After the rain stopped I got the sump off.
I've put an allen key though the turbo oil return union hole.
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I don't know what I was hoping for, or expecting, but it's totally clear.
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So, with an original return pipe that fits well and no other obstructions the oil must be able to flow back in to the sump without hindrance.
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This is how much oil came out when I drained it, which is standard for every service.
The full line on the dipstick is quite a few inches below the oil return inlet hole, so there would have to be a hell of a lot of oil in the sump and bottom of the block before it began to hinder the return oil coming in.
I think this leaves me with either the turbo oil inlet pressure is too high or there is oil coming through the cyclone breather
I've done the catch can test several times and there's nothing coming out. However, what I've thinking is that when the vent pipe is in the catch can it's not got the fierce draw on it from the air intake. So, maybe there is an issue with the vac pump/servo
As the servo is new(ish) and the vac pump is the original I'm wondering if the vac pump has the issue in itself that causes it to keep pumping in to the block. Maybe this pressure is low enough to not push oil through the cyclone breather on it's own. But, maybe the bit of pressure from the vac pump combined with the draw from the turbo and engine is enough to draw oil through?
I can't remember if I've done the turbo outlet on to the wing test when the cyclone breather tube is disconnected? I'll have to go through my engine rebuild thread to see if I've mentioned doing that.
@jamesmartin I think I've got a vague recollection of you saying that the air being pulled through the air intake pipe doesn't create any suction on the cyclone breather pipe. Is that right? If so my proposed test will be a waste of time.
Sump took some getting off, I'd done a great job with the RTV when I put it on