Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Zetec Maintenance pcv replacement help

Hi all, didnt exactly find what im looking for in the search. But I was hopeing that someone could tell me what I need to buy besides the pcv valve itself to replace it. Hanes manual talks about replaceing the oil seperator, is that something that I should do. Also do I have to drain the antifreeze or something, it says something similar to that in the hanes manual, I think.
Thanks

AFAIK, stateside Zetecs use PCV valves. Some earlier Ford product models used oil separators instead of PCV valves. That maybe why the Hanes manual refers to an oil separator.....my $.02

I've only replaced the pcv valve. It is only a $2 part but it's a pita to get at to change out...

PCV valve goes into the oil separator, unless the separator is bad you don't need to replace it. Some people replace the PCV hoses as well but only do that if they're bad (cracked/brittle). The PCV valve is a PITA to get to. It took me and my dad (a mechanic) about 30 minutes with both of us working at it to get it out and back in. Mine was clogged so I'm glad we did change it.

Greetings,

I picked up a '95 Mystique GS with 61,000 miles a few days ago, and I'm giving the vehicle the usual going-over: oil/filter, plugs/wires, tranny fluid, fuel/air/breather filters. I got stumped when it came time to replace the PCV valve, so I did a search and came upon this thread.

Kremit mentioned the oil separator and that the PCV valve shouldn't be changed if the oil separator is still good. What is the function of the oil separator? and how would one tell if it went bad?

Where does the metal tube connecting the PCV valve hook into? I'm having trouble finding it in the underhood mess of hoses and tubes.

Not to sound like a geezer, but my '78 Ford V-8s are *WAY* easier to maintain than the Zetec! The PCV valve there hooks into the valve cover and flows into the carb spacer, both very easy to get to.

Any help is much appreciated!

Po

noooooooo, u change the pcv valve according to scheduled maintenance (your's could probably use it), I said don't change the oil separator unless it's bad (haven't heard of a case of them going bad). The pcv valve goes into the oil separator which is located above the catalytic convertor behing your exhaust manifold. It's a PITA to get to.

Thanks for the clarification! So now the question is: Are there are any tricks that you folks use to get the darn PCV valve out and a new one back in?

I was thinking of replacing both the short length of rubber hosing along with the valve, but there seems to be a flare in the steel tube that would make this approach difficult. Do you just use brute force to slide the rubber hose back, pull the old valve out, push the new one in, then slide the rubber hose back?

Your tips, tricks, and tools used would be appreciated!

Po

Brute force and small pry bars and two people is what it took for me and my dad.

Maybe you're just unlucky...
After removing the heat shield (which took a while) I could
very easily pull the pipe out together with the valve.
It was like new at 120k miles.

T.

Oh boy... from Kremit's and tiv's posts, it looks like a long job either way---just depends on if you want to be on your back underneath the car for 2 hours or hunched over the front of it for the same length of time.

When I get dirty and greasy with the car this weekend, I'll take a longer look at that tube leading to the PCV valve. What I'd like to do is to cut off a few inches from the distal end and buy a longer section of rubber hose. This way, I'd get rid of that flair in the tube and have a length of hose which can flex off the PCV valve in the future, hopefully making this part of routine maintenance less onerous.

Whadd'ya folks think? does this sound reasonable?

Po