Save yourself a fire or atleast a big mess.......
Dec 8, 2006, 12:13 PM
#1
Save yourself a fire or atleast a big mess.......
I posted this yesterday but after it was invaded by another shop starting trouble it was removed. So here it is again.........
Well if it hasn't already happened to you more than likely it will........your dipstick pops out of the tube when you are under boost and engine oil covers everything. If you are lucky it just makes an irritating mess, if you aren't so lucky the oil gets on the hot exhaust manifold/turbo and catches fire.
As the DSM's aged we saw more and more of this happening and we use to squeeze the dipstick tube closed slightly so the dipstick would then be tight. The other thing that happens is the rubber on the dipstick gets old and hard and no longer grabs the tube enough to stay in. You can buy a new dipstick when this happens and hopefully it fixes the problem. If you are running very high boost the chances of popping the dipstick out increases quite a bit. There is some boost that gets by the rings in an engine no matter how well built/sealed it is. This crankcase pressure is always there and is what actually ends up pushing the dipstick out in the first place.
The EVO has a nice bracket right below the handle on the dipstick. On the high boost cars we take a long zip tie and run it through the handle on the dipstick and then around the bracket so there is no chance of it blowing it out and possibly having a huge mess or worse, a fire.
The zip tie works, it is a PITA though. If you want to check the oil you need another zip tie. Not convienent for the customer or anyone else to check the oil.
So, my brother Daniel, get this idea to make springs that will hold the dipstick down and are removable. After some searching we find a spring that will work tension wise and bend up a bunch of them.
Now I have all these dipstick springs here. Not sure how many of you are having the problem but as I said, sooner or later it is going to happen.
It's a simple spring, great idea. We bent them so they can't/won't fall off when you take it loose to check the oil. This is rocket science but it sure is handy. Since we are in business to sell parts I figured since we have them we may as well sell them.
Here's a picture of what we made and how it goes on. Price is $5. Not hardly worth boxing, selling, shipping. It's such a good idea I had to post it and offer it.
Well if it hasn't already happened to you more than likely it will........your dipstick pops out of the tube when you are under boost and engine oil covers everything. If you are lucky it just makes an irritating mess, if you aren't so lucky the oil gets on the hot exhaust manifold/turbo and catches fire.
As the DSM's aged we saw more and more of this happening and we use to squeeze the dipstick tube closed slightly so the dipstick would then be tight. The other thing that happens is the rubber on the dipstick gets old and hard and no longer grabs the tube enough to stay in. You can buy a new dipstick when this happens and hopefully it fixes the problem. If you are running very high boost the chances of popping the dipstick out increases quite a bit. There is some boost that gets by the rings in an engine no matter how well built/sealed it is. This crankcase pressure is always there and is what actually ends up pushing the dipstick out in the first place.
The EVO has a nice bracket right below the handle on the dipstick. On the high boost cars we take a long zip tie and run it through the handle on the dipstick and then around the bracket so there is no chance of it blowing it out and possibly having a huge mess or worse, a fire.
The zip tie works, it is a PITA though. If you want to check the oil you need another zip tie. Not convienent for the customer or anyone else to check the oil.
So, my brother Daniel, get this idea to make springs that will hold the dipstick down and are removable. After some searching we find a spring that will work tension wise and bend up a bunch of them.
Now I have all these dipstick springs here. Not sure how many of you are having the problem but as I said, sooner or later it is going to happen.
It's a simple spring, great idea. We bent them so they can't/won't fall off when you take it loose to check the oil. This is rocket science but it sure is handy. Since we are in business to sell parts I figured since we have them we may as well sell them.
Here's a picture of what we made and how it goes on. Price is $5. Not hardly worth boxing, selling, shipping. It's such a good idea I had to post it and offer it.
Last edited by David Buschur; Dec 8, 2006 at 01:00 PM.
Dec 8, 2006, 12:19 PM
#5
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Excellent Idea.
I remember the first day my dipstick flew out in my first gen. Was driving along and wham. Smoke came from out the hood. Had to go to a car wash and spray her down good to clean it up.
Glad to see BR innovating new stuff day by day for these evo's.
:Thumbs up:
I remember the first day my dipstick flew out in my first gen. Was driving along and wham. Smoke came from out the hood. Had to go to a car wash and spray her down good to clean it up.
Glad to see BR innovating new stuff day by day for these evo's.
:Thumbs up:
Dec 8, 2006, 12:20 PM
#7
My cheap solution has been a small hose clamp around the metal tube and a zip tie. I just use a zip tie looped through the dipstick handle hole and I snug it around the screw... area.... on the hose clamp. If I just make sure not to pull it really tight this gives me a re-usable latch to hold the dipstick down.
Last edited by TSiAWD666; Dec 8, 2006 at 12:43 PM.
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Dec 8, 2006, 12:23 PM
#10
Now, concerning yesterday's "input". I am going to address it since it is technically relevant.
It was suggest that using this spring was going to blow the seals out of the engine and that the "right" way to fix it is to install AN lines on the valve cover and route them to a catch can.
So, with that. In the 18 years I have been building and racing 4G63's I have NEVER had a front or rear main seal blow out, regardless of the situation or what we were trying to do, that is a big NEVER. So the fear of that is out the window.
Next, installing larger hoses on the valve cover is a solution for getting rid of the excess crank case pressure but the fact is there is no need. As you can see in the picture we on this particular engine we have the PCV valve out and a nipple installed. The PCV vent and the breather on the other end of the valve cover are more than adequate for venting the extra crank case pressure out. These hoses will not loose much oil at all and generally don't need to be put into any type of catch can. In a road racing situation where the oil is really being tossed around or left at high RPM's for a long time, yes, you can put them into a catch can. On my person RS that runs 9.90's and I drive everyday I have the two hoses just hanging over the trans and get NO oil out of them what-so-ever.
With this suggestion of fixing it with AN lines I wanted to point out also that if a REAL solution was being suggested it would have been a much more professional one. The suggestion of running a dry sump or at the very least a vacuum pump to pull this pressure out of the block. We have done both.
When doing that though, if someone knew what they were doing or suggesting, they would at that time NOT suggest venting it from the valve cover area at all, that is a **** poor place to vent from in a racing situation. The best place is from the cylinder head itself and where we have been doing it for 10 years now. Problem with this it isn't just quick solution any newbie could come up with. This requires some welding an machine work on the head but eliminates the excessive oil lost to the catch can when actually trying to eliminate the crank case pressure.
Best thing to do is stay out of other peoples posts, I have been banned and warned for doing such things.
Thanks for reading, hope you find this all educational.
It was suggest that using this spring was going to blow the seals out of the engine and that the "right" way to fix it is to install AN lines on the valve cover and route them to a catch can.
So, with that. In the 18 years I have been building and racing 4G63's I have NEVER had a front or rear main seal blow out, regardless of the situation or what we were trying to do, that is a big NEVER. So the fear of that is out the window.
Next, installing larger hoses on the valve cover is a solution for getting rid of the excess crank case pressure but the fact is there is no need. As you can see in the picture we on this particular engine we have the PCV valve out and a nipple installed. The PCV vent and the breather on the other end of the valve cover are more than adequate for venting the extra crank case pressure out. These hoses will not loose much oil at all and generally don't need to be put into any type of catch can. In a road racing situation where the oil is really being tossed around or left at high RPM's for a long time, yes, you can put them into a catch can. On my person RS that runs 9.90's and I drive everyday I have the two hoses just hanging over the trans and get NO oil out of them what-so-ever.
With this suggestion of fixing it with AN lines I wanted to point out also that if a REAL solution was being suggested it would have been a much more professional one. The suggestion of running a dry sump or at the very least a vacuum pump to pull this pressure out of the block. We have done both.
When doing that though, if someone knew what they were doing or suggesting, they would at that time NOT suggest venting it from the valve cover area at all, that is a **** poor place to vent from in a racing situation. The best place is from the cylinder head itself and where we have been doing it for 10 years now. Problem with this it isn't just quick solution any newbie could come up with. This requires some welding an machine work on the head but eliminates the excessive oil lost to the catch can when actually trying to eliminate the crank case pressure.
Best thing to do is stay out of other peoples posts, I have been banned and warned for doing such things.
Thanks for reading, hope you find this all educational.
Dec 8, 2006, 12:26 PM
#11
Wow, you guys post fast! haha.
This part isn't rocket science but it is surely useful and a big safety issue.
The stock boost levels can blow out the dipstick. Remember, even a stock EVO hits 19 psi. If you have 19 psi in the intake manifold more times than not you also have 19 psi in the crankcase. As the car ages the dipstick become brittle. It has a rubber seal on it that keeps it in the dipstick tube. When that rubber gets hard it shrinks slightly and no longer "grips". It will blow out when that happens, even at 19 psi.
This is, however, most common a turbocharged car running higher boost levels.
What we need is...............freaking brilliant thought just hit me, I have a new part in mind and am going to start working on it right now
This part isn't rocket science but it is surely useful and a big safety issue.
The stock boost levels can blow out the dipstick. Remember, even a stock EVO hits 19 psi. If you have 19 psi in the intake manifold more times than not you also have 19 psi in the crankcase. As the car ages the dipstick become brittle. It has a rubber seal on it that keeps it in the dipstick tube. When that rubber gets hard it shrinks slightly and no longer "grips". It will blow out when that happens, even at 19 psi.
This is, however, most common a turbocharged car running higher boost levels.
What we need is...............freaking brilliant thought just hit me, I have a new part in mind and am going to start working on it right now
Dec 8, 2006, 12:38 PM
#12
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I did that for my galant vr4 a couple of years back. however, i used a small hose clamp to strapp down the bottom end of the spring around the dipstick tube.
