Oil use

I know this has been talked about before, but how much oil does everyones car get through? Mine is doing about 1 litre per 1,000 miles. I know the book says "anything up to 1.5 litres per 1,000 miles" so I'm within the manufacturers tolerances, but curious how much other 996 3.6l engines use. Paul

my car was last serviced in May 2006, since then I've covered about 7k, and I haven't had to put a drop in her...

About the same for me 6000 - 8000 miles a year and put a drop in still have the same 1 litre top up that my OPC gave me as part of the service two years ago, mine is a 3.4 and only gets good long journeys, but is driven how it should be. I only rely on the dip stick as the indicator when the engine is hot. Phil

I'm wondering if it's the type of driving I do that uses up the oil. My Audi S4 V8 used similar amounts... and to be honest I was hoping the new car was going to mean I was away from monthly top-ups. My daily commute to the office is 12 miles, long enough to get the engine up to temperature, but probably not classed as "a good long run". Mainly dual carriageway and one junction of motorway. I never exceed 3,000 rpm until the temperature is up to 80 (normal operating temp). ??? [:'(]

My C4 has done 52,000 miles & hasn't used a drop of Mobil-1 in 6,000 miles but I don't do any short journeys.

I do a lot of short journeys, and never have to top up between changes (every 6000 miles). 3.4 though. You often hear that these engines use less when they have done a few miles. How many has yours done, Paul?

Paul, mine's a 3.4, predominantly short journeys, and, like yours, NEVER gets drive above 3k rpm until engine at normal operating temp (approx 90 on mine - needle fractionally to the right of dead centre). Oh, and I've 34k on the clock...

I am not sure about Porkers, but I know th Audis etc are very prone to heavy oil use unless they are driveb quite hard during running in. If they are driveb using low revs and say 3000 rpm for long periods then they dont bed in properly. Basicall driving them hard (once warm) is the best thing. Mine, by the way, uses no oil. I know that the previous owner drove it hard from new.

less than half a litre in 5000 miles since October. mixed runs but plenty of short ones - 6 mile commute. does anyone else find that the oil measurement display on the dash is incredibly sensitive to inclines/camber? is it also true that all C4s have a hopelessly pessimistic fuel guage that shoots down from full and tells you its empty when there's still a third of a tank left?

Absolutely!! Spot on!!

Or the opposite - drive it like a granny for the first 100-odd miles & then thrash it. It will then run out of gas while still claiming to have loads [ ]

how do you do that? for 100 whole miles? [ ]

Minimal additional oil required (3.4). Generally give the instrument read-out a glance on starting but it really is very sensitive (the vehicle needs to be level) so only rely on the dipstick. Difference in oil consumption looks like it's a 3.4 vs 3.6 thing (the 3.4 seems to be less thirsty).

Try driving Bristol to London on the M4 on a Sunday evening around 5ish in torrential rain. Don't think I ever got up to 60mph. Other than that, you're right, it's impossible [8D] My point was that the guage is merely an estimate after the first half of the tank is used, based on the first half usage. On a really long m/way journey, it turns out to pretty accurate I've found.

The problem arises because the fuel tank is horse-shoe shaped. Because of this the car has to use 2 fuel measuring devices, one being the regular 'float' type (when the fuel is above around 1/4 full) and thereafter a digital device, which calculates fuel used in a real time way. From this point onwards, you should use the OBC 'Range' reading as it will be more accurate than the fuel guage. This is also why you get the common problem when putting a low amount of fuel when the tank is low, and nothing registering on the meter. You have to put in at least the 1/4 odd tank full so that the float registers that fuel has been put in.

well, you learn something new every day - i knew the tank was an unusual shape but didn't know there were 2 fuel measuring devices. I have never had the nerve to go beyond 250 miles before filling up (with V-Power) despite averaging 23mpg, nor have I managed to put more than 44 litres in when filling up. i believe the tank is 65 litres though which should give me an extra 100 miles or so. Hate driving any car with the low fuel light on.

My car has done ~30,500 miles, of which I have done <4,000 miles. I've just finished using a 4 litre bottle of Mobil1 0w40 (I hope it's a 4 litre and not 5 litre bottle ?!?!??!?) The comment about how an engine is run in is very true... some Audi S4's (4.2 v8) use loads, some don't... and I'm sure it's down to how the cars are run in. I remember the first Honda Fireblades (that's a motor bike btw!) used to develop more horsepower if thrashed from the crate, if run in properly they were prone to being quite a bit slower. Hay ho... is there a Mobil1 owners club I can join ? Paul.

Cheapest place for Mobil 1 is Costco. £20 for 4L IIRC. Maybe try a 5W-40 next oil change and see if it makes any difference.

My 996 C2 uses a fair bit of oil. Had a close shave at a Track day in December put in 4 litres[ ] and having just checked am looking at putting another litre in now. Must be my driving!!

Hi Paul. I have a C2 996 MY 2003 with 17.5k on the clock. It used to use oil like yours until I changed the oil to GT Magnatec 10/40. The engine was audibly quieter and she stopped using oil - at least nowhere near the quantity she was with Mobil 1. IMHO, I just don't think that we have the climate to warrant the use of a 0/40 oil - esspecially these days! As Richard says, you could always try changing to a 5 or 10/40 and see how you get on....? The only other way to look at your situation is that you're constantly renewing the oil with fresh stuff; nice, but expensive!

When I had the S4, I was told the LonglifeII 0w30 (now LonglifeIII 5w30) VAG/Castrol oil was way too thin by AmD in Bicester (well know VAG tuner). In their tuned RS6 cars I was told they use bog standard normal 10w40 Maganatec and never have any problems, but change it every 10,000 miles instead of 12-20k on the variable service. Audi were happy to switch the service from Varable (LonglifeIII oil 5w30) to Fixed (Maganatec 10w40), which they said would stop/slow the oil usage. Anyone know if Porsche will change the oil type also, being that my car is on a fixed service plan..? Paul

Tell us more????

Paul - Why not take your own oil - as long as it is Porsche approved, they shouldn't complain. (Note careful use of "shouldn't"). There is a list in the Technical section.

I was commenting on the fact that my 996 has fixed service intervals (10,000 miles / 12mths), rather than with the Audi, the car computer dictates when the car is serviced, based upon driving usage. P.

MMM......... I tried that with Audi and was told quite sternly "we don't allow owners to provide their own oil sir!" What I may do before I go to the Nurburgring in May is have just an oil change at my OPC, but specify what oil I want.

They make a lot of money out of oil, but a decent garage should allow you to provide your own oil, if they told me i couldnt then i would not use them, as i think that is being unfair. Phil