Hey all, I'm looking for some advice as I'm new to Minis and car mechanics. My mini currently has a oil catcher connected to the rocker cover. I'd like to know why this is needed. I was thinking of removing it so I can fit in a washer bottle, but I'd like to make an informed decision.
Heres a pic:


There's also a pipe on the right side that goes from the rocker cover down to the sump somewhere. What's the purpose of this?

Thanks,
Tom

There needed for racing purposes, if you have a engine blow up or failure that results in the engine pumping oil out of the breathers, the catch tank catches the oil & saves it from being deposited all over the track.

Doogie

_________________
I won Hay once, here's the pic to prove it..


Hay, it's not about the car, it's not about the venue, it's about the people that come here. Peter Dwyer, Mayor of Hay NSW.

well that is a funny one - your engine has had quite a bit of fiddling in the breathing department

all engines need to have ventilation so that the air inside them can swirl around as all the metal bits go flying around at breakneck speeds, there's also a bit of combustion that will get past the rings and down into the engine as well, it needs to get out somehow. If there are no breathers, the engine pressurises and will start to leak oil out of every orifice it can find. From the factory, all minis had it plumbed into the intake, in one way or another. You've got a weber, so that has been removed. There does appear to be something going from the flywheel housing breather offtake to the inlet manifold, and a one-way valve

the tank is there to catch engine breathing vapor - but it looks like it's sealed, so no good....

the other hose going to the passenger side probably just goes down behind the engine, because you've got an 1100S engine, with no side covers, so there isn't anywhere for it to be connected to - this is bad because engines actually breathe in a bit, as well as breathing out. If that breather hose is near the road, then it'll be sucking in bits of dust & grit, which ain't no good. There is a chance that the passenger side hose is connected to the exhaust with a one way valve in a posivac setup, but I doubt it

If you remove that tank, it'll be no different, because it appears to sealed, so isn't doing anything anyway, but you will find that your car will stink when you're driving it around because the oil vapour is blowing into the cabin. Unless you block that side off, and just have that one going down the back of the motor, but we know that it's not a good idea having it go down there to suck dirt in

_________________
did I tell you that I won a trophy?

Thanks for the info simon. The tank is not actually sealed although it looks like it in the picture. The brass fitting on the top is loose.

I'll have to have a close look and see where the right hose goes.

I run a catch tank for track days, but for road uses I put a Cooper S PCV valve on the Weber manifold, so no oily smells in the cabin.
I have a 3/8" balance pipe with it, to avoid setting the idle mixture screws different to each other.
Doesn't seem to hurt power, it still made 86.6HP on the rollers at MRC with the PCV valve and pipe in place.

_________________
DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.