So, I frequent eBay, and do a general MINI search just to see if anything cool pops up. Today I found this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Parts...ht_3417wt_1457

It's suppose to help with engine combustion so on, blah, blah. I'm not that mechanical of person, so I need some advice. Is this good or bad? I like increased MPG, who doesn't? Plus a cleaner engine means less repair bills. So what's wrong with this picture?

 

That is the fanciest explanation of basicly an oil catch can. That's pretty much what that thing is, just smaller. I would be surprised if you saw any MPG improvement like they claim too.

 

Its an air compressor filter you can get them at harbor freight for like $5

 

But is it better for the engine? I don't have to buy that one in particular, I just want to save the life of Izzi, she's already got 84K miles on her.

 

It's another make me rich gimmick. There are a lot of items worth buying on ePay, and then there are items that are just a waste of your money. Like Way stated, this is basically a smaller oil catch can. With the amount of oil actually being captured by larger catch cans, this might be a real inexpensive alternative. But, this thing hasn't been tested. There could be vacuum leaks and other problems. There are a lot of vendors on ePay that specialize in low quality or even bogus items, that supposedly work. While this particular item may have some usefulness, it's still kind of sketchy. The only thing I see that this doesn't have versus real catch cans is "flashiness." it's pretty crude, and as Boneyard Racing stated, it's just a compressor filter from harbor freight, which is why I wouldn't put this on my 22K MINI Cooper. Maybe on my 1996 Suzuki Sidekick with over 100,000 miles. If you are the experimental type, you could try it. However, I would probably just get a catch can from one of the vendors here though, because you know it's proven.

 

I've have an air/oil separator compressor filter in my car a an oil catch can for 30K miles, and do not anticipate any problems with it. It works fine, and the size is just right for a MINI, since you can see the oil level every time you open the hood, as it needs emptying every 5K miles or so.

This thing looks like a slightly different version of the same, and should work fine as a an oil catch can. It is, however, priced about $5 high, and you have to pay shipping. Buy one at WalMart instead.

It will not noticeably extend the life of your engine or increase gas mileage, but could conceivably give you a few (very few) extra miles on the supercharger, where the oil going back in might provide a trivial amount of lubrication.

If you want to do this check out the $16 OCC thread.

 

BTW the engine in the picture is a Toyota 22re from a 1st generation $runner or a 87-89 4wd pickup.

 

I think I might just pass on this gimmick then. Thanks for your guys' input! Always useful, and greatly appreciated.