Earlier today I had my oil changed by a local car wash and oil change place down the street from where I work. I am happy to report that it was very reasonable in cost....$40 labor. I supplied the oil and ordered the filter from Suncoast. So total expenditure was about $130 or so.

Before I went this route I called my local Porsche dealer and explained that the car had the full service at 9000 miles and I didn't really need another full service a year later with only 13000 miles. I did however want an oil change. He informed me that he wanted me to be happy and the cost for the oil change alone would be $300.

Just wanted to let everyone know that the oil change is not difficult and local shops with a little know how should be able to do it for far less than the dealers.

I live in south jersey. If anyone needs the name or number of the place that did it for me feel fee to shoot me a pm.

 

I share your general sentiment... Anyone can do an oil change.. It is one of the most trivial maint things you can do.. My opinion is that most here grossly overpay by doing this at a dealer.. Cost of 9 quarts of mobile 1 and a filter can be had for about $100.. And labor wise it's a 30 to 45 minute job.. So to me I'm not willing to pay more than about $175 otherwise I'll simply just do it myself..

That said I'm a little more selective about who I let put their greasy paws on my car.. (Even my non 911s)... The chain oil places are so ignorant and focused on up sell I can't stand the thought of them..

So a good independent shop that works on Porsches is my preference.. And I find a good balance of price and peace of mind...

 

I understand why some folks don't choose to perform their own oil change or general maintenance stuff. I get it. I've been there -- great just dropping my car off and come back later to have everything done. Loved the "free" service from BMW on my M3 for several years. But with my 991, there is more to it than cost. I just simply like doing it myself. That being said, I don't understand the high cost charged being justified, knowing what I know about the procedure.

For comparison sake, here is what I spent recently to do my own change at 3,700 miles:

Qty 1 Porsche Oil Change "Kit" incl filter, gasket, washer $22
Qty 2 Mobil 1 0W-40 Oil in 5 Quart Jugs from Walmart $75.96 (37.98 ea)

That brought my total materials cost to $97.96

I can't recall how long it took me -- I got the car up on ramps, started draining the old oil, got on a conf call for an hour, came back to the car and it was done draining. Took me about 30 minutes after that to do the rest, including adding 9 quarts new oil after I put the new filter on.

Just my "experience" comparison for reference. To each his/her own....

 

Frankly the hardest part of the service is removing the oil filter cover without disturbing the cables and wires "guarding" it.

 

+1^

You just reminded me of another reason I like doing this myself... I get the chance to check for any other issues, and learn about the various mechanicals that wouldn't be seen most of the time. Case in point, when I was taking the engine cover / fan housing off, I noticed one of the rubber grommets that the cover snaps into was missing. I have an idea I know when it went missing (cover has been off twice by dealer in the past 7 months for warranty work), but I wouldn't have noticed something like that in normal use of the car. I like things to be perfect, plus I had a reason to drive over to my dealer to get a replacement!

 

Many shops will use this as justification for their multi-hundred dollar labor fee on an oil change. And it's not without value - having an experienced and trained Porsche technician "look over" the car while he's (or she's) doing an oil change is not a bad idea.

Me personally, I do my own oil changes for many of the same reasons that jawells does, plus I'm cheap. And I have some shade tree experience working on cars, so I can look around while the oil drains and see if anything looks odd or worn, or unusual leaks. You're generally not going to get that a fast lube place. I would never take my car there. I know the games they play, the quality of people who work there (little to no training or skills) and my personal experience with non-Porsche repair shops is that the new guy is always the one who does the oil changes, which means you've got more chances for something to go wrong, be forgotten or parts not replaced.

 

I bought an ezCarLift a year ago and do a lot of maint. myself now. More than anything else it is a very satisfying feeling wrenching on my own car.

 

Did the oil change myself for a grand total of $90..... then Porsche rapes you for a labor charge of $62 just to reset the notification light.
Next time I'll leave it on!

 

DIY is way to go!

 

Wow - guess I am lucky then. Dealer didn't charge me anything to reset the big yellow reminder message after I did the oil change myself. Had the car in for other stuff, simply asked if they could reset --- no charge, nothing. Happy me!

 

Mine was at the dealer for a campaign so they reset the notification light for me.

 

My used CPO car came with a 5 year maintenance plan. Of course the dumbsh!t salesperson never told me that. Thank god these cars sell themselves or there would be a lot of starving Porsche sales people out there...so, I just take it in and its all free...great perk!

Once the plan is over and the CPO warranty runs out, I will be taking it to my independent guy who used to service my 2007 997.1 coupe. Did an oil change and inspection for $150.00....

 

Totally agree.. In the aircraft world (light general aviation airplanes) we always do a preflight before every flight. It isn't like anyone expects you to be a mechanic... but it's a real good idea to be familiar with details of your aircraft and how things work for obvious reasons...

So I liken this to that in that you get to know what things should look like and how they work, so you start to know when something isn't quite right.. Doesn't help you with internal engine things, but gives you a heads up to leaks and cracked hoses and stuff like that which might strand you someplace late at night..

 

Wait? What?? is this for all CPO Porsches? 5 year maintenance plan as part of the CPO?


Good to hear most don't want to pay the dealer and are doing it themselves. I feel less cheap now.

 

No, not at all...original owner bought the maintenance plan, it transferred with the VIN...