Milky milky !

[pwafer]

When I got the 996, the oil level was on minimum (not really great considering the 111 point check had the little tick showing the oil had been checked!) FYI: The dealer did appologise and offered to pay for the oil I needed to top it back up to the top.

Anyway, when I topped it up I noticed there was a fair amount of brown/milky residue under the oil filler cap and in the tube... I cleaned it all up and put it down to the car may have been used on short test drives for some time and condensation may have been the cause.

The oil level has gone down by half again so I topped it up and noticed the residue has returned. There is no contamination in the coolant resevoir, the engine runs perfectly.

Any thoughts ? I've covered around 1,200 miles since it was delivered.

 

[Geoff_Fields]

I Assume the 111 point check was at an OPC. Is the car under porsche extended warranty? Take it back to the supplying dealer for investigation. That level of oil consumption is quite high and lots of milky gunge can mean something very unpleasant for the wallet.

 

[Bull996]

A litre every 600 miles is within Porsche tolerances (sp?) for oil comsumption. How much is it using?
As far as the milky stuff I shouldnt worry. All last winter mine was like yours and all summer fine. Just been and looked again and its milky again. Last year I asked the OPC and they assured me that most do this due to condensation and short trips. It is because the oil filler neck is so long. I wouldnt worry too much.

 

[pwafer]

Only had the car a month and was supplied from an OPC.

They've just called and confirmed milky residue is quite normal... and oil usage can be up to 1 litre every 800 miles.

Panic over []

 

[Geoff_Fields]

Glad to here that,[] worth checking for the confirmation though.

 

[David W.]

I would not consider milky residue in any way "quite normal" and would regard oil usage up to 1 litre every 800 miles abnormal unless you were thrashing the nuts off it evry day. My Box hasn't used a drop in 6k miles, milky residue sounds like water contamination from bores or head gasket or condensation.

DW

 

[Bull996]

ORIGINAL: David W.

milky residue sounds like water contamination from bores or head gasket or condensation.

DW

On the 996 (and some BMWs) its purley due to the filler neck being so long ( 2ft?). When you remove the oil filler cap you can see the condensation. I know it sounds crazy but it really is OK.

 

[pwafer]

ORIGINAL: David W.

I would not consider milky residue in any way "quite normal" and would regard oil usage up to 1 litre every 800 miles abnormal unless you were thrashing the nuts off it evry day. My Box hasn't used a drop in 6k miles, milky residue sounds like water contamination from bores or head gasket or condensation.

DW

I've just looked in the owner manual and it quotes:

Engine oil consumption up to 1.5l/1000 km 2.4l/1000 miles

That's a lot of oil ! But confirms what the tech told me from the OPC.

what oil do people use? I'm currently using Mobil 1 0w40 which is pretty thin.

 

[Rodney Naghar]

The real sign of head gasket problems is if u can see oily deposits or discolouration in the expansion tank. A milky deposit in the oil filler tube, as has been mentioned, isn't a big deal.

 

[pwafer]

The expansion tank is crystal clear.... so I'm not worried.

 

[Richard_Hamilton]

I don't know how many miles your car has done, but you often find that these engines use signifiantly more oil in their early days than when they get a few miles under their belt. I bought mine at 50,000 and it has never needed a top-up between oil changes, which I do every 6000 miles. I'm old school, and don't like the 0W-40 gnats pee. It might be worth you trying a 5W-40 to see if the oil consumption is any better.

 

[Guest]

Reckon I go through 1 to 2 litres every 4k to 5k miles; 2002 Targa; just check it every 1k to be safe. Also, suffer from milky deposit at top of filler tube in cold weather (my commute is 8miles each way), always goes with milder weather.

 

[Andy Duncan]

Some cars use/lose oil some cars don't.

Porsches in warmer climates use thicker oil, ie higher viscosities.

If mine was consuming a litre or so every 1k then I'd increase the oil viscosity say to 5W or 10W40 and monitor, and of course the thicker oil will not leak as willingly as Mobil 1 0W40 (with RMS leaks in mind!).

 

[pwafer]

What is the RMS seal leak that I hear regularly mentioned ?

With the Audi, I first use Longlife II which was a 0W30 oil... then swapped to the new 5W30 Longlife III which did slow the consumption down a little.

What oils do people use ? AmD use 10W40 Castrol Magnatex in their tuned RS4's........ I use the same in the Golf 1.8T which has never used a drop ever.... it does make me wonder if it's worth using these really thin oils...

 

[adrian996]

Hi Paul. First of all "" don't worry too much about the mayonnaise in your oil filler. I'm assuming that when you say "used half the oil again" you mean that you're taking the reading from the electronic gauge on the dash. Mine's an MY '03 996 C2 (same as your car) which I had second hand with 7k on the clock. I thought I was going to need heart surgery when I discovered the same as you, but following a lot of research and help from the good people on this forum, I realised that all was well. To finally settle my nerves I went to my local OPC and took the filler cap off a 997 with 450 miles on the clock "" mayo city!!
It seems to be because the filler pipe is quite long and one end (near the engine block) gets red hot while the other end (the filler cap) remains cold "" especially in the colder weather. When this happens condensation forms in the pipe and takes a bit of oil with it. It then condenses at the filler end and thus provides you with said condiment. My car now has 17k on the clock and is perfectly ok. I've also started using Castrol GTX Magnatech (which is a 10/40) and the oil usage has dropped noticeably. Personally, I just don't think that we get cold enough weather here to warrant the use of any 0/40. I'm sure it has it's place "" but it's not in my engine! I've also noticed that my engine also sounds ever so slightly less "metallic" too "" which I was never comfortable with. Also, don't forget "" your car has a dry sump "" so the oil's never too far away from your (two) heads!
RMS stands for Rear Main Seal. It's basically a small round black rubber disc with a hole in the middle. The main shaft goes through the hole and the RMS sits between the engine and gearbox. Its purpose is to prevent any oil from your engine getting personal with you clutch. For some unknown reason Porsche decided it would be a good idea to make this a crap seal and it was written that loads of people would need to get the seal replaced "" sometimes after their car had covered just a few thousand miles. Unbelievably, the problem has been reported on 997's too! My independent noticed a tiny oil stain near the flywheel on mine last year "" so I got it done under warranty and slapped a new clutch in while I was doing it. I had to pay for the clutch, but at least I know it's done now. They told me that they used a 997 RMS which "are better than the old ones"¦" Tick, tock"¦ Hope this helps. Enjoy the car!

 

[pwafer]

Thanks Adrian...

Your post has put my mind at ease. Oil consumption per-say doesn't bother me if it's supposed to happen. I may change to a higher viscosity oil when it's serviced next... I don't want to change oil types without a full oil change.

I'll keep the RMS seal issue in the back of my mind...

I AM (!) enjoying the car... the S4 was a fantasticly capable car... but never have I wanted to drive a car so much. It's like I'm 17 again... now where can I drive ?!??!?!?

P. []