Porsche Approved Oil List

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by Bob O

I'm also currently using Castrol 5W40 (in an 01 base with 65K on it). I change somewhere between every 5000 and 7500 miles and take it to the track several times a year.

JFP....Would you recommend year round Castrol 10w40 for a car that gets regularly driven in the winter in temps sometimes below O deg F (excluding this last mild winter). Based on your recommendation above my next change (next month) will probably be Castrol 10w40, so I'm curious if I should continue to use it during the winter or go to the 5w40 for the cold weather.

Thanks

Bob

We use 10W-40 year round, and it gets plenty cold here in PA in the winter. If you go to Castrol's website, their tech specs for the 5W and 10W oils are not all that different in the cold; so unless you are going to see sustained -25F (or worse), I wouldn't worry about it.

[Sputter]

I'm curious why 10w over 5w? IIRC, (i don't have my list in front of me), 5w40 made the Oil TSB but not 10w. The 05w40 syntec is being processed for approval. I'm assuming they made a change to it?

Jim

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

We use 10W-40 year round, and it gets plenty cold here in PA in the winter. If you go to Castrol's website, their tech specs for the 5W and 10W oils are not all that different in the cold; so unless you are going to see sustained -25F (or worse), I wouldn't worry about it.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by Sputter

I'm curious why 10w over 5w? IIRC, (i don't have my list in front of me), 5w40 made the Oil TSB but not 10w. The 05w40 syntec is being processed for approval. I'm assuming they made a change to it?

Jim

Simple:

• We tried both weights and liked the overall performance and UOA's for the 10W-40 better (parameters like TBN, etc.)

• We also learned to ignore the oil TSB/"approved lists" as there are products that they "approve" which are nearly impossible to obtain, and others that simply do not hold up well, and the basis of what is "approved" and what isn't is suspect..........

Our focus is on what works and keeps the M96 alive, not what Porsche recommends……….

[jmatta]

Our focus is on what works and keeps the M96 alive, not what Porsche recommends……….

I think Porsche's recommendations are based on what puts euros in their pockets, hence the Mobil 1 fill.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by jmatta

Our focus is on what works and keeps the M96 alive, not what Porsche recommends……….

I think Porsche's recommendations are based on what puts euros in their pockets, hence the Mobil 1 fill.

While we have no basis to assume that is correct; the so-called "approved oil" list has been highly suspect for a long time. Oils that were approved, suddenly no longer are, there is an obvious penchant for very thin (0W and 5W oils) products, way beyond what would be called for due to low ambient temperatures Worst of all, there is no explanation for their selection process; why one product is blessed, while others are not. Add in their obvious inability to set and maintain a consistent maintenance cycle for changing the recommended oils, and you have no real basis for making any decisions. Yet, we are supposed to accept their constantly shifting “dictums” at face value. Sorry, but I cannot……….I’ve been around this marquee far too long and have personally witnessed Porsche make such recommendations, only to see them reversed or totally replaced with something else. Kind of reminds me of Gilda Radner’s character on the old “Saturday Night Live” who would get caught being totally wrong in mid rant, and then suddenly say “Never mind!”

We are therefore left to educate ourselves about what oil parameters are important, run dozens of used oil analysis, collect, and analyze data to determine what seems to matter and what does not…………and stop depending upon Porsche as the font of all knowledge about the M96 engine…..after all, it has had the shortest duration of the number of years (10-12) in service of any of their engines in recent memory, only to be replaced by a totally new design……

[Sputter]

Thanks Jfp.

[gRed04]

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

While we have no basis to assume that is correct; the so-called "approved oil" list has been highly suspect for a long time. Oils that were approved, suddenly no longer are, there is an obvious penchant for very thin (0W and 5W oils) products, way beyond what would be called for due to low ambient temperatures Worst of all, there is no explanation for their selection process; why one product is blessed, while others are not. Add in their obvious inability to set and maintain a consistent maintenance cycle for changing the recommended oils, and you have no real basis for making any decisions. Yet, we are supposed to accept their constantly shifting “dictums” at face value. Sorry, but I cannot……….I’ve been around this marquee far too long and have personally witnessed Porsche make such recommendations, only to see them reversed or totally replaced with something else. Kind of reminds me of Gilda Radner’s character on the old “Saturday Night Live” who would get caught being totally wrong in mid rant, and then suddenly say “Never mind!”

We are therefore left to educate ourselves about what oil parameters are important, run dozens of used oil analysis, collect, and analyze data to determine what seems to matter and what does not…………and stop depending upon Porsche as the font of all knowledge about the M96 engine…..after all, it has had the shortest duration of the number of years (10-12) in service of any of their engines in recent memory, only to be replaced by a totally new design……

Another thanks JFP.

[dbw]

I picked up my first Porsche a 2004 base Boxter in the last week of May with 35000 km on it. According to records the oil was changed at 33000km and tomorrow I'm getting an oil and filter change with now 50000km on it. I will be getting the oil (Mobil 1) analized like I do my other vehicles and am looking forward to seeing the results.