5k Service on 02 Carrera

Hi all, I am facing a 5k service, and according to my dealer, it's just a oil&filter change. I used to own a 87 Carrera and always changed the oil myself; I am wondering: Is it easy to do on a 02 model? Has anyone tried it yet, or do you have any useful feedback about changing the oil on this model car? Thanks! elfer <img src="graemlins/wave.gif" border="0" alt="[byebye]" />

Actually, 5 K should go by without any cost at all. No service is scheduled until 15K.

Well, that's interesting... ? Why would my dealership tell me that I have a oil change service due @ 5k????? Very ominous! elfer

My dealer said that the services are at every 15K, but they would like to take a look at the car after the first 7,500 miles to make sure everything is OK. The porsche website says that the car needs to be serviced every 12,000 miles. <a href="http://www2.us.porsche.com/english/usa/911/c2/environment/wartung.htm." target="_blank">http://www2.us.porsche.com/english/usa/911/c2/environment/wartung.htm.</a> It is strange that the manual and the website give different information, or am I missing something?

The Porsche Technical (service) Manual says every 15K miles OR for cars with less than 15K per year you should perform minor maintenance annually. This is for MY 02 USA cars. MY01 and earlier (996) cars were 12K miles.

Soooooooo, my dealer basically is making up his own rules then? Can I then safely ignore their "service" and stick with the 15k service and still be withing compliance? No need to waste money if not needed, eh? elfer

You will probably get as many answers to the"when should I change my oil" question as there are options in the 911 order guide. <img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" /> It seems that the real answer is "IT DEPENDS". Depends on what, you ask. Heck, I don't know. How you drive, how long are your trips, Where you live,how much moisture gets in your oil, etc. Somebody on this list recommended a website that has a whole essay on oil. It's incredible. I don't know how to insert a link in this post but here is the url. <a href="http://www.fernblatt.com/longhurst/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.fernblatt.com/longhurst/index.html</a> Check it out. It has more info on oil than you'll ever want to know.

To keep things simple, so long as you are an average Joe, you don't drive your car in the Nevada sand dunes or into the Vegas swimming pools, every 15 K miles or 12 months whichever is sooner should suffice. No harm, no foul, no extra cost. Any changes from the above would be due to consistent non-average driving (tracking the car frequently or the above mentioned pastimes ), but are usually more due to ownership angst. I had mine changed at 7500 miles. Why? I dunno. Just wanted to do it, is all.

I still recommend having the oil analyzed after the miles. I'm glad I did because for some reason I had a high content of fuel and silicone (dirt) in my oil. I can understand the latter because on Cape Cod the wind and sand are always blowing around, but I was concerned about the high fuel content. So I changed oil at 2K. Had it tested again at 5K with better but still marginal results. So I put oil in at 2K and 5K and now have 6K on the odo. Will test it again at 10K. I may not have problems, but the $12 oil analysis works for me. Larry Turner [email removed] handles all this. Call me ****, but I want to know what's going on in that engine with an oil analysis record.

Alright! I surely appreciate your guys' feedback; sounds like my dealer is trying to make a few extra bucks during this recession But, just for the heck....is an oil change something the average Joe can do at home on such a "modern" car.....just wondering....????? elfer <img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

I just got my first oil analysis back. I got it done just before an oil change at 3265 miles. Wanted to get a good break-in base line, and I wanted the oil changed before a DE. Now have done both. All is normal. Caution... only fill to .5 from the top of oil fill gauge if going to DEs.

OK Maybe I'm ****! BUT I change the oil myself and filter every 5k miles. Its easy to do. I have 25k miles on my 2001 c4 cab so I've just changed it for the 5th time. VERY easy. I'm no mechanic but I play one in my garage... My cars get ALL their servicing done by me unless there is a warrenty problem... My pcar has been to the dealer twice.. once to have the airbag cutoff device turned on for the child seat and once for the fuel cap recall ( I also had them do a TSB on a front strut noise at the same time) <img src="graemlins/drink.gif" border="0" alt="[cherrsagai]" />

Hey Dranon...cautious is not ****. Just think of the nice records you'll have when you sell..

Change your own oil - It's super easy - just need to drive up on a couple boards (3 or 4") to get necessary clearance for a drain pan...

GREAT! sounds like the filter is easily accesible then? Also, what is the factory fill these days? Is it Mobil Synthetic....but what grade? Thanks, you guys! elfer

Different folks have different answers. My service rep said that Porsche uses different grades for different regions. According to him, cars in N. Cal come with 0W-40W Synthetic Mobil 1, cars in S. Cal come with 10W-50W Synthetic Mobil 1 (I think), and so on.

All 2002's come with factory fill of Mobil 1, 0-40. More of cost containment than anything else, I'll bet. Cheaper tho buy a large bulk of a single grade. Subsequent fills will depend on ambient/average temp. Your manual should give you the ranges appropriate for you.