Cold temp oil

Alright, sorry for this but I'm about to ask a question that hits to high trigger points... Oil, and driving in Winter I drive my 996 year round in MN Winters. Currently I use Mobil 1 0w40 but after reading the viscosity thread, was planning to switch to something different. SPECIFICALLY ASKING FOR WINTER DRIVING, would 5W 50 be too thick? For reference, I park inside and the car rarely sits outside during the winter for more than a few hours. But... It's MN and it can get very cold here.

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If you plan on driving the 996 in the winter in the upper midwest which goes sub zero in January and February, I would run a good 40 like DT40 or DI40 or equivalent from another brand.

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That's Driven 5W 40, correct?

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Yes. I run Driven DI40 in my Audis year round. Used to run DI40 in my 996 in the winter. Now i just run DI50 year round in my 996 and just don't start it in January and Feb unless it warms up. I am in the Chicago suburbs. FWIW, my Audis seem to really like DI40 in the winter. They make less noise during warmup than the standard Castrol Syntech. Not to mention oil tests show substantially less metal wear.

I�ve been using Mobil1 FS X2 5W50 for the last year and it performed great in the last Canadian Winter. Here�s the UOA when I changed it this summer

Dan, I would read a couple of threads that may address your questions in multiple ways. The "Driven DI40/DT40" thread is about more than just Driven and 40 oil. Plenty of discussion scenarios plus oil tests. The "Who has been screaming higher viscosity" thread adds to the discussion. The best advice i can share is to get the best high moly, high viscosity oil that best matches your usage case and temperature requirements. Then keep the oil fresh by changing it 2x a year. Driven DI40 / DT40 & pca Video - Rennlist - Porsche Discussion Forums https://share.google/20AQmxNUFaAED0ZmL Who has been screaming higher viscosity for years ?? - Rennlist - Porsche Discussion Forums https://share.google/IM1WCIm0mCjSfH7gx

My new to me 2001 C4 is my daily driver in PA. This will be my first winter. I'm about to do an oil change in a few days, which will be around 3k miles after having the IMS solution installed, so I can get my first oil analysis. I used Motul 8100 X-cess gen2 5W-40 at the time of the IMS work, which is my indy shop's recommendation. After reading the "Who has been screaming higher viscosity" thread, I decided I'm switching to Driven DT 40, starting with this change, and plan to do oil changes every 5k or 6 months.

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Thank you for this. I've been reading through some of these, that is what caused me to start to question my oil choice. I've worked on cars for 30 years, and 10 years in auto body but this oil stuff is confusing for me! So many just say DI40 or DT40 but there also seem to be multiple viscosities of each so it's a bit confusing. And the oil reports confuse me even more! I put 20,000+ on my car per year and drive it year round in MN. Change my oil every 5,000 miles. I currently use Mobil 1 0w40 because I always thought it was good enough, now reading all these threads you mentioned & it sounds inferior to Driven oil or others with high moly. BUT... I've also seen people online (one specifically I talked to recently) who has 500,000 on his 996 and has always used Mobil 1 0w40... So I guess I'm just that guy who questions the "YOU HAVE TO USE xxxxx otherwise your car will need a $40k engine rebuild" comments. I liken that to those who put premium gas in their honda accords. It may offer a slight benefit, but is it worth the increased cost or necessary...

Here is something to think about. 1. You can get higher viscosity in 40 oil just by upgrading to a better oil. For sure, you can also go to 50 or even 60 to increase the viscosity. But a simple upgrade from one 40 to another is easy to do as a result of advancements. 2. You can get higher moly levels as well as just a better package by upgrading to a better oil. Some 40 oils have more moly than others. Same for 50 and 60 oils. 3. You can also get better protection from higher engine/oil temps by upgrading your oil. Some 40 oils handle higher temps better than others. Same with 50 and 60 oil. Ingredients matters. Comes down to understanding the numbers from an oil test with your current oil and comparing it to various prospective oils. Oil tests facilitate data points for comparisons.

Engine Oil is always a good Topic for Car Guys... Most people want easy choices, Black/White , Yen/Tang, Good/Bad,High/Low,Left/Right.Up/Down, Over/Under ect ... There are many many Oil Companies and Choices, The problem is that they don't disclose EVERYTHING in their oil...Even the Oil Analysis does not test for EVERYTHING......additives like Antimony are not tested for because they are not "normally" found in the engine..and they are expensive and kept "secret" as to their "secret sauce".. So we are left with limited anecdotal and empirical evidence to make our choices ... This is not a problem for most who don't go to any "extremes".......but for those who push the extremes, it can make a BIG difference... Like I have said many times...Viscosity is the most important Choice, followed by Oil Type, followed by Additive Package...and we don't have ALL the Facts ( especially on the Additives). According to Amsoil...a 0w is ok down to -40F,,5w is ok down to -30F..10w is ok down to -20F ... 15w is ok down to -10F ...20w is ok down to 0F..... Just how cold do you expect it to be in Minnesota ???

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Ha. -20 - -30 wind chills are not uncommon here. Luckily I park inside and am self employed so I choose to stay in as much as I can on those days. 5w 40 I think is the answer... Been reading through the di40 dt40 thread posted earlier. Skimmed most of the viscosity thread earlier last week.

Stating the obvious that windchill is irrelevant in this discussion. /X3

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I would disagree. There have been many times over my years here where you want to park your engine out of the wind in the dead of winter if you have to park outside. Windchill will cool metal and oil components just like it will a human.

Nothing better than trying to start your car in -15 degrees F in the winter without wind or 0 degrees with wind and a -15 windchill. Painful to listen too either way.

Okay, I feel I can ask further questions since I've done some of the homework of reading some of the previously listed oil threads. Here's my current thoughts... Step 1 - (The step I'm most confused on) - Run a half oil change with the Valvoline Premium Blue diesel engine oil. Amazon Amazon If I'm understanding correctly, this will really help to clean the engine out. Step 2 - I Clean the top end w/ Sea Foam Top End engine cleaner Amazon Amazon I was also thinking of running a course of Techron cleaners through the fuel system. Then... Switch to DT40 5w40 oil going forward. This will get me my good winter weight oil in time for the cold of winter to hit here in MN. My goal is just to maintain the car well. Clean the innerds of the engine as best as I can, and then switch to a better quality DT40 oil... Thoughts?

Serious question :: Are "block heaters" still a thing up North ? or has everyone just defaulted to 0w-5w oils ? I remember installing a block heater for a local 996 customer who was headed up North from Bama to stay for a month or so...Very easy to install those on the M96.... I

Dont know anybody that uses one.

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I think any newer car is just built more efficient. That and thinner oil. I don't know anyone other than those with diesel trucks who uses block heaters anymore. I'm 44 and can't think of many who ever used them though...

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Fwiw, i wouldn't mess with the diesel oil or put anything in my oil to clean the engine. I would instead drain out all your oil and put in DT40 before the winter and then change it again in the spring. Change it 2x a year or more if you put alot of miles in the car. The M96 likes alot of fresh high quality oil. Regarding fuel additives, I would just go with Techron a couple of times a year. No need to overdo it.

I feel sorry for you guys up North ( and in Northern Europe ).....I truly do ...

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We are all coming to your house in February to thaw out and learn about the 996 from the master.

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Here in Finland just about every gas or diesel car less than 10 years old has auxiliary heater to pre-heat the car engine and some also the interior (full EV's and Plug-in Hubrids are different story). Heaters are elecrical or uses the fuel in the tank (gasoline / diesel).

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Interesting. What companies make the auxiliary heaters?

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These haev been very widely used since 1970's here, but nowdays just about all gasoline / diesel cars have these. Early days here it was considered more like a luxury item to have already warm car when you go for a drive during winter. Most common brand electric powered aux heaters: - Defa - Calix Most common fuel powered aux heaters: - Webasto - Ebersp�cher

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@pilot4fn Very interesting ....I would have thought they would be more widely used here as well.....I know if I lived in the Northern States I would have them installed.. Are these a Factory Option there ? Or are they all "Dealer Installed " ?? And do Y'all still use the very light viscosity oils when you have the heaters installed ?

The 955/957 first gen Cayenne has a factory option of a gasoline fired aux heater sourced from Webasto. It's very rare in the US, seems more common in North Europe and Russia. I wish mine had it.

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This following is my observations, use experience and opinions about these heaters since tinkering with cars from 80's on... - You can nowdays order the factory delivery Webasto - it is more complicated to install and is programmed in to the car systems for remote control option (key fob, mobile phone, etc). Ebersp�cher is probably similar, but for some specific car brands (at least MB used to / maybe still do have a deal with those). Webasto is very nice, since I can program different take off times for different weekdays and the car heats up the engine, cabin, seats and steering wheel. My daily is in a carport and I do not need to worry about snow on it, but the warm car (cabin + seats + steering wheel) is a fantastic on cold weather. Also if I decide to leave with car un-planned, I use pnone to program the car to be ready in 10 minutes and it's toasty in that time. - Electrical heaters are very simple to install in to the engine block water jacket, large waterhose or as previously discussed 'heat pad' placed next to the engine block. These are not connected to the car electronics to be programmed. These are usually installed also electrical socket in to the cabin, so you can install separate electical heater to the cabin (to melt the ice from windows and for comfort warmth as you hop in to the car). Sometimes feels like is this really neccessary, since we did manage fine thru earlier days, but shurely this auxiliary heating stuff is nice. Winter we use the same oil like in summer (like 0W-20 thru 5W-40) - at least on our daily use cars, so this should apply also in Porsche cars. Personally I do not drive my 996 on winter due to salt on the road, so no oil issue to consider. On the 80's-90's we changed the oil same time we canged the winter / summer tires on. Then there were different oil for summer and winter. The summer oil was like a syrup on winter temperatures...

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Good info on the heaters....Seems you guys have integrated them into your daily ( Cold) lives !!!