73 911 oil level

g sturgill · 05-07-2011, 04:22 PM

Having trouble trying to determine how much oil should be in my 911T, 2.4 without any external oil coolers. The Haynes manual has almost 11 quarts, my owner's manual has roughly 9 quarts. The crankcase was grossly overfilled when I bought the car, (The previous owsner had died 6 years ago). After 6 years, the car was still leaking from the exhaust system.

I drained the oil, and following advise from a fellow pelicaner, started with 8 quarts, ran the engine to full operating temp, did an oil check and virtually nothing appeared on the dip stick. Added another quart and got it to the lower 1/4 of the stick. That made 9 quarts.

I did a 60 mi run and checked the oil when I returned home only to find it bearly reading on the stick. Again, I added almost a full quart to get it to the bottom half of the dip stick.

Being at 10 quarts, I'm afraid of overfilling the crankcase and creating a lot of problems. Also there's a lot of condensation streaming out when I remove the filler cap. Any idea what thats about?'

Thanks, gary

Oh Haha · 05-07-2011, 05:00 PM

Leave the level as is for now. Drive it on some good, long runs. You don't have to beat it but run it through the RPM range. Keep an eye on the oil level, of course.

I'm not sure what you mean by "condensation" but I suspect that it may just need to be driven.

g sturgill · 05-07-2011, 05:17 PM

Thanks Wayne,

When you remove the filler cap, there's water vapor puffing from the tube. I suspect you're right about the long drive, however. The 60mi run this afternoon was mostly going thru the gears and not exceeding about 4500rpms. No death rattles and most of the smoking has stopped, but there's still the smell of burned oil.

I haven't driven a Porsche since I sold my 69 many years ago. What a great little car this is. Smooth, sounds great, plus a solid feel and nice ride. Reminds me of the old XKEs. Would be nice if this turns into a keeper.

Thanks g

FPB111 · 05-07-2011, 06:44 PM

Just to be sure, you are checking the oil level with engine hot and idling below 1k rpm

g sturgill · 05-07-2011, 07:10 PM

Yes. The engine temp was about 210, on level ground, and idling at 900rpms.

g

E Sully · E Sully's Garage

My 73 needs 11 quarts, 13 to reach the top fill mark.

g sturgill · 05-08-2011, 04:52 AM

Thanks Ed,

Wow, thats a lot of oil, but closer to what my original owner's manual stated with the engine having external coolers. Does your 73.5 have the coolers?

The dipstick reads about 1/2 inch above min now with 10 full quarts poured in. I can't imagine the engine being starved for oil with even 9 quarts in the system. The manual cautions about letting the level fall below the min level. How far below before there's damage?

Thanks, g

Oh Haha · 05-08-2011, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by g sturgill

Thanks Ed,

Wow, thats a lot of oil, but closer to what my original owner's manual stated with the engine having external coolers. Does your 73.5 have the coolers?

The dipstick reads about 1/2 inch above min now with 10 full quarts poured in. I can't imagine the engine being starved for oil with even 9 quarts in the system. The manual cautions about letting the level fall below the min level. How far below before there's damage?

Thanks, g

1/2 above minimum is fine. Given that yours was overfilled, driving it will get any residual oil burned off/out.

Most 911 owners(including me) run the level at halfway between the marks, after checking the correct way.

If you were filling a completely bone dry engine then the total volume would be closer to 13 qts.