Last November I was replacing the coil packs and spark plugs on my 2011 Rapide and the oil in the inlet manifolds and throttle bodies made it pretty clear that my PCV valves were past their best.

I decided to replace the PCV valves with these £15.98 metal ones from i6 Automotive (check it out here) in Sheffield, England.  But since it would take them a few weeks to get to me here in Adelaide, South Australia I set to thinking. On my diesel 4wd one of the first modifications you do is to fit a catch can into the PCV system.  Good ones are incredibly effective at removing the oil mist and preventing it being recycled through your engine.

After quite a lot of Googling, I came across this kit for the v8 vantage offered by Redpants.lol (check it out here), but couldn’t find anything suitable for the V12.  So with the PCV harness already in pieces to refit the valves I started fiddling… Continue reading “Installing an Oil Catch Can in a V12 Aston Martin Rapide or DB9” →

In previous articles I’ve described how engine oil can build up in your intake manifolds of your Aston Martin DB9 due to malfunctioning PCV valves (made by Ford of course) and how the PCV system is supposed to work.  In another article, I have covered what parts you would need to order to deal with this, and it included two (2) options; Option 1 is the lowest cost and just swaps the PCV valves themselves, and; Option 2 is my recommended option that swaps the Vacuum Harness Assembly, which happens to also contain the PCV valves.   This article will cover both options. Continue reading “How to Replace the PCV Valves in an Aston Martin DB9” →

I’ve already explained why you might need to change the Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) Valves in an Aston Martin DB9 in a previous article (usually because engine oil is showing up in your intake manifolds), and what parts you might need (check out this article).  In this article I will explain the process of how to remove the existing PCV Valves along with their harness assemblies. Continue reading “Removing the PCV Valve Assembly Harness from an Aston Martin DB9” →

If your DB9 needs it’s Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) Valves replaced due to oil buildup in the Intake Manifolds (see my full article on this) then you need to track down the right parts to get it serviced – and that’s what this article is all about.

My enthusiasm for the task led me into trouble (and I can save you from the same mistake if you read through this article).  I wasn’t sure what parts a dealer would normally replace to deal with the oil build up, so I asked the parts manager Rob Sims at HMV England whom I was dealing with.   He promptly sent me the parts diagram, and a list of bits he said they typically serviced.  What I failed to consider was ‘context’, the dealer may be rebuilding an engine and PCV system outside the car, and I was just a newbie trying to do this under the hood on a weekend. Continue reading “Parts Needed to Change the PCV Valves on an Aston Martin DB9” →

This is a weak spot in the DB9 engine.  If you’ve ever removed your throttle body and found a puddle of engine oil laying in the intake manifold chamber, the PCV system is to blame.   In this article I am going to give a short background of the ‘what’s going wrong’, and then in the next articles I will lay out which parts you need and how to replace them. Continue reading “The Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) System in an Aston Martin DB9 – and what Sucks about it!” →