Am I just lucky?

tedder · tedder's Garage

I have had my 86 for about 4 months now and have put about 2500 miles on it and in all that time, the oil level has just dropped by about 1/8" of the 1.5" between high and low on the dipstick and the oil is still golden (not black).

Am I lucky or am I checking the oil level wrong? I run the car until it is warm (10 mile drive), park in the garage idling and check the dipstick. The garage is close to level by eyeball but I never put a level on the floor. The car does have a slight drip on the right side (think 1 small drip on the mat underneath every 4-5 times it goes out)

Am I just lucky or am I doing something wrong checkign the oil?

86 3.2 Carrera
Cone air filter
Autothority chip & MAF
Fabspeed premuff, stock muffler
17" cup replica wheels (225/45 front 255/45 rear)

rnln · 02-21-2006, 02:57 AM

my 87 at 68k miles. I can't see the drop when I check it. The dipstick is always like new oil on it but when replace oil, it comes out dark.

dickster · 02-21-2006, 05:02 AM

My '86 uses very little oil and stays golden between 3k changes.

Be sure the front oil lines/hoses are hot when checking the level.

BRB-83-911SC · 02-21-2006, 05:04 AM

tedder - greetings from a fellow MA resident. I picked up my 83 in July with 85,000 miles, and now have 90,000 miles, no rebuild history. I have had to add 1 qt during that time, which I think is reasonable. Absolutely no leaks, and an occasional puff of blue smoke on cold startup. And, my oil level gauge seems to coincide with the dipstick readings, assuming warm, level, idling, etc. I run synthetic oil, and do consider myself lucky. Not all 911's use/leak oil.

KNS · 02-21-2006, 06:43 AM

It's going to take a while for 12 quarts of oil to really turn filthy and black. You'll will have changed it out long before it gets to that point.

porschenut · 02-21-2006, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by KNS
It's going to take a while for 12 quarts of oil to really turn filthy and black.

And if it does, you waited way too long.

TerryH · TerryH's Garage

I too consider myself lucky when it comes to my car. No leaks, not a drop anywhere no matter how long it sits. I did repair a hose and oil pressure switch leak a while back. No noticable oil being burned and never have to add between annual changes. Car starts by just tapping the key and idles at 850rpms instantly.

I think living in a warm-dry climate and driving fewer than 4K miles a year does help. My car has somewhere between 90 and 130K with original motor as far as I know. Records were lacking when I purchased 2 years ago.

(knocking on wood - searching for 4 leaf clover - salt over shoulder - rubbing rabbits foot - hanging horseshoes.. etc.)

Sizzle · Sizzle's Garage

Terry -- I finally jumped-in with both feet and bought an 84 Carrera last summer with a suspect history and 4 previous owners -- the car has turned out to be a gem. Seeing that I plan to keep the car forever, I saved a pile of money by taking a little risk up front.

knocking on wood

gb

Jim Sims · 07-24-2006, 11:13 AM

Oil consumption can be masked by leaked/burned oil being replaced by water from fuel combustion especially if the car isn't subjected to extended operation where the water can be boiled off. This sometimes leads to the phenomena of dramatic increases in apparent oil consumption on long trips which really is the water being boiled off thereby revealing the actual oil consumption which has occurred slowly over time.