excessive oil in catch can

[Bazza2405]

Hi all,
I’ve got a 2004 zd30 with a provent catch can that’s been installed for a while now, but recently I went for a longer drive 200 ish kms and checked the catch can and it had fulled up my whole drain hose and collecting in the bottom of the can.
I had seen from an older post here that it could be the piston rings so I got a mechanic shop to do a compression test, came back good.
I wouldn’t know to go from here really, if anyone has any ideas of what it could be that would be much appreciated.

 

[tweak'e]

thats pretty normal with the zd30.
what makes it really bad is overfilling it with oil which is super common.

 

[Bazza2405]

thats pretty normal with the zd30.
what makes it really bad is overfilling it with oil which is super common.

Oh ok, but the thing is it wasn’t over filled oil level had been fine before that and wasn’t blowing out that much oil before?

 

[tweak'e]

unless your chewing through oil, or lost power, i would not worry about it.

 

[Bazza2405]

unless your chewing through oil, or lost power, i would not worry about it.

Yeah sorry I should have mentioned that I am abit chewing through some oil but power is fine

 

[Oldie]

Hi Bazza
before you went on your longish drive, did you do an oil change and change your usual brand of oil ?

 

[Bazza2405]

Hi Bazza
before you went on your longish drive, did you do an oil change and change your usual brand of oil ?

Hi Oldie
Nah I didn’t do an oil change before that drive as still had 800 kms before my next oil change. I do 5000km intervals and use my normal total15w40 oil

 

[Nig]

Air cleaner is ok? If its pluged it creates extra sucktion at the intake hose, or have you ever cleaned the can and filter.

 

[[email protected]]

not sure if this will help, i run my hose over the top of the rocker cover so that someof the oil that accumulates in the hose,runs back into the motor, i still catch some oil but not excess amount.

 

[Nig]

Clean and check the presure valve in the provent is not stuck, it should open with to much vacuum, will cause extra draw.

 

[Bazza2405]

Thanks guys,
I’m away from home at the moment but will check these when I get back
Thanks

 

[Bazza2405]

Hi everyone, back home and checked and cleaned the pressure valves with come cleaner in the provent and they seem to be working fine. I took out the air cleaner, a little bit dusty but definitely not clogged.
Planning on going on another drive this weekend will see how it goes again
Any more suggestions on what it could be?

 

[Horatius]

How much oil is it using? The level shouldn't really drop if you change it every 5,000kms.

 

[Bazza2405]

How much oil is it using? The level shouldn't really drop if you change it every 5,000kms.

Yeah that’s what’s confusing me, on that trip it used about 1/4 ish

 

[Old.Tony]

A quarter of a litre, or a quarter of the oil in the sump?

 

[Bazza2405]

Sorry about a 1/4 on the dip stick

 

[tweak'e]

Sorry about a 1/4 on the dip stick

when are you checking the dipstick?
very common for people to check just after they switch engine off and it will always read low. need to wait a few hours for it to drain back.

not uncommon to use 1/4 dipstick if you do a ton of short trips then do a big long trip.

 

[Horatius]

The best way to check is of a morning when it's cold before you drive it. Good idea to check when it's parked in the same spot also for consistency. It doesn't take much of a slope to really throw your reading out.

Assuming that's all good, it seems a bit much IMO. They have to use some oil of course but mine stays at the same level on the dipstick between changes, whether I change it at 5 or 10k kms.

Going by your replies above, it filled the drain hose and it was starting to collect in the bottom of the catch can after nearly 5k kms? I think that would be normal and nothing to worry about.

I would just keep an eye on it for a while, see if it continues to use that much oil.

 

[Old.Tony]

^^ And further to the above, if you're topping up the oil because it looks like it's low when it's not, overfilling the sump will cause even more oil to exit the engine via the PCV into the catch can. These engines don't like being overfilled.

 

[Been a while]

Hi all,
I’ve got a 2004 zd30 with a provent catch can that’s been installed for a while now, but recently I went for a longer drive 200 ish kms and checked the catch can and it had fulled up my whole drain hose and collecting in the bottom of the can.
I had seen from an older post here that it could be the piston rings so I got a mechanic shop to do a compression test, came back good.
I wouldn’t know to go from here really, if anyone has any ideas of what it could be that would be much appreciated.

How much did the compression test cost you?

Did they do it through glow plug or injectors apertures??
Just asking because I don't know! I would be thinking injector, but it maybe the glow and they cut fuel to the injectors???

On the usage, as Izzi wrote, try and keep that hose up high..