch can, that's completely up the vehicle's owner, not me. That being said, I stand by my statement that there are still benefits on a stock LT4 as well, just because the factory doesn't install one doesn't indicate that they have no use. Vehicles are often engineered very well, but we can all admit there are some things about every vehicle that could have been done better. Cost cutting measures often win with the bean counters. "It's good enough for most customers" is the mentality.

Considering most top shops install a catch can as part of their packages tells me that they believe they have purpose. They're clearly not installing them for no reason. When you deal in high performance cars for a living including the tear down and rebuild of these engines, I'd say they there must be a good reason to install them with their packages. I'd consider their experience more valuable than the average Joe ZL1 owner that only changes the oil in their car. Just my opinion.

[CanadianVetZL1]

Ok so the video "proves" that if you completely reroute and eliminate the PCV system you get less deposits. Notice there was still some deposits that occur anyway.

Its measured in mg, over 10,000 miles but what difference does the catch can make?

from this video I just want to run the PCV valve into the environment like my 1984 Hyundai Pony was HAHAHA

[Z OH 6]

Originally Posted by CanadianVetZL1

Ok so the video "proves" that if you completely reroute and eliminate the PCV system you get less deposits. Notice there was still some deposits that occur anyway.

Its measured in mg, over 10,000 miles but what difference does the catch can make?

from this video I just want to run the PCV valve into the environment like my 1984 Hyundai Pony was HAHAHA

Tough to argue with ignorance. If you don't understand how they work, then no one will be able to convince you otherwise.

[UnknownJinX]

Originally Posted by AZ_1LE

Does anyone have any photos of "coked up valves" and "oil covered bricks" they can share?

I come from owning an RS4 which had this issue, I would clean the intake valves every other oil change. The biggest source of the problem was leaky valve seals. And from what I've read from multiple sources, the LT4's have valve guides that wear abnormally fast, kind of like the LS7's did/do. This might allow oil to seep past the seals and down onto the backs of the valves.

https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=527593

L83 on 0W-20, 9~12k-mile OCI, no catch can at 117k miles. These conditions are much tougher than what most LT1 will see.

So at least for NA folks, don't lose sleep over it.

Not sure if there has been any pics for LT4. I will leave it to ZL1 or boosted LT1 folks.

As for oil contamination, this is something you will have to see with UOA, as mentioned before. I don't quite see why DI would be worse than PI in that regard, unless GM's design is as flawed as Honda's L15B7 found in Civic's, Accord's and CR-V's, where a lot of fuel gets sprayed at the cylinder wall and drip down into the pan when the engine is cold. So far, there has been no report of GM engines doing that, and even Honda's that have apparent fuel dilution don't seem to have mechanical issues related to this.

As for emissions, remember that one thread where someone is offered 500 bucks for having their Camaro SS dynoed for emissions? If DI engines that don't include walnut-blasting can't hold up long-term, wouldn't the manufacturer be in trouble from these dyno runs?