First Oil Change (what not to do)

[bagpiper47]

Well the 5,000 mile oil change came today and here's a few pointers for those newer to Porsche than I (not many).

Be sure and turn the drain plugs in the correct direction as they are much easier to remove.

The Oil change pan sold by pelican works really good (unless you let the drain plug fall into the pan at which time it does its job and "Plugs" the hole the oil was draining into). Of course in the "Panic" mode I didn't think to move the plug out of the pan. This caused about a quart to overflow onto the garage floor to the sounds of "Honey bring me a towel!!". Well the next plug stayed in my hand and managed to not plug the hole.

Also found out my Wal Mart floor Jack will not raise the tires off of the ground with the recently acquired Jack Pad from Pelican.
I think it has a limit of 13" which is not Jack . . . for a Porsche.

All in all it was a fun time and a learning experience. Test drive went well and after putting a total of 10.5 qts in it it runs great. Temp reads just barely above the window and pressure was 4 bar at 5,000 rpm. Now next 5,000 DIY service will include a valve job and I will be counting on all of you for tips. Thanks to all!!

[Emission]

All "first" oil changes are a learning experience, no matter what the car.

My best "learning experience" was dropping a slippery oil filter into the catch basin of hot oil - while my head was under there!

I emerged very "freckled" with hot oil, and feeling a bit stupid. However, never made that mistake again.

[North Coast Cab]

5,000 miles is too long.

[klaucke]

Factory spec for oil changes on my 74 are 10,000 miles (or every 6-months). Depending of course on how hard you drive you car and for how long, I see no problem with going 5-8k miles. 12 quarts takes a long time to degrade compared to 5 quarts in a normal wet-sump. I believe the interval increased later on on oil capacity continued to increase and oil cooling improved, a la 964/993.

[randywebb]

lift - put car on stands - lower lift & put big wood beam there - lift again & set stands

then push every which way - before putting your life under the car

helper with cell phone on is handy - if not, then keep cell phone on & w/in reach at all times if solo

I know very few people who can bench press the rear end of a Porsche

[JayMac]

first time I did it I found out how fast the oil comes out and had to act quick - my oil pan doesn't hold enough and,,, you can guess - we need a thread on best approach to clean up oil off a garage floor,

[Joe Bob]

Have a pan that is big enuf....12 quart capacity or more....remember to put plugs back in.....put 8 quarts in and start up....get warm and thermostat open, check dipstick on LEVEL ground, fill to bottom line. Go fer a drive.....check when ya stop...have a beer.

[mkimber]

Thank you, Bagpiper47! I think I am newer than you are, with my first oil change fast approaching, so your "lessons learned" story was very helpful.

[si Banker]

In 1978 I purchased a 1973 911T and on the following Saturday's I decided to change the oil. I bought a new filter and six quarts of oil. I had zero experience with 911s, but I soon learned that the pan that I had used for other cars was to small!!!!!!!!!

My garage and driveway looked like a oil tanker ran aground. You can't fit 10 quarts into a 6 quart pan.

[MobileWrks]

Originally posted by si Banker
In 1978 I purchased a 1973 911T and on the following Saturday's I decided to change the oil. I bought a new filter and six quarts of oil. I had zero experience with 911s, but I soon learned that the pan that I had used for other cars was to small!!!!!!!!!

My garage and driveway looked like a oil tanker ran aground. You can't fit 10 quarts into a 6 quart pan.

Come on, i know you got a pix or two..

I did almost the same thing, but both pan did the over flow HAHAHAH boy, was that dumb..

[pwd72s]

Ahhhh, memories! I think we've all had a bad experience with those shallow drain pans that have a small hole in them...then learning just how fast the oil flows from a 911...

[si Banker]

It flows much faster when it is hot!!!!!!!

If there is a dumb mistake to be made; I have made it.

The punch-line to my mistake is that I spent the rest of the day and the following Sunday cleaning up the mess. We had just moved into a new home and the driveway dropped about 24 inches in 20 feet. The hot dirty oil ran down the drive; the new drive.

[dandrews64]

on the subject of oil changes.....

Can I remove the oil filter without first draining the oil? Other than residual oil in the filter, will tons of oil come pouring out?

It's a long story why I want to do this, but basically through a miscommuncation, the oil got changed, but not the filter.....

Thanks, apologies if I'm hijacking.

[donstevens]

dandrews64,

Yes you can remove the filter (engine off of course) and only loose the amount of oil that resides in the filter. Put your pan under the car as there will ineveitbly be a few drips.

Don

[vash]

doug, just jam a rag under the filter first. no issues.

not to brag guys,...but i didnt destroy my driveway, until my fourth oil change. (first for this SC). guess i am just smart like that.... only time i was glad we owned a cat. cat litter is great for clean up. hint; use NEW cat litter.

[mschuep]

FYI, Plastic kitty litter box works well for large oil pan, also very cheap.

[sammyg2]

IMO changing the oil every 5000 miles is just fine, you could go further if you wanted to. Anything more frequently would be wasting oil and money unless it is a race engine or subject to extreme temperatures/conditions.
This subject has been beat to death here lately.

[Noel]

It takes a lot longer than 5,000 miles to contaminate 14 qts of oil. That said, don't go longer than 12 months. I change mine ever 12 months, which works out to be 2,500-3,000 miles.