Today I tried to clean the oil trap under the PCV valve. I thought this might be the cause of my persistant oil leak. I removed the main air duct and the valve/hoses. They seemed fine. I found the two bolts that hold the box to the block, boy were these hard to reach. I remember reading somewhere to make sure the hose at the bottom of the box comes off so I doesn't come out of it's clip in the oil pan. It looks like there's no hose on my box though, but a long plastic pipe. This made sense to me: a stiff pipe wouldn't have to be clamped inside the block. But the pipe is so long that I could not remove the box as the intake manifold interfered.

Is there a way to remove the oil seperator box without removing the intake manifold? Is there a way to clean the oil spererator box without removing it from the block? What's the best way to clean these parts once they're off the car?

Thanks in advance,
Aubrey