uwmadisonmsme

I am looking at a 991 purchase and have always done most of the maintenance on my cars. Excellence buyers guide says that " a factory diagnostic computer is required for even minor maintenance such as changing the oil, flushing the cooling system or bleeding the brakes." What is the experience of owners who do there own maintenance? Why would you need a special computer to change oil or bleed brakes?

JW911

That is required only to reset the service reminder indicator on the dash. No different than a 997 and many other cars. Overall the basic maintenance is very DIY friendly. I read the same article and was taken aback at the incorrectness of that statement. The fact that you must remove the rear bumper to change the air filters must be clouding their overall perception. And apparently even that is relatively simple. I just changed my oil 2 days ago. Very simple and quick. I flushed my brake fluid last fall. Easy.

vodkag

oil change, no (besides resetting service light)

bleeding brakes....well is recommended that you also activate the ABS unit and you cant do that without something like a durametric

worf928

FWIW, Workshop Manual procedure does not require the PIWIS laptop for brake or clutch flush.

It is needed per WSM if the ABS unit is replaced.

arter

you can bleed the brakes or change brake pads without any electronic devices... there are several DIY threads on this forum.

resetting the service light is the only pain. You can buy a$100 device to do that

CSK 911 C4S

Welcome and great to see another 991'er interested in DIY'ing.

Which car are you buying? 991.1 or 991.2

Guards_Red_991

Working on my 991 is easier than working on my BMW X3 or wife's Merc ML350.

I've repaired many things, easiest car I've worked on.

991.1GTS

DIY on these cars is not a big deal. I bought an iCarSoft POR v2.0 on Amazon for $130 that allows me to reset lights / reminders.

luv2sleep

I’m a DIYer mainly because I’m OCD with my cars. As my old man used to say, “you gotta DIY if you want it done right”. I’ve done routine maintenance on various MBs and Audis most of my adulthood and the 991 is really no different. Oil changes, brake fluid flush, brake pad & rotor replacement, etc. are all trivial on the 911. If you’re ever lost, just YouTube it! I’m long away from changing out the spark plugs (991.2) but I’m sure someone will put out a step by step “how-to” soon. Don’t let the stealership intimidate you. Remember, it’s just another man made machine at the end of the day, albeit special to each owner.

CLeagones

Well said...I bought my 991.c4s in December and have done the oil change, full filter changes, full brake job, steering wheel swap to .2, and just put on the Soul exhaust in the comfort of my own garage. So you can just imagine the amount of money I have saved so far by DIY...this car is really easy to work and there are a lot of videos, people, and threads to help ya out...I have an highly tuned Audi 7 series also and its the same DIY'er as well..

Greg D.

Maintenance on this car is *surprisingly* easy. It can be intimidating and a lot was made of having to drop the bumper to replace air filters, which is a funny tag line, but the reality is a bumper drop is a 10-15 min job and everything is easy after that.

I have 2 left thumbs and I do oil changes + filter, brakes, belts, the occasional vacuum line or vacuum valves (COV), fan motor, grommets, air filter, TB cleaning, etc... In car the AC filters take seconds... You can also fairly easily do plugs and coil packs. I haven't done shocks or exhaust on it yet but I did on a 996 and I imagine it's similarly doable... I've used a $200 computer to reset oil change interval and that's it.

As the owner of a 1972 911, the good old days are overrated. Adjusting valves on an old 911 sucks, adjusting the MFI pump sucks more, even an oil change on an oldie is more of a pain (9 qts old oil come out of the tank in 1.2 seconds). Hell, greasing king pins on my ex-356 every 1500 miles sucked too... Jump in. It's all good... The only annoying thing to me is having to wait for a reading on the oil level on refill but we got ideas on that on many maintenance threads.

uwmadisonmsme

Thanks for the response to my question. I don't think I'll have any problem with maintenance based on all your input. I have maintained all my cars for years and still have a 2003 Boxster S that has never seen a dealership so I'm used to Porsche mechanicals. The tutorials submitted by forum readers have always been very helpful especially since manuals are not always readily available now days. . Thanks again for your help.

MikeL31

i maintain mine myself as well. along time ago this was the only cheap option available. i bought a launch x431 cresetter II on ebay for $75-80 to reset the lights on my 958 cayenne, it also works on the 991 after i updated the software via online. looks like the price raised slightly.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-La...8AAOSwhTBbC7QA

OliverK68

I performed my first oil change on my 991.2 a couple of weeks ago. Straightforward. I purchased an Autel MX808 to clear the reminders. More expensive than a Porsche-specific device, but I wanted one that can do more and with other vehicle makes and models. YMMV

The only PITA was refilling the oil to correct level. There is no dipstick, so the car has to be up to temp to get a reading. I suppose its ability to provide an oil reading on demand is where the PIWIS would have a small advantage.

luv2sleep

I put the same amount that I took out. A small bit of PITA but better than guessing. After a drive, I had to add about 1/3 quart. Easy peasy.