Yearly Maintenance ideas
 

Hello,

I bought a 97 Boxster(Tiptronic)last year. Its in great shape. It has 135k KM. or 80K miles.

Im about to bring it out of hibernation. I am going to do an oil change, and tranny fluid/filter change. Any suggestions of a couple other things that could be / should be done.

Not looking to spend thousands like RMS or IMS change. Just some extra general maint.

Brake fluid flush. Coolant flush. Wax

Brakes were done, but coolant a good idea..

Next year, when you are getting ready to put the car away for the winter, do your maintenance oil, filter, etc. before you put it away. Leaving the car sit for months with dirty oil in it is one of the worst things you can do to it.

That is a very good tip. Although I do have a couple questions to understand this a little deeper:

1) When do you classify oil as dirty? For example, if the car only ran a few hundred miles, is the oil still considered dirty? Or, is it based on age of the oil?

2) I know that most people on here change every 5k miles on here. Its simple if you hit 5k miles in a season but if you only run the car for 2000 miles a year, does that mean it sits through at least 2 winters before the oil is switched out?

Thanks in advance.

(1) Yes. Oil that has been used any amount has both fuel and water contamination, which will lead to the creation of acid compounds, which are not good for any engine. Change the oil, then put the car into hibernation.

(2) At a minimum, you should be changing your oil once a year, even if the car had no miles on it. All oils break down with age, particularly when exposed to metal, that is why even the plastic container they come in have expiration dates on them.

Oil was done about 400KM or a month prior to putting away. Hopefully not too dirty.

Re-read #1 above..................

I agree with JFP on the oil change - even though I bought new (2013) and haven't hit 4000 miles, I still change oil annually. I did the brake fluid flush, as advised by dealer, at the 2nd annual service, too.

So if I only drive 3-4K per year. Change oil prior to putting away. Then no need to change oil in spring. Just once a year.

Yes. .

Pull the front bumper and clean out the radiators!

Here's my annual winter bedtime list:

- Fill gas tank.
- Wash, dry and wax
- Top treatment
- Clean interior
- Check CV boots
- Warm oil. Change oil and filter - 8.75 L (with filter). Torque drain plug 19 ft-lb (IMS Guardian or LN magnetic)
- Record mileage of oil/filter change and put sticker in window (+8000 km with Castrol Syntec 5W-40)
- Cut open filter and check for debris.
- Add fuel stabilizer.
- Drive just long enough for oil and stabilized fuel to circulate (5-10 minutes)
- Inflate tires to 58 psi, or max allowable (50 for current tires)
- Place in storage location.
- Leave out of gear. Emerg brake off. Block wheels.
- Block open frunk. Hook up battery maintainer.
- Put on cover

During storage:
- Move to avoid tire flat spots once a month

Spring start-up:
- Adjust tire pressure
- Drive!!

Honestly, unless you live in the North Pole, you should try and take the car out for an hour drive every few weeks at least. These engines need to stay lubricated and that happens best when they are under load. If you have a somewhat heated garage where the engine can start up at a relatively warm temp (to reduce wear) it's a no brainer.
Obviously best to pick a day when the Sun is out and the roads are good.

But yeah keeping your an engine stewing in used oil for months is asking for double trouble.

80K car? Are you on the original water pump? Have you at least replaced the coolant cap? (especially if the coolant was flushed). Did the inspection of your 2.5 prior to purchase you include a compression and leak down test?

Uh-oh... you forgot to unplug the battery tender and you're driving off down the street trailing an extension cord with the plug ripped off! :D

Mark, you know me only too well. Just stop telling the rest of the forum!

I asked my Porsche specific indy shop about flushing my coolant because it was running a tad high lately. They said our coolant is lifetime so a flush was not needed. I think it will be a water pump and thermostat time before it gets too hot here in Oklahoma so it will give me an excuse to flush the system.

Very good list on the winter hibernation routine.

Previously I have pulled ignition coils and every couple of weeks spin the engine over for a minute or so as I liked having the oil move thru the engine without having to fire it up. I have also put the car on stands as this takes weight off wheels but no longer do this as it was explained to me that this was hard on the suspension. May start doing the roll back an forth to stop the flat tire issue next winter.

I have been told the new oils on the market have strong acid buffering agents in them. This is why some will last a year before they ask you to change or XXXXXXkm. Which ever comes first. I am still not going to take a chance - if it is going to be parked for a few months I put fresh oil and filter in it. Even if the oil has 5km on it. There are already to many things that can go wrong with this car without me adding to the mayhem.

While flushing the coolant is not a bad idea, keep in mind that there is some preventative maintenance that will require flushing the coolant anyway. Changing the thermosatat and water pump, and possibly replacing the collant reservoir would cause yo uto have to replac the coolant again anyway.

Hey, the advice that I always see is to drive it like you stole it....