Hey Bruce, I just did my first home oil change on my '09 and used the opportunity to switch from Mobil1 to Motul 5w40 (i live in NC and have 84k miles on the car].

I haven't had excessive oil consumption with Mobil1, but I'll let you know if the normal pattern of my car's consumption changes at all now that I'm running the Motul.

 

Noob question, because 0W is thinner it warms up quicker in the winter? Do people switch to 5W in Spring and then go back to 0W in Winter?

I’m terrified of bore scoring and I’m thinking about switching to 0W when it gets colder here. Probably not necessary but worth it for peace of mind???

 

For those of use that are worried about potential bore scoring, would the 300v be a better product vs the 8100 X-cess (which is what I have been using on my 997.1 C2S). Can the 2 be mixed? I know the 300v appears to be more expensive, but the cost might be worth it.

 

In my wife's macan I run 0w40 all year. I have switched to 5w40 in the summer. The Porsche manual says below -13F you need Ow. I don't know if I've ever seen it that cold in NE Ohio.

 

Serious Question - why would fully synthetic oil require changing annually, when it may only have 2,000mi on it? Seems illogical to me.

 

Thanx Eric.....

So, from the Holy Bible of Germany..... AKA the Owner's Manual..... for my 2009.

For those worried that 5W is too heavy for winter..... note Porsche recommends 5W for temps ONLY ABOVE -13F. Read that carefully... that is a NEGATIVE 13F.

Mr Motul: What is the lowest ambient temp Motul recommends for its 8100 5W oils (X-Clean and X-Cess are Porsche approved A40)? Is Porsches lowest temp, -13F a Porsche number or some standard "5W" number?

Peace
Bruce in Philly

 

I don’t know about you guys, but FWIW, I used Mobil 1 0W-40 for 17 yrs in my 01 Boxster before I sold it for the 997, and only changed the oil every 15k miles or 2 years (whichever came first), which was the factory recommendation at the time until they changed that to 12k miles or 2 years and then down to 10k per factory recommendation. The 01 M96 engine had probably the most chance of IMS failure as they had the smallest IMS bearing from 00-05 I believe, but I never had any IMS failure. Car still running like a top at 73k miles when I sold it to a friend who is still enjoying the car today.

I’m gonna probably switch to Motul 8100 X-Cess 5W-40 on my next oil change just to see if my oil usage goes down a bit, and do it once a year anyway, but in general I think as long as you have a good synthetic in there, you should be fine.

 

Good info! I have a bit of a different story (of course!) and why I am considering a 5W. My 2000 Boxster S blew two engines in 197K chassis miles.... I am not blaming the oil.... But both engines seeped oil from everywhere. The joke at the time on the Porsche forums was that it was just "marking its territory". ha ha... not funny. Anyway, I got 150K miles out of the second engine, and about midway through its life I asked my Indy (ex-Porsche dealer shop foreman) to use a "heavier oil" than 0W. He did but I just don't remember what it was. The oil drips stopped. Just stopped. I also believe (careful choice with "believe") that as an engine ages, heavier oil is better due to wear inside. Anywho... while I don't have drips from my 2009C2S, I do have over 144K miles and considering a heavier oil. I can never find Mobil 1 5W in value sizes in other than single quart packaging. BTW, I will only consider an alternative that is A40 Porsche spec approved. Anyway, I have personal experience that moving to a heavier oil did something real and tangible.

Full disclosure: I have no idea if what I am about to do, move to Motul X-Cess 5W A40 will be better for my car. No idea at all.... but it is A40, about the same price over the 'net.... and if it saves on oil consumption (which I will monitor very closely), then it at a minimum, it is a wash. I will "feel good" thinking that I just may have done something to extend the life and performance of my higher-mileage car. I have no stake in these religious oil wars... as long as it is A40, I see it as a wash.

Peace
Bruce in Philly

 

My 997.1 S is not seeping any oil and only has 29K miles on her, so maybe I should wait to make the switch to 5W Oil. Lol.

 

If I don't put 15w in my land cruiser it leaks. Ha. My turbos have been leak proof with 0w.

I've been thinking about looking for something different on my 1990 964 because it does leak. Nothing I would say beyond normal for that engine, but i do need to figure out what oil it would prefer. I've just had it a few months. Any suggestions would be great

( I live in the south where we will never see -13)

 

Hey Bruce, I would be really interested in how the Motul changes the consumption. My 09 C4S uses about a quart per 1500 with 5W Total. My indy also has the Motul. The car burns noticeably less using 5W. I was only getting 1K to 1.2K per quart when running Mobil 1 0W-40 so the Total is an improvement. My perception is that the car sounds better too. I remember you posted you get about 800 miles per quart so your car would be a good test.

 

Typically going from a 0w to 5w will increase the HTHS viscosity of the oil by up to 10% which usually correlates to a reduction in oil consumption.

When we were helping Driven with developing DT40 years ago, we noticed winter fuels usually increased oil consumption and also if we increased the ester content of the oil, that too would increase oil consumption, so there are lots of variables to consider.

 

What I have found in my 997.2, which is nearing 100k miles on the clock, is that with 0W-40 oil the Blackstone oil analysis was starting to come back with more fuel in the oil than I would like, around 1% I think. I researched and it has been found that direct injection fuel injectors start to leak a bit as they age which dilutes the oil with gasoline, which is a poor lubricant. This is when I switched over to Motul 5W-40 awhile back. That way even if it does leak a little bit more gas into the oil it will still have above a weight above zero which is the lowest Winter spec of the multi-grade oil. Maybe more like a 3 weight etc., but who knows exactly. I do my oil changes every 5000 miles which equates to about every 4 months as it is my daily driver in freaking hot Texas even in October. It never burns oil. I lose 1 bar below the full mark by the time 5000 miles hits.

 

Still looking for feedback on whether I should switch to 0W in winter. I'm leaning toward yes. The 5W takes a while to warm up to 200 degrees and that's when it's 97 degrees outside lol. Since I plan to drive in winter a few times a week, I think 0W would be a good choice just so the oil will warm up a little faster. Unfortunately, I need to take the car on short trips from time to time and I just don't think the 5W will warm up on a short trip when it's 40 degrees outside

 

5w is good to -20F cold starts.

I'd be more concerned if you do drive the car in the winter that if you do short drives, that you follow a shorter service interval. It is very important that you get the oil to 215F to get the moisture out of it.