[cam_e_ron]

Well, here I go... For as long as I remember(bought It used)my car has always had a bit of a hiccup/stutter, but it's more pronounced when cold/warming up. But funnily enough, it's not noticeable when driving under load. It's just a persistent little random miss that makes my idle sound like crap and annoys the heck out of me. So I finally got around to checking scan data and cyl 1 is showing 60-70 misfires in the few minutes it takes to get to operating temp, then the count slows down to only a few, and the idle smooths out to where the miss is still there but to a much less extent.
So I pulled the cyl 1 plug to compare and it was slightly darker, somewhat black compared to the tan color of the other plugs(but not fouled or wet). So...What does this make me think? Since the port for the dirty side of the PCV is located directly on top of the cyl 1 intake, I wonder if there is excessive carbon buildup on the intake valves for cyl 1 that is causing it to run(very slightly)rich.
So I ordered new plugs(was almost due anyways) and an inspection camera, and am going to try and take a look at the valves. If they are bad, I'm probably going to walnut blast them, and since I've put 70+k without a catch can, I am going to assume they won't look very good. Or maybe this is all for nothing, but oh well, ill at least document it on here for the next guy, plus I couldn't find any pictures of high milage, bone stock valves, so that will be interesting to see at the very least.

 

[Shawnski]

I’ve had a Wynn valve and fuel system cleaning done by my dealership twice. In both instances it made a noticeable difference in performance, idle quality, and fuel economy. I changed the plugs the first time but not the second time, so it verified in my mind that it had a positive effect. I’d recommend it as one of those things that costs a little time and money, might not be fully quantifiable, but brings a little peace of mind.

 

[maydk65]

IMO you are on the right track. Dirty Valves.
Not sure this will apply to your issue, but check out this Service Bulletin.

 

[cam_e_ron]

IMO you are on the right track. Dirty Valves.
Not sure this will apply to your issue, but check out this Service Bulletin.

Yea, based on how common this is on DI ecoboosts, it seems very likely. Since I already have the stuff to walnut blast from doing other cars, that's probably what ill end up doing. Luckily since our intake manifolds are easily accessible, its hopefully going to be a pretty easy job, just need to get replacement gaskets as a precaution.

 

[cam_e_ron]

Well there we go, that's pretty nasty. Some have a very large glob built up at the base of the stem. Looks like I'm going to be doing some cleaning, luckily the manifold is very easily accessible.

 

[maydk65]

Good to know.

 

[cam_e_ron]

Well I finally got around to cleaning them up, and wow they sure look nice. Its really disappointing how much oil builds up in my intake, I'm starting to wonder if my turbos are leaking a bit of oil, but oh well.

At the very least, it's a very straightforward process, although very messy lol.

 

[metroplex]

I know there's some oil that comes from my turbos because the intercooler weep hole leaks out some oil each time I drive.

 

[OX1]

What method did you use to clean them?

 

[Oreo]

What method did you use to clean them?

Most guys do a walnut media blast to clean thing up.

This is normal for DI cars since all the fuel is injected into the cylinder and not behind the intake valve so no washing or cooling of the valve occurs. The PCV system is the biggest culprit in this issue. Use of a quality dual valve catch can and a quality full synthetic oil will help limit the issue.

Was your throttle body oily?

 

[cam_e_ron]

Most guys do a walnut media blast to clean thing up.

This is normal for DI cars since all the fuel is injected into the cylinder and not behind the intake valve so no washing or cooling of the valve occurs. The PCV system is the biggest culprit in this issue. Use of a quality dual valve catch can and a quality full synthetic oil will help limit the issue.

Was your throttle body oily?

Yea it was, and the charge pipe out of the cold side has some residue in it as well, I'm guessing with 80k miles I'm starting to leak a bit of oil through the turbos.

 

[metroplex]

My Fusion with 18k miles has the oil in the cold side and TB. This isn’t from the PCV. My dads Fusion Sport is completely dry. So no idea why this is. My SHO had oil as well. I think the weep hole helps more evacuate any gunk that would build up in the intercooler or come from the turbos which would be oil and not volatile vapors like the PCV

As for the PCV, Ford designed the PCV tube so short so that none of the oil condenses and just gets sucked through and burned up. The flow rate of the PCV was designed specifically to help keep the valves cleaner. Original EcoBoost trucks had black PCV valves which didn’t evacuate the system as fast as brown. Ford intended the trucks to be used as trucks but apparently most owners drove them like cars and they started using the brown valves to evacuate the system faster under normal driving conditions.

GM has a very different system. My friends Malibu with the GTDI LTG engine has 105k miles and no catch can. She doesn’t have any misfires or boost issues. The actual PCV is inside the intake manifold very much like my LNF.