Do I need one of these for my 2019 Ford Explorer with the 3.5l ecoboost engine? Thank you.

Do you need one, short answer, no.

If it was needed it would have come from the factory with one.

Are there benefits of having one? Possibly, there are a few schools of thought, and I unfortunately am not decided personally which is best.

I put one on. I didn’t see any real arguments against it.

The problem is that there hasn't been any long term studies about how effective catch cans are. Whatever evidence is out there has been mostly anecdotal. It wouldn't hurt to have one but there's just no way to know if it's really going to make a real difference.

Check with your dealer before installing. Not sure about Ford but GM will not honor warranty if you have one on and engine blows. At least one documented issue with a Corvette Z06 that a $26000 claim was denied. Pretty much if it was needed they would have put one on.

I have 178,000 miles on my 2014 platinum F150 4 x 4 with the 3.5 L EcoBoost engine. I tow a 7000 pound boat weekly from April through October since buying it. The vehicle has been flawless, no catch can installed.

Do you NEED it, No.
Are they beneficial I believe so.
The less oil you can keep from going back through the system the better.
They are inexpensive and a breeze to install.
J&L (formerly JLT) is who you want to go with.
https://www.jlosc.com/JL-3-0-o...rt-3-5l-ecoboost-v6/

Lots of extra oil going through these systems compared to years past.

Make sure you are changing your PCV and plugs at 50k

Need to stop reading the F150 forums about all the "stuff that you need to do"

For almost all applications the stock setup is best, if it's running good and you aren't seeing issues, leave it be...

JMO...

Black92 is right. Technically, they are a benefit. How much probably varies for each engine design.
No way I'd do that while still covered by warranty.

For most people, a catch can is too much to keep up with. Inserting a relatively nasty and fairly frequent maintenance need where there was none before. Plus, they get condensate that can freeze and cause them not to flow.

For me, it would be like cutting off water from your toilet tank and having to manually replenish the supply by pouring it in yourself. It's just too much trouble to keep up with, added to everything else, for most folks.

quote:

Originally posted by 83v45magna:
Black92 is right. Technically, they are a benefit. How much probably varies for each engine design.
No way I'd do that while still covered by warranty.

For most people, a catch can is too much to keep up with. Inserting a relatively nasty and fairly frequent maintenance need where there was none before. Plus, they get condensate that can freeze and cause them not to flow.

For me, it would be like cutting off water from your toilet tank and having to manually replenish the supply by pouring it in yourself. It's just too much trouble to keep up with, added to everything else, for most folks.

Not sure I would get that dramatic.
Simply unscrew the canister, pour the contents, into the waste oil pan when you do an oil change, and screw the canister back on.
J&L positions them very nicely. There is no mess.

I had the 3.5L Ecoboost in my Expedition and this motor certainly benefits from them.
Most oil I have seen on plugs, PCV, intake tube and throttle body.
Again, I would not say it is needed but very beneficial.

Catch Cans can be good and can mitigate issues where the PCV system is marginal and/or ineffective. This is especially true in forced induction engines (supercharged or turbocharged), and even more so where those engines are modified to increase the boost, resulting in higher crankcase pressures than the OEM design. While they do help in evacuating oil vapor and thus, preventing it from condensing in the intake tract/manifold, they also remove water vapor that is prevalent in the crankcase prior to the engine being fully warmed up. This is a good thing, except that in cold climates/temperatures the condensed water can freeze up, ultimately rendering the Catch Can AND potentially the existing PCV system completely ineffective! Should this occur, it will result in much higher crankcase pressures, which can and will compromise seals/gaskets causing leaks, as well as other issues! As such, they are generally NOT recommended in cold climates unless it is removed in the winter, or diligently maintained and regularly drained.

That said, Catch Cans can be 'really' worthwhile, and have minimal downsides in dry arid climates where it is warm year round. Assuming no design flaws though, a properly maintained stock PCV syslem is very likely all that's needed on the VAST majority of vehicles. OEMs go through great pains to develop reliable and efficient engines/systems, especially considering EPA mandated mileage/pollution standards and the components/systems designed to achieve those standards. The PCV system is one such system and it's usually a good/safe bet to to stick with the OEM design. As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!

While a Catch Can might be beneficial and a 'no brainer' in the Southwest US, in PA the upsides are probably not worth the headache(s).

Only time I've heard of people installing them is for motors that see a lot of sustained high RPMs such as cars that are tracked. But then they never said if they thought it was necessary.

But I'm also in the camp of it's a waste of money just to put one on because "it couldn't hurt." That's like changing your synthetic oil every 2,000 miles because "oil is cheap but engines are expensive."

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
Do you NEED it, No.
Are they beneficial I believe so.
The less oil you can keep from going back through the system the better.
They are inexpensive and a breeze to install.
J&L (formerly JLT) is who you want to go with.
https://www.jlosc.com/JL-3-0-o...rt-3-5l-ecoboost-v6/

Lots of extra oil going through these systems compared to years past.

Make sure you are changing your PCV and plugs at 50k

The benefit to the JLT one is that it uses factory connectors. Takes five minutes to install, or uninstall if you're paranoid about the dealership turning down a claim that may be of real value to you.

Do you need one? no.
I think all DI engines can benefit from one, there is no fuel in the air intake to clean the carbon off the intake side of the valves and they carbon up from the crankcase gasses full of oil being fed back through the intake.

What Black92 said. Can you get by without one, of course. If I'm not mistaken the 2019 3.5 eb is direct injection and due to that I think keeping as much oil out the air stream (to then build up on the valve and stem) is important. DI means no more fuel spray coming in from the intake manifold to "help" keep the valve clean.

I put the Ford Performance version on my Mustang. Done for performance reasons to keep the "oil" out of and from coating the intake manifold (as much as possible). On this engine I have a low mile oil change cycle and I was surprised at the oil collected (appx 1/8 can full). In this case I was happy to keep that oil out of my intake and combustion chamber.

I put the JLT on my 5.0 F150 (passenger side only)

My son put the JLT on his 3.5 Ecoboost F-150 (passenger side only)

Generally the passenger side collects more than the drivers side (on Fords)

The F150's get an oil change 3-4K miles, that is when the can is emptied. There is a marked difference in the amount of oil the 3.5 eb collects vs. the 5.0 on the F150's. I 'd say the 3.5 fills more than half the catch can.

Ford Performance makes an OEM version for engines that come in the Mustang (sorry no 3.5)
Here is their info on it.(no warranty issue here...hmmm)


And some on the JLT and the whole blow-by in general - and related to boosted engines.


As to why these don't come stock, no doubt another cost item for the factory - and the average car owner has no clue what they are or do. Thus they have become another aftermarket item enthusiasts put on their cars just like the many firearm accessories we all put on that may not be "needed" for the gun to operate.

Might be good for my Supercharged 5.4 F150, have to read up and look into adding one... Since it's 20 years old, no warranty issues LOL

I'd like to see a controlled test, particularly on DI engines that go up to a minimum of 100k miles and then a tear down to see if there is any significant difference in carbon build up between engines with a can and those without. I'm not aware of anything like this being done so far.

I would not bother with it. 2017 and later 3.5 ecoboost engines use a dual injection system. Direct and port fuel injection system. Two injectors per cylinder one mounted in the intake port where air enters the cylinder and one positioned inside the cylinder. The intake port injection improves the intake valve garbage build a up issue a bunch over a older style DI only engine.

Are you takling about installing it on your vehicle, or on your garage floor?

Thank you all for the replies. My biggest fear was that it would invalidate the warranty; but it sounds as if I don't really need it.