What oil should I use in my newer Porsche requiring a “Porsche approved” oil, like the M96 engine?
We do not recommend use of most of the Porsche “approved” oils in any aircooled engine, including the 84 and later engines up to and including the 993 that are recommended to run these approved oils. In the search for a “Porsche approved” oil, a quick glance at various Porsche owners manuals for a Turbo and GT2 as late as 2004 showed a recommendation for an API SH or SJ motor oil, so my recommendation is to find an approved oil with at least an API SL rating – an API SH or SJ would be even better. Additionally, try to use a 5w40 rather than a 0w40, as the viscosity with the narrower spread will have a higher high temperature high shear viscosity and should protect critical engine parts better at the upper limits. You do not need a 0w over a 5w until cold start temperatures are under -25C. Do not run any Xw-30 oil in your Porsche, aircooled engines included! Coupled with Google and armed with the “overview of engine oils approved by Porsche “Porsche approval list”, including some oils t
