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Looking to get a cleaner intake out of Sgt. Rocker, we turned to a simple modification that would help us achieve what we were looking for. We went with a small body Moroso air-oil separator (PN 710-85671) for the 2013 Jeep JK.
Moroso has a line-up of air-oil separators for a wide range of vehicles, all including a vehicle specific mounting bracket. This makes the installation a breeze, and something that can be done in only a couple hours.
From the factory, vehicles vent excess crankcase vapors, residual oil mist, and moisture right back into the intake manifold, which can cause several problems. Some issues that can be encountered are detonation, oil deposits in the intake tract (including the valves themselves), and decreased intercooler efficiency.
The air-oil separator is plumbed into the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) system to capture these harmful gases, residual oil mist and moisture, from reentering the intake tract. Having a separator installed helps increase engine performance by providing cleaner intake air.
If you have ever taken off a throttle body and found it caked with oil residue, have suffered from decreased throttle response, and a decrease in performance, an air-oil separator could help get your vehicle running right again in no time. It is important to note that some PCV systems do require the use of two air-oil separator bodies to correctly capture and ventilate the system. Sgt. Rocker only required the use of one.
The install of the Moroso air-oil separator is pretty straightforward and comes with instructions so there is no guessing involved on what it will take to complete the installation. For the visual installer, there are plenty of pictures to refer to.
Removing the intake cover, it is possible to see where the air-oil separator will go.
The installation started by removing the intake cover to locate the PCV line. Once located, it is possible to connect into the line with the supplied hose.
Connecting the longer hose to the existing PCV line allows the hose to reach the location for the air-oil separator. An additional hose was run from the throttle body to the location around the engine control unit (ECU) where the vehicle-specific separator mount will find its final resting place.
The bracket supplied in Moroso’s kits allows for easy installation. Moroso’s stainless steel mounting bracket solves all the issues of having to find a specific area and making sure the separator is mounted securely.
Vehicle specific mounting brackets make installation easy.
The kit includes a billet clamp to securely hold the canister in place on the mount. With everything else plumbed and ready to go it is time to get the heart of the product up and running. The air-oil separator is assembled with the fittings, facing in opposite directions.
Hold off the urge to connect the hoses before securing the air-oil separator.
Do not jump ahead and connect the hoses to the separator, as you want it completely mounted and secured in the clamp before attaching the hose. With the separator installed, you can run the hose and cut it to length. This is done for both hoses that were run earlier in the installation.
With the separator secured and the hoses cut to length, all that is left to complete is reinstalling the intake cover to make the engine look complete again.
Having the air-oil separator installed does not mean that it will never be touched again. The separator does need to be drained, and how often will depend on driving conditions. Thor Schroeder of Moroso stated, “Besides protecting the engine in any driving situation, an air-oil separator is especially beneficial in situation where the engine is working harder.”
All of the hoses are cut to length and we are ready to reinstall the intake cover to complete the installation.
Until it is known how often the separator needs to be drained for normal day-to-day driving, check every 1,000 miles until a baseline is established. A good baseline is to drain the air-oil separator when it is about half full. This will vary with temperatures-cold winters versus hot summers. Usage of the air-oil separator in track or racing conditions requires draining after every outing.
The installation of the Moroso air-oil separator can easily be done in the garage for the DIY auto enthusiast. Not requiring any special tools makes the installation something that does not take a lot of mechanical skill, but yields a great benefit for an off-roader.
