Your fleet running reports

[Marv]

Mine takes 1L from min to max. Obviously I can’t check it on a proper dipstick because there isn’t one, but i hadn’t checked it for a while on the digital one the other day and it came up with a message asking me to add 1L of oil (which then took it to max.)

Yep, all my cars are 1 litre between empty and full.

[Beany]

Yeah, it was on the lower 'spike' of the dipstick, now a bit below max, so a little more than that - and I'm going off the measurements on the bottle, I didn't measure it out in pyrex measuring beakers so probably somewhere between 1-1.5L, which would make more sense.

Ahem, that yellow oil light is quite useful then

[Sundayjumper]

I’m in a field. First day out with The Compact. At first I was cursing it for having no power, then realised the traction control was still on. Slightly damp surface meant it was cutting the power almost as soon as you tickled the throttle.

Traction off, tyres down to 15psi, and we’re having fun now

There will hopefully be some action shots later when stuff gets uploaded to Facebook etc.

Lovely day for it.

31C79D54-3211-4268-9364-321089F48815.jpeg (124.7 KiB) Viewed 3435 times

[GG.]

2nd gen PSE has a centre silencer that isn’t there on the 997.1. Basically they were having problems with drive by noise regs and on the 997.1 they had an electronic circuit that automatically closed the valves again at certain speeds and revs. The centre silencer on the .2 is a permanent mechanical solution.

Obviously this takes the edge off the sound so many people fit either x-pipes or non-merged bypass pipes and remove the centre silencer. X pipes smooth the sound but crossovers are less restrictive. Sharkwerks do a very respected version but with FX rates plus import duties it ends up being the think end of a grand for two bits of mandrel bent pipe.

H&S do pretty much exactly the same in the UK for half the price.

Ok... so this has been (at best) a partial success.

Big issue is that the switchable flaps are now not working, or at least not properly. I can hear the click of them operating but there is also a rattling which I presume is one or both of the valves not closing shut. As a result it sounds pretty much the same with the button on and off and I only effectively have 'loud'. This is obviously an issue as 'loud' is now LOUD

On to the sound - well, with your foot in it and over 3k rpm it is pretty epically, ASBO head turning loud. Quite interesting that the centre silencer makes that much difference. This is obviously great fun for a bit but I run up against the nagging doubt that although louder, is it better if we take tone and resonance into account...

As I said, in the upper rev reaches and on full throttle it does sound great and is arguably what I wanted (if maybe a little too much 'blare') but the problem is at idle, blipping to move off the line and part throttle at lower revs, it increases the decibels but the sound is now not as tuneful and sounds a bit too much like a stereotypical 'loud aftermarket exhaust'. It isn't Citroen Saxo with a dustbin for a back box but it is more of a boy racer tone than before... It also previously had a fantastic howl at 4k on part throttle that is now pretty much gone.

I have a service coming up in November at 9e so I could get them to fix the valves and regain quiet mode (but slightly less quiet) but I'm not sure even with that restored that it would be a success as I'd then have quiet mode that isn't quite as stealthy as before for when you want to be totally under the radar and a loud mode that is louder but worse sounding than the previous setup. On that basis I'll probably have fun being a yobbo with it until late October and then swap back to the stock PSE. I'm up in Yorkshire next weekend so I'll get a proper vid of the sound and post then - the in-car iphone footage I have doesn't really give a true impression.

A somewhat expensive experiment but I'm just glad I didn't spend twice as much on a Sharkwerks version! Oh and as the generally positive comments on the mod on Pistonheads demonstrate - people on the internet are often DIW!

[Mito Man]

Shouldn’t yours sound just like a 997.1 with the centre silencer removed? Clearly there must be more to it than just removing a silencer then!

The factory sports exhausts tend to sound pretty decent, compare a bunch of engineers testing stuff for many hours vs a couple of guys bending pipes in a shed!

[GG.]

Well its the same in terms of numbers of silencers but not the same layout - in the 997.1 the cats are up behind the bumper where the centre muffler is on the .2 and on the .2 the cats are pretty much where you'd often find a collector at the end of the manifold.

997.2



997.1



You are right of course re factory engineers tuning a system to sound just so versus playing around with aftermarket bits. The ideal would be a three stage system off as per factory setup - basically silent, a middle setting like the factory sport on and then a third that bypasses the middle section for out in the country blasts.

Just went out for another drive and it is fun when driving aggressively but unfortunately you're not always doing that and having everyone on the roadside turn around to look at you everytime you put your foot down is fine for a while but I expect will get old quickly.

[unzippy]

Changed the oil on Sunday, thought I'd try out my Lidl special Ulitmate Speed Oil Pump. Would be handy not having to take the trolley jack and axle stands 3 floors down, jack up the car, remove the under tray etc.



Then I realised to get to the oil filter I need go back upstairs, fetch the trolley jack and axle stands 3 floors down, jack up the car, remove the under tray etc. I must have been getting confused the M3 filter location ::)

The smaller tube fitted down the dipstick fine, stuffed it down untill it wouldn't stuff anymore.



It's slow. When it started sucking air I inched the tube back and it started picking up more oil, eventully I couldn't get any more out.

Given the engine is meant hold 4.6L, I don't think I got it all.




The extra from opening the sump plug:




The rest from the filter and houseing:




So on this particualr car, it's no good. I'm guessing there will be baffles/sheilds stopping the tube getting to the botom of the sump.


Impressed with this over here - SuperCheapAuto (one of their versions of Halfords) have bins to return your old oil for free - handy.

[Simon]

I'd never ever trust those vacuum thingies. At the end of the day you're not going to get the same out as by taking the sump plug out and letting everything properly drain for an hour or so.

I take my oil and filter to the tip, where they have a tank for the oil and a special bin for the filter.

[Mito Man]

I store it all, that’s free creosote.

[Sundayjumper]

I take my oil and filter to the tip, where they have a tank for the oil and a special bin for the filter.

Same. I have a couple of old jerry cans I use to store the used oil, it's enough to do a few oil changes before needing to go to the tip.

[Sundayjumper]

I’m in a field.

[mik]

Changed the oil on Sunday, thought I'd try out my Lidl special Ulitmate Speed Oil Pump. Would be handy not having to take the trolley jack and axle stands 3 floors down, jack up the car, remove the under tray etc.

Kinda irrelevant as it doesnt seem to pull all the oil from the sump, but out of interest was that oil hot? My pela pump drew oil out at a similar pace when cold, but was fiftington times faster with the oil at normal running temperature.

[V8Granite]

I was dead against the suction pumps for years and to be honest I still use the drain plug on every other oil change.

BUT, when I did the ML at first I sucked out as much as I could, I have a manual suction pump, slow but good. I then removed the sump plug and got maybe a quarter of a teacup out. The dipstick tube basically touches the bottom of the sump.

It’s very handy for the interim oil changes the anally retentive do, so works great for me.

Dave!

[speedingfine]

I’m in a field.

I'd love to do something like that in the 7, but how flat is it? I'd be worried about my sump

[Sundayjumper]

I'd love to do something like that in the 7, but how flat is it? I'd be worried about my sump

It'd probably be fine. The surface gets a bit rutted through the day but it's just dirt, it's quite gentle. My Porsche coped OK last year !

PastureBlaster3.jpg (79.8 KiB) Viewed 3201 times

[Beany]

I take my oil and filter to the tip, where they have a tank for the oil and a special bin for the filter.

No filter bin at my local, but Scarbs and Pudsey have a tank for used oil. Just take your drain can and dump it in.

Aside: Greasy roads and stupidly wide, rather low on tread rears = massive slides. Big enough that I turned the traction control back on after accidentally getting it a bit more sideways than I was expecting

Has anyone got a book on me ripping the suspension out from under the car after getting a bit over-exuberant with the loud pedal?

[Sundayjumper]

Has anyone got a book on me ripping the suspension out from under the car after getting a bit over-exuberant with the loud pedal?

Faster than Rich B crashed his E30 ??

[Rich B]

Has anyone got a book on me ripping the suspension out from under the car after getting a bit over-exuberant with the loud pedal?

Faster than Rich B crashed his E30 ??

Indeed!

very little experience - any talent + far too much excitement = 4 bent wheels +1 shattered sump + some bent rear suspension + a nice dent in the rear quarter.

I learnt my lesson quickly that day! Thankfully I still had my other e30!

[unzippy]

Changed the oil on Sunday, thought I'd try out my Lidl special Ulitmate Speed Oil Pump. Would be handy not having to take the trolley jack and axle stands 3 floors down, jack up the car, remove the under tray etc.

Kinda irrelevant as it doesnt seem to pull all the oil from the sump, but out of interest was that oil hot? My pela pump drew oil out at a similar pace when cold, but was fiftington times faster with the oil at normal running temperature.

It was an experiment, now I know the shields/windage/baffles in the sump of a MK5 Golf Edition 30 aren't conducive to sucking all the oil out.

I'd say it was 40 deg or so. The instructions say don't do it if the oil is hotter than 60 deg.

[Mito Man]

I bought that Lidl pump to empty my aquarium years ago but it died after a few minutes - like most of the DIY crap they sell. Surprised it actually managed to suck oil.