may have been something to do with the level of attitude
I always use Top Tier fuel and found that the water level in the fuel seemed worse in the winter months (in my Mustang). I had to empty it once every couple of weeks. In the summer it was only once a month. In the one year, I had it installed on my BS, I only emptied it a few of times and the container had very little fluid in it.
The presenter paints with a broad brush here, and a couple of things he said are not entirely accurate. For example, he strongly implies that manufacturers are switching to port + direct injection "primarily" to prevent valve contamination. That's not true. There are pros and cons for both fuel injection methods, and using them together allows engine designers to get the best of both worlds. Yes, adding port injection to a direct injection system can minimize valve deposits, but that's not the PRIMARY reason for doing so. You can read more in this article from Car & Driver.
To me, the proof (or lack thereof) is in the pudding. If Ford's EcoBoost engines had a widespread problem with valve deposits we would have heard about it by now. The full-sized Bronco is only in its second year of production and there is already an NTSB investigation of its 2.7L engine due to a limited number of engine failures. As it is, the overwhelming majority of hits when you search Google for "ecoboost valve contamination deposits" are forum posts about people installing catch cans to prevent valve deposits and finding "bad stuff" when they empty said can. What you won't find is a lot of owners who've actually experienced valve deposits. If your EcoBoost engine is experiencing valve deposits bad enough to effect driveability there is likely a malfunction (bad EGR or PCV system components) causing it. The "fix" isn't a catch can, it's to repair whatever is causing the issue.
good read until the catch-can synopsis fell apart at the end
I think that one of Mark S’s points is that this engine is essentially 10+ years old. Yes, there have been changes during that time, but the 2L EcoBoost with Direct Injection has been around for a long time. Meaning there are a lot of these engines around with lots of miles on each one. There just isn’t any evidence of valve contamination. If it was going to happen, it would have by now.
I installed a UPR CC a few months ago. To date (3000k) it has accumulated a few drops of oil. All the points written by others here all have a common theme, that is it is really not needed. Ford already addressed the issue that the CC is intended for. There is however a good use for it. On a new engine there should be very little to no oil "blowing by" the piston(s). On older engines the blow by will increase as the piston rings start to wear. On a well maintained 1.5 this blow by will be negligible but if there is premature wear for some reason the CC will give you a visual on the blow by with the increase of oil in the can. Of course so will the dipstick. Other than the cool factor the CC is more window dressing on the 1.5. The UPR CC is definitely a quality accessory and looks good but $200 will buy you more useful accessories.
Good point. The only other reason I can think of is if you are running software meant to boost power (a "tune") then a catch can might be useful. The higher the power output the more critical becomes fuel octane. If you increase boost enough you will also increase contaminants in the crankcase vapors, which can significantly effect mixture octane when they are pumped back into the intake tract. A catch can will help limit contaminants and keep the mixture octane more stable.
Last time I bought a bottle of STP Dry Gas it was $2.49. I do that twice during the winter.
Good point. The only other reason I can think of is if you are running software meant to boost power (a "tune") then a catch can might be useful. The higher the power output the more critical becomes fuel octane. If you increase boost enough you will also increase contaminants in the crankcase vapors, which can significantly effect mixture octane when they are pumped back into the intake tract. A catch can will help limit contaminants and keep the mixture octane more stable.
Why on earth would anyone have a breather and a catch can?too soon to re-introduce the breather debate?
related but independent of each other
This breather must be working much differently than what used to be common in engines up through the 70's.
