crankcase vent oil

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I am a welder and work on Pipeline construction. I have a 99, 3500 4x4 cummins turbo diesel. Here in W. V. and Pa. we go up and down pretty steep grades on right-of-ways. Going down grades of 17 degrees or more, the crankcase exhaust gases push oil out the crankcase vent. The first time it happened to me this spring , it pushed out 3. 5 quarts in a distance of 80 feet. Oil pressure went to zero , but I got it shut down just as it did. I called Cummins and talked to an engineer and he told me the engine is only rated for 17 degrees nose down. I talked to a mechanic and he suggested we move the breather vent pipe to the valve cover, which we did. We tested it by backing up a 25 degree slope , measured with a protractor. We sat there for 3 minutes, the engine maintained oil pressure. We had blocked the old vent on the front of the engine. It did not push oil out the vent in the valve pan,( third bulge back from the front, on drivers side, as high as you can get it. ) After putting a Pepsi bottle on a short hose, on the valve pan vent, I drove it 20 miles on I-79 at 70 miles an hour and another 40 miles on country roads,when I got home the bottle had 2 teaspoons of oil in it, too much. Appearently Dodge doesn't vent the crankcase here because the valves working makes the oil too misty. So then I ordered and installed a Walker Engineering Airsep system for the 24 valve engine. ( 325. 00 ) I found the unit to be a little tight to install, but it is working fine now. The air hose to the turbo is tight against the alternator, but after a few days it conforms to this shape and is easy to take off and reinstall.

 

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Hmmm that's wierd. Down the block from where I live there's a 21% hill that I love to go up and down on(wish I had a Jake brake)and it's about 1/8th mile long. I just love coming up it and about half way goose the "gas" and get the tires to break traction, yeah I know I'm a little twisted. I've never had that oil pushing problem,but that Airsep thing sounds cool!

-Mike

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99 QC2500 4x4, 5spd, LWB,
LSD, 3. 54, Amethyst, Agate, SLT, Fogs, Camper, Trailer, Slider, Midland CB, 2wd-low,
Smittybilt bars, Y2k alloys, Straight pipe 3", 6-disc Clarion changer, No silencer ring, Sill guards, Tailgate marker lights, and a big chrome foot gas pedal!

Mike Ramos Disciple of BOMB
"RATTLE & HUM"

 

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Sorry MikeR I should have explained that I was backing up a steep hill when this first happened to me. Other owners of Dodges that I work with warned me of this. Later on another job I thought if I just let it idle ( to keep the brakes working ) while I was being let down a steep hill by a dozer it wouldn't leak, but that time it pumped about a quart of oil out. So I found that moving the vent and putting the Airsep on cured all the problems.

 

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We need to be sure and compare apples to apples here.
Shamrock speaks of a 17 DEGREE grade, while Mike R talks about a 21 PERCENT grade. These are very different.

If my rusty math skills are correct, a 21 PERCENT grade is equal to about 9. 5 Degrees,a steep hill to be sure, but a 17 DEGREE grade is equal to about 37 percent thats a very steep hill...

Hope this clears things up a bit.

 

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Shamrock- talk to me more about the Walker Airsep. I've got their material and have been thinking about installing one as well. Any oil film issues with the turbo? How well does the filter mount? Like the Scotty system with the K&N, it has to go back in the corner I guess. Did you dump the Dodge filterbox and rig any duct from the fender or just take in under-the-hood air? Cuts down on the blow-by stink after an oil change? Thanks for your observations. JJH

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'99 White Sport 4x4 QC SB, 5spd. w/GV od, 4. 10 locker, American Racing SilverAtlas mags & stainless hubs w/Dunlop 285/75R16's, CMI 3000 cap, Mopar fender flares, Line-X bed, Luverne stainless boards, Q-logic bass, Painless Wiring, BriteBox, K&N and Ted J. 's 4" exhaust w/US Gear 4" Super-Duty Decellerator. Rancho 9000's and full gauges going in soon!

 

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The Walker Airsep system was on demo at Colubus Nationals. It is a good solution to the oil vent "problem". Basically it catches the oil vent and runs it through a filter that seperates out the oil. The oil is then returned to the crank via a valve cover tap. The oil is not consumed in the engine through the turbo/or intake but rather added back to the crankcase were it belongs.

jjw
ND

 

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John Heimerl --- I have only driven it 200 miles since I installed the Airsep. I am unemployed right now and I use it mostly for work. I took the air hose to the turbo off to change the oil filter , and I didn't notice any oil film. The airsep filter mounts to the intake side of the turbo, It adds about 3 inches and you cut 1/2 inch off of the intake hose, then reinstall the hose. You have to turn a fitting on the back of the alternaton , to get it out of the way, this is in the instructions and is no big deal. The air from the crankcase is sucked in at the top and the oil is trapped by a filter and routed to the bottom of the airsep, a hose from there ties into the turbo oil return line and the oil is dumped back in the oil pan. All fittings are supplied in the kit. You also install a new turbo oil supply line, to get clearance, this is also furnished. The turbo supply line that I recieved , leaked at both ends when I installed it , I called Walked Engineering and told them about it and they air freighted me a new one overnight and I had it the next evening. Which was a very pleasant surprise. I would buy from them again.