What is this?

Soo.. On my 88 XJ today i installed my new battery and noticed that one of the lines leading into the engine had come un-done. Tried putting it back together but no luck then i looked into the hole and what was there was suprising there looked to be little metal shards just chillen there so i took some needle nose plyers and had myself a look!
Here is what the line im talking about i think its a vacum line, not sure but it ran into my airbox and it has been disconnected for a couple months or so.



i have a RENIX so the my engine looks a little different. So i pulled like 3inches of coiled up metal shards and found out that it was the tip of the iceburg. There was more way more probably a good fist sized of this thing pulled it out and looked at it, my first thaught was maybe like valve, or piston shards I dont know this is what it looked like.



Please if anyone know what it is, where its from, or what i should do with it please do tell.

robot pubes? sorry man... couldn't help it. I can't imagine wtf that is unless it's from the inside of a hose that deteriorated.:dunno:

wow, that can't be good...

on the bright side, you have an amazingly clean engine!

I agree that doesn't look good. That hose from the airbox to the valve cover is a crankcase vent tube...so any fumes from the vavle cover get cycled into the airbox. Although your engine compartment looks a little dif than my 89. Maybe because yours is converted to the open cooling system (you have a real radiator cap and normal overflow tank I see). The valve train in below that tube where it connect to the valve cover. I would pull the valve cover off and be prepared for what else you find. Does the engine rattle or knock or do you have any detectable valve float? I'll cross my fingers for you man.
Baja Curt

XbajajeepX said:

wow, that can't be good...

on the bright side, you have an amazingly clean engine!

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x2 i find the dirty ones run better! :gee:

BajaCurt said:

I would pull the valve cover off and be prepared for what else you find. Does the engine rattle or knock or do you have any detectable valve float? I'll cross my fingers for you man.
Baja Curt

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X2. Do what he said. That does not look too good.

Looks like someone stuck some steel wool in the valve cover? Maybe to slow down blow by? Can't image that is something coming apart in the engine! Please let us know.

FordGuy said:

Looks like someone stuck some steel wool in the valve cover? Maybe to slow down blow by? Can't image that is something coming apart in the engine! Please let us know.

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That is exactly what I was thinking

Brendan_91XJ said:

That is exactly what I was thinking

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Hey Brendon....why don't you go engineer a way to know where it came from? haha

Damn youngin's.........its kinda' common.
Its used to prevent oil from building up in breather.
Not a great idea, but its been around for a long time....

bassthumb said:

robot pubes?

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i agree. check your intake and other entry points for signs of illicit robo-love.

:confused1

bassthumb said:

robot pubes? sorry man... couldn't help it. I can't imagine wtf that is unless it's from the inside of a hose that deteriorated.:dunno:

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ROBOT PUBES! :roflmao:

mikedashg said:

ROBOT PUBES! :roflmao:

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from this point forth, all steel wool will now be know as ROBOT PUBES!

Like JumpThis said, it's put in there to trap the oil in the crankcase fumes and prevent it from going down the breather tube.

Many years ago, breather caps came stuffed with the "pubes". Remember them from my gas jockey days. JumpThis and jeeperjohn are correct.