dryadsdad

Hi People,

We knew our 993 would be unused for a protracted period of time this winter due to my needing surgery which would put my left leg (clutch leg) out of commission for a bit. I didn't think I needed to do anything special other than putting it on a battery tender so other than that, performed no preparation.

After several weeks, the car developed a very minor oil leak. The leak is rear right about where I figure the oil reservoir is. I doubt the total leaked amount is more than 50 cc - very minor.

My inclination is to, now that my leg is again working, just to take the car for a drive but I thought to ask the experts here if they think something is wrong enough that that's a bad idea. The car is a 95, regular Carrera cab with 40k miles on the clock. It does not use oil nor has it ever leaked before to my knowing.

I don't understand why standing for a protracted period would cause an oil leak which is why I"m a bit concerned. Thanks for any thoughts.

Quadcammer

drive it, leak will probably disappear.

e9stibi

And obviously keep an eye on the leak.

dryadsdad

Yeah, that's my instinct but I'm leery about doing the driving until I have some idea why a two and a half month non-use would cause a leak. My concern is that while driving, I have a catastrophic oil loss which at best would demand a tow home and which at worst would demand an engine rebuild.

IXLR8

Why not find out what exactly is leaking...then worry if you need to.

Check the oil thermostat.

LimeyBoy

Even with the car sat doing nothing, all the components are going through temperature changes daily (+ humidity changes?) and this will cause minute shifts in size and shape of metal and rubber. Even though undetectable to the naked eye - it is still happening and leaks can open up. It may well be that if you had driven for those 2.5 months the oil leak would still have appeared or maybe the position is such that with driving, oil lubricates that spot and slows down drying/degradation of seals etc. Perhaps the leak was there before you put the car away and it took time to work its way to a visible position. I would go with Alex, have a looksee - if everything has always been oil leak free to date - the new leak should be easy to spot.

dryadsdad

IXLR8 - I'll see if I can find that to check. I can't get under the car. It's too low and I have no way to raise it up.

LimeyBoy - you probably have the right of it. I'll give it a try. I posted wondering if this was a regular thing noticed by others.

Jeff96-993

All my leaks have all happened during winter storage... never had one start during the summer driving season. And when I first started seeing the drip, I'd check on location, and if it was the usual culprits, then not worry about it until the replacement parts arrived.

Usually the leak would slow down with use, but once started, it still leaked some. Fix it when you can, and enjoy it until then.

Cardboard is your friend until you have time to get in there.

dryadsdad

Yeah, thanks. I have clay under the car - a souvenir from when someone stowed a Jaguar in my garage for a bit. Never thought I'd use it for a Porsche, though.

I had a Benz master mechanic who told me that winter is very hard on unused cars. I remember that now. Well, nothing to do but enjoy the car and then fix when I can.