grifier

I'm the proud owner of a 2005 with sports chrono pack w 40k mls. Ive put a little over 2k mls on in about 3 months but have had to add almost 2 quarts in that time. Is this normal? I drive the car hard sometimes and its my daily driver but the oil consumption seems a bit much. I dont notice any leaks or spots in the garage. It is certified so I do have a warranty.

Fin Fever

these cars are designed this way. There have been alot of discussions on this board about it. Most people understand and accept that it is just a unique quality about these cars that you add a little mobil 1 every now and again. you will see that there are a few irate postings by some who feel that an expensive car like this should not burn any oil. I even remember one guy who turned his car back in because of this. Anyway, short answer: this is normal, and most 997s use a little oil.

cpbmd

Yeah it is the unfortunate truth that these cars do burn some oil. It is not 100% though because I know a few owners who are lucky and never have to add any oil between changes. I am willing to live with it but some cannot I do remember one member who sold his Pcar because of this. 2 quarts in 2000 miles does however seem excessive.

Edgy01

Do a search for an oil consumption poll done several years ago around 2007. The majority of these cars use no oil whatsoever. 911s generally don't use oil anymore than any other fine automobile, however with these 997.1 engines there is a small percentage of engines that use oil no matter what. It's not a function of the break-in procedures followed (or not followed), it's just the breaks. My car began using 1 quart of Mobil 1 from day one. I had done a European delivery and the factory told me that I wouldn't have to add any oil while I was over there. I had to add 3 quarts--3200 miles. I have watched my oil consumption very carefully and in general my consumption averages 1 quart per thousand miles. The factory issued a TSB in 2007 in response to the lousy oil mileage and claimed that roughly 1 quart per 650 miles was within their range of acceptable usage. Nuts of course, but that is what they cited. (If you bought a Honda and had to put a quart in it every 650 miles you would simply return the car).

You will find many references to other weights of oil that some have migrated to in an effort to better break-in their engines in an effort to reduce this usage. However, there is no conclusive proof that there is much of anything you can do to mitigate it. Basic motor knowledge tells you that oil can only be affected by either the valve guides or the cylinder/piston rings. It's quite possible that the high usage can be attributed to a tolerance stack that worked against you. For example, let's say your cylinder was bored to the larger side of the allowable tolerance range, and the rings were built to the smaller side of their tolerance range, and perhaps the springs that exert outward pressure were built to the weaker of their tension range--it would add up to a situation whereby your engine uses oil.

I have about 57,000 miles on my engine and only a couple of times have I experienced a better than 1000 miles per quart usage.

Some will also tell you that many 997 owners don't really know that their engines are using oil because they are driving them short distances and they are accumulating moisture in the engines, essentially displacing their oil. I don't buy that over the long haul. Eventually you will drive it enough to heat up the oil sufficiently to rid the engine of that moisture, so your true oil level will be revealed.

My method of dealing with it? I monitor my engine oil level every time I start the car. I do a little mental trending analysis. When I am down to the bottom bar just as it's starting to flash, I add one quart. That fill puts me back to the top bar. I see no point in adding the stuff 1/2 quart at a time. Just be aware of it and factor it into your travel plans. Carry a quart or two in your trunk if you're on a long trip. Again, it has nothing to do with HOW you drive. If you drive like a grandmother of six you can still experience oil burning. Others, who routinely track their cars, have seen no accelerated oil usage. Just remember, it's not you.

grifier

Thanks for the info!

vitman

Agree, my 2006 997S uses about 1 quart per 1000 miles, but there is no doubt that the harder it is driven the more oil it uses.

cpbmd

What kind of Oil is recommended for 997.1? I guess it is Mobile 1 but what weight?
Thanks

Edgy01

The word from Porsche is 0W-40 weight Mobil 1, but some elect to go with 5W-40.

No HTwo O

Porsche has 3 approved viscosities, regarding Mobil 1:

0W40
5W40
5W50

I never need to add oil to either of my Porsches. 5,000 mile oil change intervals, or yearly. A 2006 Boxster S with 40,000 miles and a 1997 993 Turbo with 48,000 miles. Weekend toys. Spirited driving.

cpbmd

Thanks guys. My 997.1 is down one bar after 2500 miles. Not too bad. Have a good weekend. Raining here in Nude Hampster. It is supposed to rain for the next 5 days. I will get some good rain driving this next week.
Have a nice Sunday all.

Fahrer

My 997.1S uses oil at the rate of about 1 quart per 6000 miles. Actually I put only bout 3500 miles per year on my car and as the the level only goes down about one bar during the year I do not need to add any oil in between the annual change. Some cars happen to use significantly more. I think the Porsche official statement is something like up to 1 quart per 600 miles is acceptable. I would stay with the 0W40 as it will provide better lubrication when the car is cold and any XW40 oil is plenty viscous at elevated temperature.

Quadcammer

no they aren't

403portside

I just hit 13k miles on my 06, last oil change was at 6.2k (one yr ago) and since then the oil gauge is one bar from the very top line, and all the way to the top line after a long drive. Sounds like the amount of oil my engine is burning is negligible?

carcar

better get someone to look down the bores to be on the safe side
mine started like that and it turned out to be the cylinder liners

Fin Fever

Oh ok, I stand corrected. Everyone I have seen post on this and every other oil usage thread reports some amount of oil consumption with their 997. Porsche has published acceptable oil consumption limits. Porsche has not changed their design to try to make them not burn any oil. So I don't know how exactly you wanted me to phrase it, but the porsche engineers consider some oil usage acceptable.