[rxter]

I've pretty much been warned that Porsches leak oil. I saw one post here that said "Porsches don't leak oil, they just mark their territory."



My question is how true is this? I am hoping its a myth, but every time I pull the car out of the garage I lose a little more hope.

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[unknown4u]

I'm sorry to tell but my Porsche is DRY!!

<img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/biggrin.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



But only after changing o-rings etc on the front of the engine.

after cleaning the enginebay completly it also stays dry.



And I hate cars that leak oil.

Even de drivetrain is dry including the tip.



But I agree that Porsche mark there territory, specially the 911 is famous about it.

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[ds968]

I have been very fortunate ( 90,000 miles ) and not a drop with the 968... it's been bone dry, knock on wood <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

And IIRC, my 944s also did not leak oil.



But Ron ( midblue ) 's 968 is another story...I'm sure he'll chime in.



As for other models, my buddy has a '81 911 SC which constantly rests on what is a virtual oil lake in his garage, but was told by the dealers and many other mechanics that is perfectly normal for that car.

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[gryphon]

Ditto. Neither of my 968s leak a drop.



Tom

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[TheMirror]

I had a decent leak from one of the balance shaft seals, and a minor weeper from the other (upper) shaft seal. Both were corrected 5K miles ago and nothing since. 125K on the car now.



Yes Porsches leak oil, but its relatively rare that the leaks become torrents and dump all over the underside of the car.

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[flash]

on the other end of the spectrum, ron has spent about 9 grand fixing leaks on his pristine car



overall, while i've seen plenty of leaks on 968s, it is nothing like the british cars i used to deal with

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[968rz]

Mine has 75k and nothing more than a slight film around the cam cover gasket (time to replace that one), under side is dry as a bone. My 924 is the same.... so much for "All Porsche's leak oil"





must be a 911 thing <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/wink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[xrad]

I have a bad power steering leak, drained out half the bottle in one month. Have not had a chance to find which hose......(hopefully it is just a hose or compression washer...not the pump or rack...



No engine oil or trans leaks period (110000miles).. engine does not even smoke on start-up

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[PorscheDude]

Leaks?

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[rxter]

My rack has a very slight leak and I am happy to clean that up rather than replace it - ATF is cheap. It's the engine oil leaks that drive me crazy..... It was a gusher when I got it - the oil cooler hoses were shot. Replaced those but still more drops than I would like - all from the bottom - top end is dry.



Given the reports about bone-dry 68s I am resolved to tighten this one up - just hope is costs less than 9K....



I was thinking about putting the car up on ramps and using a pressure washer with a little degrease to clean the thing off so that I would have a better chance to isolate - the blow back was bad when the cooler hoses were leaking. Any dire warnings about the pwash-degrease? I know that water and engine bays are not super compatible.

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[flash]

the problem generally associated with the leaking rack is the damage it does to the suspension bushings - the sway bar bushings and castor blocks need very little encouragement to cause them to disintegrate - power steering fluid accelerates that eventuality a LOT

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[94SilverCab]

Balance Shaft seels are beginning to leak on my car 71.5k..they are being replaced by RS Barn "while they're in there" doing belts.



Regards,



Jay

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[xrad]

oh yeah, did a double check, front right torsion bushing about to squirt itself to pieces out of the retainer....(covered in steering fluid, Flash!!)....

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[RPM]

Balance shafts o rings and power steering pump connections are the ones I have had to address both on this car and my old 944S2. But the o rings were only due to a shoddy timing belt job. Right now the floor is dry (knock on wood...).

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[earossi]

If the truth be known, I believe that most Porsches leak oil. So, those of you that have bone dry bottoms on your cars should be extremely thankful.



Having owned 911's as well as 944's and (2) 968's, I can tell you first that every one of mine leaked oil! The problem is more prevalent with the 911's and also usually harder to fix when the leaker gets too bad.



The history behind cars that do not leak has to usuallly be that the previous owner stayed on top of correcting leaks as they occurred. Which is going to be my objective with my current car.



There is also an issue with running synthetic oil in cars that did not start out life on synthetics. When Mobil 1 was first marketed (I was a Mobil employee at the time), there were a slew of claims against Mobil for engine repairs for leaks that only occurred after changing from fossil oil to synthetic. When my company looked closely at the issue, it was determined that the additive package in our Mobil 1 was successfully dissolving oil "sludge" that had accummulated over the years. In all reality, the seals were probably already gone in these cars, but the sludge buildup was enough to plug any leakage path.



So, many of the 968's that have been converted to synthetics may be experienceing the same problem. The good news is that if you replace the failed seals, I doubt that you'll ever have a leaker in the immedicate future.



So, suck it up, and begin replacing the seals. Most of the seal replacements are within the capabilities of a weekend wrencher. I think that it would be difficult to spend more than $400 to replace every seal in the 968 engine. Labor, on the other hand, is the kicker.



I think that oil leaks are more prevelent in engines that are made of alloy, since alloy engines grow much more thermally with heat than do iron blocks and heads.



The only seal on the 968 that appears to be a "challenge" is the rear main since you have to pull the clutch and flywheel to get to it; and when you are in there, space is at a premium which can make the job annoying.

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[unknown4u]

earossi, what about using half-syn oil?

Will it give the same problems? or less?

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[Anchorman]

Over the years, between leaks of power steering fluid, coolant, and oil, it was a rare occasion when I did not leave a mark on my driveway. I don't want to jinx myself, but the car is now DRY. Let's see what it's taken to get there. New: radiator and coolant tank, PS rack and reservoir, various lines, hoses, and seals, and who knows what else. It's nice to no longer be ruining my own driveway.

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[txbigdog00]

With 67,000 miles on the clock, my car never leaked a drop until I had the power steering reservoir replaced because I couldn't get the lid off. The dealer had an apprentice do the work and the fittings were left untorqued. After tightening, everything is dry again. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



I do have several friends who drive a variety of different 911's and I won't let most of them park in my driveway because their cars do indeed like to "mark their territory". One friend has a '90 911 turbo. Holy crap, he must have to top up the oil tank just to drive across town! It probably hasn't been maintained properly over the years.



It seems to be a problem with the older air-cooled 911 models (pre-2000). Engine case gaskets, oil tube gaskets and oil cooler hoses is what they tell me leak most often. I don't know, I'm not a 911 expert. I just see the mess they leave all over the place. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/mad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Dan

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[rob76turbo]

[font=Arial] <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/dry.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

Let me add my woe's to this list. I recently purchased my 968, the PO had the PS Pump replaced by a local shop (will not mention the name....). Anyway the pump (a reman) had the back bolt fall out, becasue the threads in the PS Pump were stripped (figured he should have known that then the bolt would not tighten...), anyway I digress...



The crush rings on the main line down from the reservior were shot, were not replaced and started leaking, then the front seals on the pump itself started to spew fluid. Bummer eh? But mostly these cars do not leak if you take care of them and install good parts to begin with... <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/dry.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[unknown4u]

Thats the reason, Rob76turbo, I always have bought the parts at the OPC. The last time they give me 10% discount. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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