Questions

So daft newbie questions for which I apologise! 03 996t Is there a physical dipstick? Is there an upper marker on the coolant reservoir? I can see the lower but the rest is obscured by pipe. Do the door bin lids come off easily? My drivers is a bit marked. they'll be more! Thanks David

So you are new to 996 ownership. Welcome and congrats on buying the best of the bunch as far as I'm concerned. I have had my 996T a little under 16 months. They are quick and I say this coming from a slightly modified 944T As far as I know there is no manual dipstick but Richard Hamilton will be along to put us all right, if I am wrong. You will find that Richard's tag of Tech Guru is not out of place and he is a wealth of knowledge. With the engine warm, i.e. temperature gauge at 80 deg c and the vehicle stationary and level the you use the control arm for the OBC to scroll through the options until you get to check oil then start the process and wait while the engine checks itself. A display in the rev-counter shows the oil level after about 4 seconds. There is a max coolant level but it's right on the corner of the moulding I think, and difficult to see. Can't help with the door bin lid. You don't need to be so self-effacing. The newbie question you ask may save other newbies from asking. There is no such thing as a daft question on this forum, only a daft answer

Thanks John. I still have my tweaked 944 turbo. Logic says I don't need it and it will probably go but I'll maybe hold off for a little while. I've found the electronic oil gauge but if you add oil when its cold its hard to gauge how much difference you have made. I have no idea how accurate the "250ml per bar" on the dash is. Richard has already been very helpful I hope he will continue to be (I'm sure he will!). Pic enclosed.

David, I'll email you the door pocket instructions tomorrow, when I get to my PC.

Thanks Richard. I knew there would be more. Mine has comfort seats so almost full electric adjustment and the memory switches on the sill panel. But one of the cars I saw had red and yellow keys. I believe the idea was that the car recognised which key and moved the seats and mirrors accordingly. I have a spare key (which needs a battery - simple swop?) but they don't seem to be colour coded? Anyone explain?

I think they were just coloured rings, and are often lost. Up to 4 keys can be stored in the alarm's register, and the seat memory module uses the register of the key which is used to unlock the car to make the seat and mirror settings. You really need my book..........

Well worth every penny! http://www.petermorgan.org.uk/shop/4/index.htm Quick link for you!

I have a birthday coming up so that will take care of that. Feeling a bit broke at the moment!

I am not surprised you are feeling the pinch David, any half decent turbo has got to be worth at the very least £20,000 of anybody's money, and you will get poorer with the resulting increase in fuel consumption. Here's a tip for you from my Indie, who did his apprenticeship at PCGB. The fuel tank on the 996 T, notwithstanding its Ron Weasley (measly) 15 gallon capacity, is a sort of saddle tank construction because of the front diff. As a result they are susceptible to the pump pick up sucking vapour if you try to eke too much out of the tank before filling up. It has been known for a minimally fuelled 996T to exhibit the symptoms of running out of fuel whilst negotiating steeper inclines. Inevitably this damages the pump, because it is lubricated by the fuel. I guess the warning to "condsider the range on the remaining fuel" is there for a reason eh? The fuel flowing through what is probably a roller type pump, like most fuel injected cars, damps out the sparks on the commutator of the DC motor too. Luckily, the vapour in the tank when the pumps does suck vapour is an order of magnitude above the upper explosive limit, so there is no risk of a fire, in my considered theoretical opinon. Comments invited as to whether this seems like so much B/S, but how else do you explain the lack of tank fires?