Thaddeus

I did a search and did not find anything on point.

My parking pad at home has a slight (5 degree) incline, so the car sat all night nose-down. Then I drive it down the alley, nose-down, and down the hill, nose down.

This morning (my first morning with the car! ) I started the engine, I noticed the following:

The oil pressure came up fine.
The oil temp was cold.
The oil LEVEL was down there, almost touching the red zone.

When I started driving on the level, it came right up. I checked the oil (thumbing through the manual in the Holiday station is fun) and eventually decided to add 1/2 a quart of oil. The car is parked on the level now, I will start it up in a few hours after the oil is cold again to get controlled test conditions.

Is this normal behavior for these cars, or do I have a problem?

Thanks....

Father of 3

Welcome to the oil cooled world. To test the oil level in your car you must do the following:

1) test the oil level only when the car and oil is good and warm
2) test the oil level on a flat, level surface
3) test the oil only using the dipstick
4) curse a lot and redo 3) above when you are not sure what the level the oil is or should be on the dipstick (I look for the oil to be around half way up the twistie part of the dipstick but I'm sure you will get lots of responses to this post).

These cars, being oil cooled, are unusual. Most here do not trust the oil level indicateor on the dash but use the dip stick exclusively. Good luck!

Flying Finn

These are the correct answers but just to clear something:
To know your engine is "warm", you need to wait until the oil temp. gauge has raised about ~ 9 o'clock level and then after the gauge has dropped down to about 8 o'clock (oil thermostat has opened), then you should measure the level. Best thing to do this is to drive 15-30 min. and then park and wait (engine running!) for about 30 sec-1 min. and measure.

I hope it's not but my guess is your level might be a tad high (based on your dercribtion) but let us know after you have measured it properly.

And Welcome Thaddeus!

95 C4 993

From what I have learned and read, dont pay attention to the guages in the car. I just went through a check this weeekend and this what I do.

1. Drive it around for a 1/2 hour, taking it sideways around at least 1 corner. A C4 is fun like that.
2. Park on a level surface and let idle for a few minutes.
3. Check the oil with engine running.
4. Double and triple check the dipstick.

Im usually sitting somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 on the dipstick. At the level, it registers the guage in the car about 1/4 to 1/3, sometimes it bounces up to just under 1/2. As far as the guage in the car, dont trust it . Generally speaking, it should register some level but its not an accurate and when I first bought my C4, I was always wondering if i had oil.

Thats my 2 cents.

InTheAir

Thaddeus -

The manual states that the oil level gauge is NOT reliable when cold AND when driving. You can only (kind of) use it when the car is fully warmed up, on a level surface, after idling for 30 seconds to a minute.

ALSO, be careful adding oil. Make sure you use the dip stick (again, after warmed up, level, and idling) to find the level. Overfilling ain't good on our cars.

DaveM993

The oil level gauge is only worth even looking at when the engine is completely warm and you are idling on a level surface....otherwise ignore it. As mentioned above, if it is registering a level when you are driving and the engine is revved up somewhat...you may have too much...it should be in the red when you are driving.

Thaddeus

The oil level guage should be in the red when driving? Really?

DaveM993

yup...otherwise you have too much oil. Some even believe if it comes up too quickly or goes above the 9 o'clock when you come to a stop...you may have too much...

Flying Finn

Yes, of course!

Thaddeus

Geez... somebody ought to tell VDO & Porsche that red coloration on a guage is USUALLY considered a sign of an error condition...

sigh

Thanks for the heads up!

TRINITONY

Mine stays in Red...the only time it moves a tad is right after an oil change.

Sooner

It is.....when the car is up to opertaing temp & on level ground...

brucec59

I guess I am one of the few who does use the oil level guage, at least for a rough idea of what's going on. I glance at the guage when I'm at a long red light, or I will pull over and stop somewhere and wait for half a minute. When it no longer comes up off the red, I know it's about time to add another quart. This happens every 1400+ miles or so on my car. (I've only had the car for ~4000 miles, so I'm still learning, and I've been adding 1/2 qt at a time.) At this point I use the dipstick to confirm the level, but to be honest, I have a hard time reading it. When you pull it out to wipe, then stick it back in, then pull it out again, oil gets spread around inside the dipstick tube, and it runs up and down the dipstick itself, so I find it really hard to read the level.

BTW, I love telling my friends about the oil system in this car - 12 quarts (their jaw drops), 2 filters (it drops further), and 3 guages - not idoit lights, but actual guages - just for the oil (other people begin to pitch in to help pick jaw up off of floor).

swftiii

Thaddeus,

Welcome to the madness and enjoyment of these air cooled machines. Everyone here is right and yes Red should and does mean a problem, but when the gauge should be read is also an important part of measuring the oil in our cars.

Enjoy the new learnings...

-Skip

dhicks

HOWEVER....all these cars are slightly different.......get your car nice and hot....excuse for a drive...."honey need to check the oil level on the PORSHA.....I'll be gone about 30 mins to heat up the car....thats what the guys tell me I have to do"........THEN get on level ground and check your oil level on the dip stick in a strong light so you can see exactly where the level is....then keep adding 1/4 of a quart from a fresh bottle of oil until the level is just at or below the end of the spiral on the dip stick........go for another 5 minute drive, return, let her settle for a few minutes...check again......now watch your gauge over the next few days and get used to what is normal for a "full oil level".......take a fresh quart of oil, use a sharpy to write date and mileage on label....now every 500 miles check the level again and add oil to return to top of spiral when the level has dropped to say 1/2 way down spiral......mark level of oil on bottle date and miles.....keep doing until you use the full quart....you will now be used to the gauge function for your car vs the dipstick level and you will have your first indication of oil use in your car......i.e. how many miles to 1 quart....you should find that it is well about 1000 miles per quart and hoepfully over 1500. Incidentally when my car is "full" (top of spiral) my needle will rise to about 3/4 up the gauge on a hot day when I am sat at lights after a 30 minute drive.....but when the oil is 1/2 way up spiral the needle is dead as a dodo ..... I have got used to this and when the needle is stationary I know to check the oil level....you just get to know.....and from doing this I know my car uses about 1 quart every 1700 miles....hope that helps.....its stuff like this that makes these cars fun to won.....oh and by the way in case you have not found it yet.....go to www.p-car.com....wealth of DIY there......ok so when do we start this guy on the slippery slope!!!!! Congrats on joining the club