FOCUS ST & RS OIL BREATHER KITS
The direct injection systems in the EcoBoost range of engines can cause oily deposits to clog the valves and intake. Thankfully, Radium and SCC Performance are on the case with a comprehensive breather and catch can upgrade…
Tt’s no secret the current Focus ST and RS EcoBoost engines can get a bit carbon’d up since the intake ports are dry; meaning there’s no fuel rushing past the backs of the valves to wash off any unwanted deposits. In turn, this means the backs of the valves can accumulate a bit of filth, decreasing performance potential and engine efficiency, and worse still, requiring the cylinder head to be removed to properly rectify the problem. Thankfully, you can reduce this effect significantly by fitting a much better engine breather system – one that incorporates a catch can so that the oily rubbish simply doesn’t re-enter the engine. SCC Performance are firm believers in the system we’re fitting as a replacement; showing us how to fit two kits from USbased specialists Radium Engineering – one for the crankcase, the other as a rocker cover breather. These are exceptionally well engineered, and the quality is seriously impressive. What’s more, they fit use existing fixings and simply bolt-in, and can be purchased individually or as a complete kit (with or without an uprated engine breather plate).
There’s a fair bit of dismantling to do to actually get to the bits you need to replace, but it’s all pretty simple stuff if you have the correct tools for the job. We have to stress here that we are fitting the full works – you don’t have to fit the lot. There are stages where, for example, the side plate that holds the PCV valve is replaced with a Radium plate and their PCV valve, designed for tuned engines running higher boost. The alternative is to retain the original plate and the factory PCV valve, saving costs for those that aren’t going to subject their RS to hard/ track use or run increased boost pressures.
We followed along as SCC’s Pat fitted the Radium crank case kit first, followed by the rocker cover breather. Both are incredibly comprehensive and really well designed – each catch can provides a built-in dipstick so you can tell when it’s full, coupled with a drain on the base of the unit. It looks high tech and it’s certainly trick – let’s get on with fitting it all…