2003 PORSCHE 911 CARRERA Owners Manual

Refuelling
Fueltankcapacityislistedunder"Capacities".
Porschedoesnotrecommendtheuseoffuel
additives.
1.Important:Stoptheengineandswitchoff
theignition.
2.Slowlyunscrewthetankcap.
Hangthetankcapontheplasticstrapofthe
fillerflap.
3.Insertfuel-hosenozzlefullyintothefillerneck
withthehandleofthefuel-hosenozzlefacing
down.
4.Donotaddfurtherfueloncethecorrectly
operatedautomaticfuel-hosenozzlehas
switchedoff.
Fuelcouldsprayorcouldrunoverinwarm
temperatures.
5.Replacethetankcapimmediatelyafter
refuellingandturnituntilyouhearitandfeel
itengage.

Ifyoulosethetankcap,youmustreplace
itonlywithanoriginalparttoreducethe
possibilityofafireintheeventofacolli-
sion.

Note
Theoillevelisautomaticallymeasuredduring
refuelling.
Themeasuredoillevelisdisplayedforapproxi-
matelyoneminutewhentheignitionisswitched
onortheengineisstarted.
However,thismeasurementisperformedonlyif
thefollowingpreconditionsaremet:
Engineisatoperatingtemperature,ignitionis
off,refuellingiscompletedwithin15minutes.
FuelRecommendations
YourPorscheisequippedwithcatalyticconver-
tersandmustuseUNLEADEDFUELONLY.
Yourengineisdesignedtoprovideoptimumper-
formanceandfueleconomyusingunleadedpre-
miumfuelwithanoctaneratingof98RON
(93CLCorAKI).Porschethereforerecom-
mendstheuseofthesefuelsinyourvehicle.
Porschealsorecognizesthatthesefuelsmay
notalwaysbeavailable.Beassuredthatyour
vehiclewilloperateproperlyonunleadedpre-
miumfuelswithoctanenumbersofatleast
95RON(90CLCorAKI).sincetheengine's
"ElectronicOktaneTMknockcontrol"willadapt
theignitiontiming,ifnecessary.

Theuseof
UNLEADEDFUELONLY
iscriti-
callyimportanttothelifeofthecatalytic
converters.Depositsfromleadedfuelswill
ruintheconvertersandmakeitineffective
asanemissioncontroldevice.

Carswithcatalyticconvertershaveasmaller
fueltankopening,andgasstationpumpshave
smallernozzles.Thiswillpreventaccidental
pumpingofleadedfuelintocarswithcatalytic
converters.
I>I>I>
Maintenance,CarCare
177

Unleadedfuelsmaynotbeavailableoutsidethe
continentalU.S.andCanada.Therefore,werec-
ommendyoudonottakeyourcartoareasor
countrieswhereunleadedfuelmaynotbeavail-
able.

Octaneratings

Octaneratingindicatesafuel'sabilitytoresist
detonation.Therefore,buyingthecorrectoctane
gasisimportanttopreventengine"damage".
TheRONoctaneratingisbasedontheresearch
method.TheCLC(U.S.CostofLivingCouncil
octanerating)orAKI(antiknockindex)octane
ratingusuallydisplayedonU.S.fuelpumpsis
calculatedasresearchoctanenumberplus
motoroctanenumber,dividedby2,thatiswrit-
tenas:
RON+MON
2
orR+M
2
TheCLCorAKIoctaneratingisusuallylower
thantheRONrating:
Forexample:95RONequals90CLCorAKI
178Maintenance,CarCare
Fuels
containing
alcohol
andether

SomeareasoftheU.S.requireoxygenated
fuelsduringcertainportionsoftheyear.Oxyge-
natedfuelsarefuelswhichcontainalcohols
(suchasmethanolorethanol)orether(suchas
MTBE).
Undernormalconditions,theamountofthese
compoundsinthefuelwillnotaffectdriveability.
YoumayuseoxygenatedfuelsinyourPorsche,
providedtheoctanerequirementsforyourve-
hiclearemet.Werecommend,however,to
changetoadifferentfuelorstationifanyofthe
followingproblemsoccurwithyourvehicle:
-Deteriorationofdriveabilityandperformance.
-Substantiallyreducedfueleconomy.
-Vaporlockandnon-startproblems,especially
athighaltitudeorathightemperature.
-Enginemalfunctionorstalling.
Fuels
containing
MMT
SomeNorthAmericanfuelscontainanoctane
enhancingadditivecalledmethylcyclopentadienyl
manganesetricarbonyl(MMT).
Ifsuchfuelsareused,youremissioncontrol
systemperformancemaybenegativelyaffected.
Thecheckenginewarninglightonyourinstru-
mentpanelmayturnon.
Ifthisoccurs,Porscherecommendsyoustop
usingfuelscontainingMMT.
PortableFuelContainers

A
Danger!
Portablefuelcontainers,fullorpartially
empty,mayleakcausinganexplosion,or
resultinfireincaseofanaccident.

t>Nevercarryadditionalfuelinportablecon-
tainersinyourvehicle.

EmissionControl
System
Intheinterestofclean
air
Pollutionofourenvironmenthasbecomeaprob-
lemthatisofincreasingconcerntoallofus.We
urgeyoutojoinusinoureffortsforcleanerair
incontrollingthepollutantsemittedfromthe
automobile.
Porschehasdevelopedanemissioncontrolsys-
temthatcontrolsorreducesthosepartsofthe
emissionthatcanbeharmfultoourenviron-
ment.YourPorscheisequippedwithsuchasys-
tem.
PorschewarrantstheEmissionControlSystem
inyournewcarunderthetermsandconditions
setforthintheWarrantyBooklet.
You,astheownerofthevehicle,havethe
responsibilitytoprovideregularmaintenance
serviceforthevehicleandtokeeparecordof
allmaintenanceworkperformed.Tofacilitate
recordkeeping,havetheserviceperformedby
authorizedPorschedealers.TheyhavePorsche
trainedtechniciansandspecialtoolstoprovide
fastandefficientservice.

Toassure
efficientoperationofthe
EmissionControlSystem:
I>Haveyourvehiclemaintainedproperlyandin
accordancewiththerecommendationsde-
scribedinyourMaintenanceBooklet.
Lackofpropermaintenance,aswellasim-
properuseofthevehicle,willimpairthefunc-
tionoftheemissioncontrolsystemandcould
leadtodamage.
I>Donotalterorremoveanycomponentofthe
emissioncontrolsystem.
I>Donotalterorremoveanydevice,suchas
heatshields,switches,ignitionwires,valves,
etc.,whicharedesignedtoprotectyourvehi-
cle'semissioncontrolsystem.
Inadditiontoseriousenginedamage,thiscan
resultinafireifexcessrawfuelreachesthe
exhaustsystem.
I>Donotcontinuetooperateyourvehicleifyou
detectenginemisfireorotherunusualopera-
tingconditions.
Parking

/!\Warning!
Dangeroffire.

I>Donotparkoroperatethevehicleinareas
wherethehotexhaustsystemmaycomein
contactwithdrygrass,brush,fuelspillor
otherflammablematerial.
I>Ifyourcarcatchesonfireforanyreason,call
thefiredepartment.
Donotendangeryourlifebyattemptingto
putoutthefire.
Undercoating

/!\Warning!
Dangeroffireandseriouspersonalin-
juries.

I>Donotapplyadditionalundercoatingorrust-
proofingonorneartheexhaustmanifold,ex-
haustpipes,catalyticconvertersorheat
shields.Duringdrivingthesubstanceusedfor
undercoatingcouldoverheatandignite.
I>I>I>
Maintenance,CarCare
179

HowEmissionControlWorks
Whenanautomobileengineisrunning,ituses
energygeneratedthroughthecombustionofa
mixtureofairandfuel.Dependingonwhethera
carisdrivenfastorslowlyorwhethertheen-
gineiscoldorhot,someofthefuel(hydrocar-
bons)maynotbeburnedcompletely,butmay
bedischargedintotheenginecrankcaseorex-
haustsystem.Additonalhydrocarbonsmayenter
theatmospherethroughevaporationoffuelfrom
thefueltank.Thesehydrocarbons(HC),whenre-
leasedintotheair,contributetoundesirablepol-
lution.
Inaddition,carbonmonoxide(CO)andoxidesof
nitrogen(NOx)contributetoengineemissions.
They,too,areformedduringthecombustion
processanddischargedintotheexhaustsys-
tem.
Toreducethesepollutants,yourPorscheis
equippedwithapreciselycalibratedfuelinjection
systemtoassureafinelybalancedair/fuelmix-
tureunderalloperatingconditions.
180Maintenance,CarCare
Oxygensensor
Theoxygensensor,installedintheexhaustpipe
continuouslysensestheoxygencontentofthe
exhaustandsignalstheinformationtoanelec-
troniccontrolunit.Thecontrolunitcorrectsthe
air/fuelratio,sotheenginealwaysreceivesan
accuratelymeteredair/fuelmixture.
Crankcaseventilation
Throughcrankcaseventilation,undesirable
emissionsfromtheenginecrankcasearenot
permittedtoreachtheoutsideatmosphere.
Theseemissionsarerecirculatedfromthe
crankcasetotheairintakesystem.Fromhere
theemissionsmixwiththeintakeairandare
laterburnedintheengine.
Catalyticconverters
Thecatalyticconvertersareefficient"clean-up"
devicesbuiltintotheexhaustsystemoftheve-
hicle.Thecatalyticconvertersburntheundesir-
ablepollutantsintheexhaustgasbeforeitis
releasedintotheatmosphere.
Theexclusiveuseofunleadedfueliscriti-
callyimportantforthelifeofthecatalytic
converters.Therefore,onlyunleadedfuel
mustbeused.
Thecatalyticconverterswillbedamaged
by:
-pushortowstartingthevehicle
-misfiringoftheengine
-turningofftheignitionwhilethevehicleis
movingor
-drivinguntilthefueltankiscompletelyempty
-byotherunusualoperatingconditions.
t>Donotcontinuetooperateyourvehicleunder
theseconditions,sincerawfuelmightreach
thecatalyticconverters.Thiscouldresultin
overheatingoftheconverters.Federallaw
prohibitsuseofleadedfuelinthiscar.

FuelEvaporationControl
Fuel
tank
venting
Theevaporationchamberandthecarboncanis-
terpreventfuelfromescapingtotheatmos-
phereatextremehighoutsidetemperatures,
whendrivingabruptlyaroundcurvesandwhen
thecarisparkedataninclineorinanyother
nonlevelposition.
Vaporcontrol
systemandstorage

Whenthefueltankisfilled,vaporsarecollected
intheevaporationchamberbyaventlinelead-
ingthevaporstothecarboncanisterwherethey
arestoredaslongastheenginedoesnotrun.
Purge
system

Whentheengineisrunning,thefuelvaporsfrom
thecanisterwillbemixedwithfreshairfromthe
ambientairofthecanister.Thismixturewillbe
directedtotheintakeairhousingbythetank
ventline,mixedwiththeintakeairandburned
duringnormalcombustion.
WasherFluid
Thereservoir,withabluescrewcap,isinthe
luggagecompartment,totherearleft.
Capacity
-Withoutheadlightcleaningsystem:
approximately2.5liters.
-Withheadlightcleaningsystem:
approximately6.5liters.
Cleanwaterisgenerallynotenoughtocleanthe
windshieldandheadlights.
Itisadvantageoustoaddawintercleanergiving
antifreezeprotectionorasuitablesummer
cleaner,dependingontheseason.Followthein-
structionsforthemixingratio.
t>Donotuseenginecoolantanti-freezeorany
othersolutionthatcandamagethecar's
paint,inthewasherreservoir.
t>Pleasenotealltheinformationonthecon-
tainerofthecleaningagent.
e

Warning
light
Thewarninglightsintheinstrumentpaneland
on-boardcomputerlightwhenapproximately
0.5literisleftinthereservoir.
Maintenance,CarCare
181

Power
Steering

Thehydraulicfluidreservoirislocatedintheen-
ginecompartment.
Note
Theflownoiseheardatfullsteeringlockisde-
sign-relatedanddoesnotindicateadefectin
thesteeringsystem.
182Maintenance,CarCare
/!\Warning!
Risk
of
accident.
Whentheengineisstopped(e.g.whenon
tow)orthepowersteeringhasfailedthere
isnosteeringassistance.
Therefore,substantiallymoreforcewill
havetobeexertedinordertosteer.
I>Exercisegreatcarewhenbeingtowed.
I>Havethefaultremediedatyournearestauth-
orizedPorschedealer.
Checkinghydraulicfluid
Followtheinstructionsinthe"Cautions"chapter.
OnlyusehydraulicfluidauthorizedbyPorsche.
Specification:seechapteron"Capacities".
Checkthefluidlevelwiththeenginestopped
andcold(approximately
68°F
j20°C).
1.Opentheenginecompartmentlid.
2.Openthereservoircap.
3.Wipemeasuringrod.
Closelidandreopen.Thefluidlevelshouldlie
intheareabelowthe"Cold"marking.
Addhydraulicfluidifnecessary.
4.Closecapcarefully.
Closeenginecompartmentlid.
Noticeablelossoffluidindicatesleakageinthe
system.
Thecauseshouldberemediedimmediatelyat
anauthorizedPorschedealer.

AirFilter
Adirtyairfilternotonlyreducesengineperfor-
mance,butcanleadtoprematureenginewear.
Regularfilterreplacementispartoftheroutine
maintenanceservice.
t>Industyconditions,checkthefilterelement
morefrequentlyandreplaceifnecessary.
ParticleFilter
Thefreshairpassingthroughtheparticlefilter
intothepassengercompartmentisvirtuallyfree
ofdustandpollen.
t>Iftheoutsideairispollutedbyexhaustfumes,
pressthecirculating-airbutton.
Adirtyfiltercanbethecauseofreducedair
flow:
t>Havefilterreplacedbyyourauthorized
Porschedealer.
Regularfilterreplacementispartoftheroutine
maintenanceservice.
AutomaticTransmissionFluid
Thetorqueconverterandthetransmissionare
lubricatedwithAutomaticTransmissionFluid
(ATF).Thefinaldriverequirestransmissionoil.
See"Capacities".
Donottowthecarorruntheenginewithout
ATFinthetransmission.Theautomatictrans-
missionmaybedamagedbyevenatinyspeck
ofdirt,onlyacleanfunnelorspoutmustbe
usedwhenaddingATF.
TheATFandtransmissionoilhastobechecked
andchangedattheintervalslistedinyourMain-
tenanceSchedule.
WerecommendthatyouhavetheATFandtrans-
missionoilchangedatyourPorschedealer,who
hastherequiredlubricantsandthenecessary
fillingequipment.
Ifyoususpectanoilleakinthetransmission,
haveyourauthorizedPorschedealercheckit
outimmediately.
ManualTransmissionOil
Thetransmissionoilhastobecheckedand
changedattheintervalslistedinyourMainten-
anceSchedule.See"Capacities".
Werecommendthatyouhavethetransmission
oilchangedatyourPorschedealer,whohasthe
requiredlubricantsandthenecessaryfilling
equipment.
Ifyoususpectanoilleakinthetransmission,
haveyourauthorizedPorschedealercheckit
outimmediately.
Maintenance,CarCare
183

A-Passenger'sside
B-Driver'sside
WiperBlades
[>
Whenwiperperformancedeteriorates,replace
thewipers.
[>
Followtheinstructionsinthe"CarCare"chap-
ter.
184Maintenance,CarCare
/!\Caution!
Riskofdamageifthewiperarmacciden-
tallyfallsbackontothewindow.
[>Alwaysholdthewiperarmsecurelywhenre-
placingthewiperblade.
Riskofdamageifwiperbladesthatare
frozeninplaceareloosenedimproperly.
[>
Thawthewiperbladesbeforelooseningthem.
1.Pulloutignitionkey.
Foldwiperarmawayfromthewindow.
2.Presstogethertheplasticspringofthewiper
blade(rightarrow).
Pullwiperbladeoutofwiperarm.
3.Insertnewwiperbladeandensureiten-
gages.
Ensurethatthenewwiperbladegoesinto
thesameposition(directionofspoiler)inthe
wiperarmandengages.
4.Carefullyfoldwiperarmbackontothewin-
dow.