BMW 335i N54 PCV & Catch Can Upgrades: Must Have Mods

[@thisguyshorty3554]

Same issue Im having at the moment. It started when I installed my downpipes. But could had been doing it even with cats but was filtered enough not to smoke. The pcv system is intergrated in the valve cover and that could be another smoke symptom. Thank you for the tip. Ill replace the valve and add a catch can to see if this helps. And also there was no oil in my turbos upon removing the cats.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Sounds exactly like my car. For a couple of hundred bucks worth doing the pcv and catch can definitely. You need to at some point regardless. But please let us know how you go!

[@thisguyshorty3554]

@@ZeroTo60Tube links to the catch can kit you used. Thanks.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

I can't find the link of the one i bought last year.... but keeping in theme it was one of the cheapest i could find. This one is about the same price and has the exact same markings on the hose. amzn.to/2yy1kVS

[@Garageaholic]

Dude, @ 03:00 .... I looked through 15 videos before finding yours and you told me EXACTLY what I needed to hear and what nobody actually stated. Blowing through the valves and seeing the performance differences between them. I’m blowing through my stock pcv valve and can get air by both ways. Is this good? Bad? I didn’t know until I watched this video. You earned my subscribe. Thank you

[@geoarnaudov7463]

Just did the PCV last week, now I'm going in to install the Catch Can. Hope the smoking stops. Good Vid! I have the same symptoms. ENGULFING SOCCER MOMS WITH SMOKE is hilarious !

[@santana1830]

Did the smoke stopped right away or after some hundred miles after stopped?

[@pulsechainpete3808]

Haven’t noticed any smoke due to the car being perpetually on Jack stands😳

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Haha. Pete I have seen your email. Just haven’t had a chance to google the codes yet to decipher them. Benifit of mhd, it tells you what the codes relate to, so you know straight away. Have you tried clearing all codes with that base scanner to see what comes back?

[@pulsechainpete3808]

Zero To 60 I bought the mhd monitor and it said the bank 2 oxygen sensor is faulty

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

If you got the monitor part of the app. You will be able to watch both bank 1 and bank 2 at the same time and compare the firgures. Even maybe log the car idling while you bring the revs up a bit. That is a great way to check the o2 sensors are doing what they should be. If it flat lines, it will confirm its cooked.

[@gamerslust6533]

Lmfao

[@melcif]

Good one 😹

[@icommandoi145]

Ideally you want to get an OCC on both the High side and the Low side. BMS OCC on the high side and Musashi OCC on the low side as it filters a lot more and most of the time when you're driving it will be the low side that will have more blow by oil on the return. The upgraded RB Valve is a must.

[@Jotomoz]

Nice upgraded pcv I ordered one. I have no smoke or external oil leaks but I know oil vapours getting through the oem pcv under heavy load and suspect that's where my oil has been going. Upgraded pcv is first mod all n54 should have. Second mod would be tighter oil cap using rtv gasket maker to eliminate oil vapours escaping through the cap.

[@MrSamed70]

Thank you so much bro. I had a lot of smoke when i came to traffic light and brake or stationair. I have changed the pcv valve with a upgrade one and put a oil catch can and a cranckcase breather. Now all my smoke issues are gone🤩🤩. Really a must to be changed before starting with the turbod or somthing expensive.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Glad it helped

[@santana1830]

Did it stopped right away bro? Or I have to wait some miles to stop smoking?

[@Zsword92]

I believe you mean you installed the high side/boost PCV oil catch can. The low side kit turns the PCV system into an external one and catches the the oil and vapor which is circulating during vacuum; the majority of driving situations.

[@overindulgent]

I did the same upgrades. I want having smoking issues just doing preventative maintenance before going for big power. I did notice that my idle totally smoothed out. I set my car to idle at 700 and it doesn’t skip a beat.

[@socobarbell]

I'm really surprised there isn't alot of talk about this online. The smoking part anyway. I have a new valve cover coming to hopefully fix my smoke. Going to get the rb valve as well. Fingers crossed. Do you heard of anyone having fuel trim issues along with this?

[@timabdurazzakov1480]

Hey, can you send me the link to your valve cover you used and would you recommend

[@tumisangnkwe5390]

Having the same smoking issues,guess I will get a new pcv and also add a catch can as well.i hope all that smoking goes away after this 😒😒 Thank you for the video man 😎😎

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Let us know how yours goes.

[@papayspeanut]

Crazy! I got the ftp pcv and it cured damn near all of the embarrassing smoking I had. Thank you! I had the RB pcv and swapped over to the ftp one and bam! Cured more of it. I would smoke a ton on cold starts, on deceleration, and when stopped at a light.

[@boostedbryan8467]

Mine smokes once it starts to get warm not sure what it is tho :/

[@kevinkokthi3345]

@@boostedbryan8467 same here

[@Phettraining86]

I got a 335i today. Seller must of reset the ecu because when I got home the o2 sensor light came on. Now it smoke just during acceleration. You think replace the pcv will help

[@evoPYRO]

@@Phettraining86same here what was your problem?

[@Phettraining86]

@@evoPYRO was my turbos

[@mrkeza64]

Thanks for the tip , have catch can but not upgraded pcv valve will order one

[@howardrichardson6725]

Hi. I didn't see any link for the catch can. Can you please post the link. Thanks.

[@S1KQuan]

Fixed my problem! Thankyou

[@Critical7hinking]

Can you recommend a DIY video that shows install on both?

[@krizzle58]

Why dont you just vent the the crankcase pressure to the atmosphere instead of leading it back to the intake?

[@Bunguth]

What catchcan is it ?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

just a china special

[@nickmoreno7737]

New valvue cover and still smoking came with new pcv turbos are good no oil loss idk what it could be

[@rattedbug5003]

Hi there I couldn’t get the link to the pcv I think mine is worn

[@autoSRI]

One comment on the aluminium one when you first get it unscrew it and add threadlock to the tail part ,I just chucked mine in as soon as I got it but about 6 months later I removed it to install my low side catch can, the tail had totally unscrewed and the pellet inside was just free to move around and do nothing

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

That’s a great tip!

[@rikipitter1676]

Please could you show us a more detailed install of these with low side catch can? 😬

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Hi Riki, to be fair its really simple, you just need to remove a section of the pipe between the rocker cover and the rear intake pipe. Then connect the OCC in its place. Have you purchased a catch can yet?

[@rikipitter1676]

Zero To 60 In the process of deciding what catch can to go for. I know the basic catch can install is very straight forward. Just interested to see visually how the parts you are using work along side it. Seems difficult to find detailed videos. Great vids though!

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

@@rikipitter1676 Hi Riki, sorry for the late reply. Basically i went for the BMS style one, this is because of the way the baffle works in the top of the catch can. Now i am sure they are similar on most catch cans, but figured this style was developed for the N54s and the amount of fumes they will be venting. Have you had a good look at the BMS site and their install guide?

[@rikipitter1676]

Thank you for being so responsive. Yes I’ve had a good look. I quite like the radium one and how much thought they have put into hardware. I am a sucker for quality. I’m comfortable with install of catch cans. What I’m more interested in is how the pcv fittings you have install alongside the catch can system. Could you maybe post a couple pics for me if possible?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

@@rikipitter1676 The radium stuff is always top notch. The PCV i used, simply just goes in place of the original PCV valve. Sorry i miss understood what you were chasing. These alloy ones are just a replacement for the factory style valve, but they are designed in a way in which they seal much easier, than the the factory one.

[@evanskhago8515]

What if its not a turbo motor. And the pcv is inbuilt with valve cover.... could it be the crankcase breather?

[@9595david]

Keep up the quality content!!👍🏽

[@aleycat100]

just installed mine but i couldnt get the seal from the old ocv so i kept it in there just stuck the new ocv in and threaded it on when i started the car it was clapping for a minuit now its sputtering at idle think ill have to take it out again

[@shlumpedgreg328]

Not sure what to do, i just installed both of these and still the same amount of smoke is coming out could i have done something wrong or is it a different issue.

[@gregcowart8229]

Thanks I ordered one immediately thanks Andrew

[@danielanderson9118]

Hey that’s bang on what info I’ve been looking to source. I’ve just completed a build with a custom built head, twin TD04s with billet internals, catless setup and supporting mods, 1 month in ive had the smoke!!!

[@santana1830]

If I installed these 2 things the smoke leaves right away or just after some miles?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

On mine it did have clear out what was built up in the charge pipes/intercooler.

[@pennypacker2000]

Are you not mixing low and high side up?.. You seem to have the high side CC installed, which connects to the flapper valve and the intake..low side would the aluminium valve ..and if you make the low side external ,you would catch the most crap before it ends up on the intake valves... :) .. please enlighten me if I misunderstood anything you said..and keep the great videos comming ;-)

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Hi PennyPacker2000, embarrassingly i have bloody confused the two. It was last year when i did all my catch can research and over that time, somehow i had manage to think this was the low one. Thanks for picking that up, without this reminder i would kept calling it the low side.......Im getting old.... haha

[@pennypacker2000]

@@ZeroTo60Tube No worries , lots of ppl are confused about the PCV setup on these things :D .. if you at some point do the external low side, would be a nice video explaining the setup for ppl ;)

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

@@pennypacker2000 Once the budget side of this project is done, and our work returns to normal a bit, i would really like to go all out on this car. A external PCV will definitely be on the cards. Thanks for commenting and watching, we really appreciate it.

[@vw133s]

Question: I do not have the original inlets anymore (airfilter relocation). So the catch can blows to open air. I have discovered that on idle it sucks air in (unfiltered obiously). I have upgraded the pcv valve already. Do you recommend to put a one way valve to prevent air been suckend in on the open air side of the catch can hose?

[@Saif0412]

Great video again guys, I've got the RB PCV Valve fitted already, so you reckon it's worth doing time vs catch can? Don't really have smoke issue at the moment.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

In my case i did both. The PCV is heart of the issue, but even a good working PCV valve should vent a little, so the catch can is still doing something. I guess the you rev the hell out of them, the more work the catch can will be doing.

[@xXCWALDROUPXx]

Ok so I have a catch can, but my car still uses more oil than normal and when I check the catch can there’s a little oil and a bunch of water from steam, should I try a different PCV bypass? The one I got was from ECS and it’s plastic, or do you think it’s possibly head gasket or something else

[@drake84734]

Is it wise to run the vacuum high and low side catch can with upgraded turbos?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

It's a bit of a mixed bag of opinion out there. My car at 20psi has been sweet with this setup.

[@davidnicholson8735]

I had one of these and it failed. The spring did not provide enough pressure on the "nipple" causing it to turn sideways. If you're looking at doing this save your money and do an external PCV setup.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

That’s good to know. How long did your one last before is died?

[@in54ne82]

What were the causes and how did you find out? I'm using one as well with an external catch can.

[@davidnicholson8735]

Zero To 60 I can't tell you exactly when it failed, it wasn't something I immediately suspected was causing a problem. I would have idle surge and if I opened up my oil cap I could see that oil vapor was coming from the manifold almost like the rings were toast. I replaced it with the factory piece and the issues went away. Covid I'm sure the cause was due to the weak spring that it comes with. I'm not sure if the ones being sold now are different than what I purchased a few years back.

[@thebestsoccer2063]

Hi i have a 2008 bmw 535xi and i replaced the valve cover gasket and the oil filter housing gasket but when i do a pull on 2nd gear the car smoke from exhaust blue smoke help

[@rat123mumu]

I am having the a lot of white/grey smoke on cold starts on my 135i. Initially when I start the car it is normal for 15 or so seconds then smoke screen. It isn't bad when driving but I am getting a little when coming to a stop after it is warmed up. When I bought it I was told, the car had injectors replaced with index 12, Valve cover and gasket replaced, RB PCV, and Vargas upgraded turbos, running a MHD custom tune. I have noticed some oil pooling in the middle area where the injectors and coil packs are. Could the valve cover have cracked so quickly? Any advice is appreciated.

[@ronaldmotaung-up6sc]

I have my bmw320i discovered black smooke with failure to acceralate and after 15minutes starts moviing so what's the problem

[@Frenko1]

Are you doing only high side or you planning to do low side OCC too?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

I only did the low pressure side for the catch can, that with the PCV fixed all my smoke issues.

[@Frenko1]

@@ZeroTo60Tube No, that's high, not low pressure. If you decide to do low side you have to deal with pcv. Check out rb external valve for low side. I've done my way .🍻

[@ozstriker4075]

Wait a sec.... so you put in a more restrictive PCV valve and that resolved your exhaust smoke issues BUT is that a such a great idea for your engine??? I mean crankcase pressures are going to go through the roof, so won't you just end up blowing front and rear engine seals?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

The idea of PCV is to open and close at the right time. Years on the reason this has had such a drastic effect is more likely that the original PCV was just gummed up.

[@ozstriker4075]

@@ZeroTo60Tube @ZeroTo60Tube Not long had my N54 (& first turbocharged car), watched a few more vids and get what you mean now. On a FI engine the PCV works the opposite way round to a NA. Also seems like a low side catch can is more important than the high side? (unless its a race car!) On my N54 previous owner installed downpipes and I occasionally get puffs of exhaust smoke on coming to a stop. Checked engine compression (160), hybrid turbos fairly new, high side catch can already installed, intake valves could do with a clean but after that I'll look to install a low side catch can. perhaps a 3 port can to cover both high and the low side

[@ltdasilva93]

I was wondering if you could provide some insight into what I'm about to say, since I can't find anything on the internet so here goes. (I'm stage 2+ downpipes btw) I have a new OEM valve cover with 11k kms and new turbos with 13k kms on them. I have the RB PCV valve and a catch can like your setup and my car is really well maintained with new sparks, index 12 injectors, eldor coils, etc. Anyway, when I do not apply the wastegate rattle fix on MHD the car is quieter and I NEVER see ANY smoke from the tail pipe, the car is quieter (wastegates closed) and there is little to no combustion smell. Now when I open the wastegates using the software rattle fix (because I hate the rattle, and yes new OEM turbos still rattle a little), I notice I can smell a lot more combustion and when coming to a stop or when accelerating more than usual, I sometimes get these puffs of smoke that just straight up smell like combustion. Yes the car is louder because they're open, but the smoke can get embarassing especially in a congested city Do you run with or without the wastegate fix on? And what are your recommendations? I was thinking of changing my injector seals since they may be gunked up from 2 years of operation, and may be causing weird fuel trims. My o2 sensors are new too. Lastly, I may be running rich with the MHD off the shelf tune, and I may upgrade my PCV valve to an external dual catch can setup. I know that was a lot to read but any feedback is appreciated from you guys. I think the small smoke and extra smell is normal with the wastegates open, but something in my heart tells me it's too much smoke to be normal, even if they're open. Cheers guys, and love the channel.

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

I don't think..... and think being the key word here, that the wastegates will have any link to the smoke. When they are open they will be bypassing the turbines, so it shouldn't be working the turbos more..... Unless, unless the exhaust gas rushing out the waste gate, is creating a vacuum in the turbine and pulling the oil through the oil seal instead of pressurising that chamber when the gates are closed.... But thats some Alex jones levels of theory there. The smoke has to be coming from oil somewhere. Whether it's through the PCV system or turbos seals shouldn't be too hard to work out. Have you checked how much oil is building up in your catch can? Or cleaned out the intakes that run down to the turbo? My car did have a bit of residue that I reckon took probably 1-2 weeks to work its way out last year. Alternatively have you had the downpipes removed to see if there is oil in the turbo housings. Even with most of it burning away, there should be some stains in there. I do always run with rattle fix on my own car. It is the JB4 rattle fix, which is adjustable. So it may be different to MHD fix. It's also very strange you get more smells with the gates open. Regarding the fuel mixture, you should be able to do a log easily with MHD and check AFRs, also might be worth seeing how your O2 sensors log, make sure they aren't doing anything strange. If you get a chance to do a log, shoot up a data zap link. Also have you got a video showing your smoke? Wouldn't mind just seeing it, for our own reference, incase you can work out what's causing it. Thanks for the support on the channel, we really appreciate it. We are loving the youtube community and making the videos.

[@Saif0412]

I'd second what the guys have said, doubt the rattle fix would cause smoke, Pretty sure blown turbo seals and oil could definitely cause smoke, Stage 2+ would be pushing stock turbos very hard,

[@davidtek5893]

Hi i have abit of smoke just like show and i do upgrade pcv, i got a good result no more smoke and i installed cacht can and my can always dry may be afew drops, but when installed down pipe i got abit of smoke very often not continuing smoke any help from you please it 09 e92 335i with 7speed DCT thanks

[@gprnick]

Did you only had smoke? Or also high oil usage like 1 litre every 1500km

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

I only had smoke on deceleration or braking. I’d pull up to traffic lights and the smoke would over whelm the car. Strangely enough.

[@naxen]

Same issue I am having at the moment. Turbos were replaced,valve cover gasket replaced,head gasket test done, passed the test. So frustrating,but i found your video. Installing Bms oil catch can and VTT pcv upgrade. Hopefully it fixes the issue. Thank you for uploading this helpful video sir!!

[@SuperHbkforever]

I guess another thing on the list of maintenance

[@SuperHbkforever]

You're hurting my wallet guys ;P

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

hehe, ohhh, dont worry we are all in the same boat. Have you had yours for long? Or more importantly have you had many forced maintenance items pop up yet?

[@SuperHbkforever]

Had both Vanos solenoids die on me, my valve cover gasket is leaking. Had a coil completely die on me after a bit if hooning. And I'm sure there's more but it's been a year and a half of ownership and it's been fairly easy on the maintenance side of things. But mods. Many many mods. As long as people are willing to work on these cars themselves, the can be very affordable to own and a weapon of a daily driver

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

@@SuperHbkforever Couldn't agree more with your last comment their. Apart from maybe a barra, i dont think you can get anything near as quick as one of these N54s for what they cost at the moment. Performance/Tuner car, that you can still daily bargain of the decade if you ask me.

[@Phettraining86]

I just picked up one today 😢 got scammed me and reset the ecu and now once got home I hsve check out. Said I need new o2 sensors. It wasn’t smoking when I was test driving it now it is but it’s on and off. Sometime it smokes sometime it doesn’t

[@geoffreymoulton5707]

Sadly the PVC kit does not post to New Zealand, maybe I'll have to send it to AU and fly over and get it 😂😂😂✈😥😥😥

[@kemang9579]

Must used this to my e34.. intake manifold so dirty..😪🇲🇾

[@leastitried]

Hey just wondering, the way you explained this pcv upgrade in the video makes it sound like you're just plugging up the valve. Does this not cause a higher crank case pressure? I understand this would eliminate the smoke but wouldn't it also be unhealthy for the engine in a way?

[@Lup3r]

China catch can?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

It is yes.

[@BigTurboLos]

I changed my PCV valve and added a catch can and THEN started smoking 😰 Any clues as to what could be causing it? Should be known my turbos are in HORRIBLE condition and I do have horrendous wastegate rattle, looking to upgrade them asap. Could bad turbos cause the white smoke?

[@ZeroTo60Tube]

Turbos could be the cause. But its strange it started since doing the PCV and catch can. I would be tempted to check the new PCV is definitely functioning properly.