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Old 10-14-2009, 06:12 PM   #1
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How long between oil changes?

my car is a weekend/fun car, not a daily driver.
2000 2.7L.

the last oil change, before I bought the car fromm my dad - was at 70k miles. that was in late 2007.

the car now has about 76000. so it's averaging 3k/year.....

i know the book says I can go 10k between oil changes, but is there any "general" rule that most of you here follow for cars that don't get driven a ton?

do you recommend changin teh oil much sooner, not as soon???

this is my first POrsche, and now that I've put about 6-7k miles on the car, i'm wondering if I should change the oil now, or wait one more year / 3k more miles to do it???

my oil level is fine, and has not needed any added oil since it was last changed...

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Old 10-14-2009, 06:21 PM   #2
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I definitly would change it every year.

I have always done this on my Porsches in the past. If it's a daily driver, do it at least twice a year. Cheap insurance ...
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Old 10-14-2009, 07:00 PM   #3
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Porsche once specified once a year if driven less than 9500 miles.
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Old 10-14-2009, 07:58 PM   #4
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I do it at 1 year or 5k miles whichever comes first. There are definitely some things, like oil and brake fuid, that need to be changed on a calendar basis. The owner's manual is pretty good about letting you know which ones those are.

Spark plugs are another one. Porsche says you can run them for 60k miles, but also recommends changing them out after 4 years. That meant I did mine at 20k miles.
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Old 10-14-2009, 09:16 PM   #5
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You should change it more often than you are. Its not just mileage that you have to keep an eye on, but time. A byproduct of combustion is acid and it sits in the oil along with fuel residue, carbon, etc. Its not good for the engine parts to sit in this for prolonged amounts of time. If you only do 3k a year, change it every year or so.

Its also an excuse to drink beer and work on the car.
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Old 10-14-2009, 09:34 PM   #6
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I change mine every year before I put it away for the winter(1yr or 5k miles). Throw porsche's recommendation out the window. $60 DIY oil change per year is a cheap alternative to a new engine!!! I use catro syntec 10w40 and napa gold filter. If your too lazy to change it once a year, buy a HONDA!/!(no offense, but seriously change it once a year)!!
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Last edited by mptoledo; 10-14-2009 at 09:39 PM.
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Old 10-14-2009, 10:08 PM   #7
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Three times a year or 5K miles..
Extended oil service intervals are what kills hydraulic lifters, hydraulic chain tensioners and timing chain wear pads!

Purging contaminated lubricant is the key to so many aspects of the M96 engine.
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Old 10-15-2009, 06:37 AM   #8
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Mechanic said 150 to change oil. I believe they use mobile 1. If I do it myself, sounds like it's not that hard. I don't have a lift or oil drain pan , but have floor jack and jack stands. I can do it I'm sure, just need time to do it and then dump my oil. Where do most of u take the oil to get rid of it? Will parts storesor oil change places take it for a fee?

I'll change the oil! Thanks for the advice!
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Old 10-15-2009, 06:47 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jake Raby
Three times a year or 5K miles..
Extended oil service intervals are what kills hydraulic lifters, hydraulic chain tensioners and timing chain wear pads!

Purging contaminated lubricant is the key to so many aspects of the M96 engine.

I would go with Jake on this one. He does the autopsy on many engines.

I do think if one uses Red Line or Amsoil top of the line, you could extend that just a bit.
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Old 10-15-2009, 06:48 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 23109VC
Mechanic said 150 to change oil. I believe they use mobile 1. If I do it myself, sounds like it's not that hard. I don't have a lift or oil drain pan , but have floor jack and jack stands. I can do it I'm sure, just need time to do it and then dump my oil. Where do most of u take the oil to get rid of it? Will parts storesor oil change places take it for a fee?

I'll change the oil! Thanks for the advice!
These days, just about everyone that sells oil has a recycling program; ask the store that sells you the oil. Second bet would be local repair shops that will often take it free of charge........
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Old 10-15-2009, 08:51 AM   #11
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get the walmart/autozone 10 or 12 quart oil drain pan($10 its the big black one) as it fits under the car when you lower the jack and give it 30 minutes to drain. Walmart also has a free recycle program,up to 5 gallons. Try to get the big jugs of oil (I use Castro syntec 10W40) as it is easy to refill them to take them in for recycling. I tried to refill the quarts and it wasn't pretty. Live and learn I say!!

Yes it is a pretty simple job. You do need to get the socket for the bottom of the oil filter, $6 bucks at autozone. you just insert your socket end into it and it screws right off. I beleive i used an allen or star wrench for the oil plug. I like to change it when the oil is pretty warm as the contaminents haven't had a change to settle out of the oil. Just watch as it comes out pretty fast and if its hot it can really cause some pain. I believe there is a thread in the DIY forum. It will save you some bucks and I feel more attached to my car afterwards.

Oil drain pan
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/catalog/accessories/accProductDetails.jsp?categoryDisplayName=&fromString=&itemIdentifier=2278_0_0_&productId=2278&sortType=&parentId=1311-10&filterByKeyWord=&categoryNValue=&navValue=101035&fromWhere=&itemId=1035-10&displayName=15+qt.+Oil+Recycle+Pan&store=781&skuDisplayName=15+qt.+Oil+Recycle+Pan&brandName=Blitz
Oil filter cap wrench. (not sure which one it was so I bought two to make sure).
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/catalog/accessories/accProductDetails.jsp?categoryDisplayName=Oil+and+ Fluid+Change&fromString=search&itemIdentifier=153159_0_0_&productId=153159&sortType=&parentId=1311-10&filterByKeyWord=pil+wrench&categoryNValue=101311&navValue=100774&fromWhere=&itemId=774-10&displayName=93+mm.+dia.+oil+filter+%22C%22+cap+wre nch&store=781&skuDisplayName=93+mm.+dia.+oil+filter+%22C%22+cap+ wrench&brandName=OEM
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Last edited by mptoledo; 10-15-2009 at 08:58 AM.
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Old 10-15-2009, 09:38 AM   #12
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Why 3 times a year

I doubt I put 2k a year on my car, always 12 miles or more after start up before I stop so the needle does show 180. Never taken out when temps below 40F.

What is the science behind the 3 times a year recommendation?
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Old 10-15-2009, 11:01 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikefocke
What is the science behind the 3 times a year recommendation?
More than likely, the fact that so many M96 owners continue to run 0W-40 Mobil 1; so the less time it is in there, the better the chance it has not totally crapped out yet………..
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Old 10-15-2009, 11:42 AM   #14
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I knew I never should have tried to offer an opinion. Thanks for reminding me that I should keep my mouth shut totally on this topic.

But changing the oil would not have kept this failure from happening.. The piston exploded at 70 MPH on the freeway.. Female driver..

We just took this one apart an hour ago. Mofde of failure #21
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Old 10-15-2009, 02:20 PM   #15
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My, that isn't pretty. What would cause the piston to explode like that? As you say, oil wasn't the issue here, but frequent changes can help with the other 20 modes of failure.

I'm starting to save up for my IMS bearing replacement...
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Old 10-15-2009, 02:40 PM   #16
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Component failure plain and simple.


This car was owned by a Female from day one, she never tracked it and it only has 40K miles on it.. You can see how slow she has driven it in the carbon thats built up on the pistons/ etc.
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Old 10-15-2009, 03:02 PM   #17
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maybe i'll give this one a shot as a DIY. I have done brake pads/rotors on my own cars before, as well as suspension (shocks/springs). I'm no mechanic, but I can bolt/unbolt stuff and am not afraid to get dirty.

for me, it's the PITA / time factor. if it costs me $50 to do it myself and $250 to pay someone, and it takes me on ehour....i'd rather do it myself. if it costs me $50 to do ti myself, $100 to pay someone to do it, and it will take two hours and be a nasty dirty job, I'd rather fork over the $50 for some other person to get all dirty.

this job sounds like it's not too hard. i can do it myself in my garage. i just need that drain pain and the right tool to pull the drain plug out.
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Old 10-15-2009, 03:29 PM   #18
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Just don't do what I did the first time. I got, I'm pretty sure, the exact same drain pan that mptoledo linked. It's got one hole in the center to catch and drain the old oil. When removing the drain plug (which was still hot), I managed to drop it and, of course, it went into that one and only hole.

Ended up with a pool of used motor oil roughly 6' in diameter on the driveway. It was a terrifically fun clean-up, sarcasm intended. Afterwards, got my electric drill and put on the biggest bit I had (1/2") and drilled about 8 holes in the top, around the center hole. Predictably, I've never dropped the plug into the center hole since.

I still (and would recommend to others) put down newspaper below and around the catch pan. When the oil comes out, it often hits the top of the pan (the part I drilled the holes in) and sends out this wave of used motor oil beyond the outer perimeter of the drain pan. Last time I didn't get a drop on the driveway, though I make no guarantees I'll always be able to achieve that.
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Old 10-15-2009, 03:35 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jake Raby
Component failure plain and simple.


This car was owned by a Female from day one, she never tracked it and it only has 40K miles on it.. You can see how slow she has driven it in the carbon thats built up on the pistons/ etc.
Jake, probably a dumb (or at least naive) question: Do you think there's a relationship between the carbon build-up and the failure of the piston? Worded differently, had this car been driven harder, would it have been less likely to experience such a failure? Or was it doomed to fail, sooner or later, the minute it was driven out of the dealership with a couple dozen miles on it?
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Old 10-15-2009, 09:42 PM   #20
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There's nothing wrong with that motor.

That's the Porsche-Engineered "Inter-Cylinder Pressure Relief Air/Oil/Piston Separator" ™!!

It reduces crankcase pressure between cylinders and allows decreased rotational mass at higher RPM's.


HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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