Oil analysis vs Boroscope - Page 1 - 911/Carrera GT - PistonHeads UK

Before putting my 997.1 for sale with Bonhams The Market I was advised to get some sort of inspection to rule out bore scoring. Millers Oils for £40 do a full mineral analysis which in my case was all clear. It’s a really simple test and much less time consuming/ costly than boroscoping. Also looks for wear in other components not just the cylinder walls. I’ll see what the result of the sale is but for £40 it’s got to be a good idea for anyone selling particularly a gen 1 997?

ContactName said: Before putting my 997.1 for sale with Bonhams The Market I was advised to get some sort of inspection to rule out bore scoring. Millers Oils for £40 do a full mineral analysis which in my case was all clear. It’s a really simple test and much less time consuming/ costly than boroscoping. Also looks for wear in other components not just the cylinder walls. I’ll see what the result of the sale is but for £40 it’s got to be a good idea for anyone selling particularly a gen 1 997? Sensible. How many miles had you done since the last oil change when you did the test?

5,000

As a buyer I’d want to see a results from a borescope. An oil test is down to interpretation. Might be accurate might not be.

We use oil analysis at work if we are having issues with large hydraulic systems. The findings of which types of metal found in the oil will help us know where in the system to start looking. For £40 I would do it.

911wise said: As a buyer I’d want to see a results from a borescope. An oil test is down to interpretation. Might be accurate might not be. Unconvinced. An oil analysis will tell you far more about the state of an engine. Specifically, bearings (main, big end and IMS) but also the presence of any piston coating material, bore material and fuel content. And all for £40. It’s a no brainier. Ideally you’d want to see results from the last 3-4 oil changes though, so you could see any trends forming.

i had flawless oil analysis results in my 996, it turned out to have scoring AND worn main crank bearings (at 155k when i decided to hartech it). Make of it what you will.

cvega said: i had flawless oil analysis results in my 996, it turned out to have scoring AND worn main crank bearings (at 155k when i decided to hartech it). Make of it what you will. Oil analysis at 155k miles, or close to?

Time4another said: We use oil analysis at work if we are having issues with large hydraulic systems. The findings of which types of metal found in the oil will help us know where in the system to start looking. For £40 I would do it. I am guessing trends in various metal concentrations more helpful than absolute levels....

Slippydiff said: 911wise said: As a buyer I’d want to see a results from a borescope. An oil test is down to interpretation. Might be accurate might not be. Unconvinced. An oil analysis will tell you far more about the state of an engine. Specifically, bearings (main, big end and IMS) but also the presence of any piston coating material, bore material and fuel content. And all for £40. It’s a no brainier. Ideally you’d want to see results from the last 3-4 oil changes though, so you could see any trends forming. If you were to view a car and the owner produced a set of oil test results he’d had done a couple of days before, or you conducted your own test and results for both showed nothing sinister in the oil. Would you take it that all was ok knowing seller could have changed oil before the test? Or would you feel more at ease seeing an actual borescope done in front of your eyes?

Ed.Neumann said: Oil analysis at 155k miles, or close to? from me acquiring the car at 130k , yes it was a shed

OP - how do plan to convince a prospective buyer that the oil analysis results were definitely from the oil from your car? a borescope check commissioned by the buyer would surely be more credible?

911wise said: As a buyer I’d want to see a results from a borescope. An oil test is down to interpretation. Might be accurate might not be. Could very easily be faked too. Oh yes sir, the sample was definitely taken from this car.

ChocolateFrog said: Could very easily be faked too. Oh yes sir, the sample was definitely taken from this car. But if one takes that approach to used car buying then I'd say nothing short of a brand new car will work.

Tye Green said: OP - how do plan to convince a prospective buyer that the oil analysis results were definitely from the oil from your car? a borescope check commissioned by the buyer would surely be more credible? Of course there's nothing I could do to guarantee that, but that's always the way buying cars outside of a main dealer warrantied sample, there are always ways to hide things so ultimately you are at the mercy of the honesty of the seller to a very large degree. (For example, how many 997's have suspiciously polished exhaust tips to hide the differential soot marks that are a hallmark of bore scoring on the right hand cylinder bank?) An oil analysis does however give you a lot more information than just a boroscope. It's also much more objective than looking at the cylinder walls and deciding what is normal acceptable wear (they are not usually pristine) and what is the beginnings of more serious damage. A boroscope also can't look at the whole of the cylinder wall, unless you do it both from the plug end as well as through the sump, which no one does. For private buying as I say I would go on your Spidy sense on the cut of the jib of the seller. When buying I spend as much time taking to the seller as looking at the car usually, it's a very valuable check. I've happily bought £70K plus cars sight unseen from a very thorough discussion with the seller and never had a problem so far. For auctions you don't have that of course, but you can often tell by looking at the history of what has (and has not) been done and the general sense of attention to detail. You can usually spot an enthusiast car a mile off in my experience. But as always caveat emptor I suppose. Edited by ContactName on Friday 25th October 12:16

ChocolateFrog said: Could very easily be faked too. Oh yes sir, the sample was definitely taken from this car. Now you mention it....

Go for the Borescope inspection or do nothing at all. Borescope is widely known and understood to rule out the issue where as oil inspection is not. It is a shame as many engines will have bore wear and it's not issue until it gets too deep.

VeeReihenmotor6 said: Go for the Borescope inspection or do nothing at all. Borescope is widely known and understood to rule out the issue where as oil inspection is not. It is a shame as many engines will have bore wear and it's not issue until it gets too deep. Yep, I’d want a Borescope.