2003 PORSCHE 911 CARRERA Owners Manual

CarCareInstructions
Followtheinstructionsinthe"Cautions.
chapter.
Regularandcorrectcarehelpstomaintain
thevalueofyourcarandisalsoaprecon-
ditionfortheNewVehicleWarrantyandthe
AntiCorrosionWarranty.
YourauthorizedPorschedealerhasspe-
ciallydevelopedcar-careproductsfromthe
Porscheprogramavailableeithersinglyor
ascompletecar-caresets.Theywillbe
pleasedtohelpyouselectsuitablepro-
ducts.
WhetheryouusePorscheproductsorother
commerciallyavailablecleaningagentsfirst
makesureoftheircorrectapplication.
APorschethatiswell-caredforcanlooklike
newforyears.Italldependsontheamountof
caretheowneriswillingtogivethecar.
A.Warning!
Riskofseriouspersonalinjuryordamage
tothevehicleorproperty.
Cleaningagentsmaybehazardoustoyour
health.
Mostchemicalcleanersareconcentrates
whichrequiredilution.Highconcentrations
mightcauseproblemsrangingfromirrita-
tiontoseriousinjuryaswellasdamageto
yourvehicle.
I>Keepcleaningagentsoutofreachfromchild-
ren.
I>Observeallcautionlabels.
I>Alwaysreaddirectionsonthecontainerbe-
foreusinganyproduct.Thesedirectionsmay
containinformationnecessarytoavoidper-
sonalinjury.
I>Donotusefuel,kerosene,naphtha,nailpolish
removerorothervolatilecleaningfluids.They
maybetoxic,flammableorhazardousin
otherways.Onlyusespotremovingfluidsina
wellventedarea.
I>Donotcleantheundersideofchassis,fen-
ders,wheelcovers,etc.,withoutprotecting
yourhandsandarmsasyoumaycutyour-
selfonsharp-edgedmetalparts.
Moistureandroadsaltonbrakesmayaffect
brakingefficiency.
I>Testthebrakesaftereachvehiclewashing.
I>I>I>
Maintenance,CarCare
185

Washing
Thebestmethodofprotectingyourcarfrom
thedamagingeffectsoftheenvironmentisfre-
quentwashingandtheapplicationofapreserv-
ative.Theundersideofyourvehicleshouldalso
bewashedthoroughly,atthelatestwhensaltis
nolongerspreadontheroads.
Thelongersalt,roaddustandindustrialdust,
deadinsects,birddroppingsorsubstancesfrom
trees(resin,pollen)areallowedtoremainonthe
bodywork,themoreseriousistheirharmfulef-
fect.
Newcarsshouldbewashedcarefullywithplenty
ofclearwatertoprotectthenewpaintwork.
Darkpaintfinishesshowupthesmallestofsur-
facedamage(e.g.,scratches)morereadilythan
lightercolors.
Darkcolorsarealsomoresusceptibleto
scratchingbecauseofthecompositionoftheir
pigmentsandrequireparticularlycarefulpaint
care.
[>
Donotwashyourcarinbrightsunlightor
whilethebodyworkisstillhot.
[>Whenwashingbyhand,useabundantwater,
asoftspongeorwashbrush,andPorsche
carshampoo.
[>Beginbysprayingthebodythoroughlywith
watertorinseawayloosedirt.
186Maintenance,CarCare
[>
Afterwashing,rinsethecarwithplentyof
waterandthendrywithachamoisleather.
Donotusethesamechamoisleatherfor
dryingasyouuseforcleaningthewindshield
andwindows.
/!\.Warning!
Moisturewhichgetsontothebrakesduring
acarwashcanreducebrakingefficiencyor
makethebrakespullunevenlywhichcould
increasethedangerofanaccident,causing
seriouspersonalinjuriesordeath.
[>Alwaysapplythebrakesafewtimesafter
washingthecartotestbrakingefficiencyand
drythebrakediscs.
Whendoingthis,takecarenottohamper
otherroadusersbehindyou(trafficconditions
permitting).

Automatic
carwashes
Optionaladd-onpartsorpartswhichproject
beyondthecontoursofthevehiclemaybe
damagedbydesignfeatures(e.g.brushes)of
automaticcarwashes.
Thefollowing
parts
areparticularlysuscep-
tibletodamage:
-Windshieldwipers(alwaysswitchthemoffto
preventthemwipingunintentionallyinintermit-
tentorsensoroperation)
-Externaltelephoneantennas(alwaysunscrew)
-RoofTransportSystem(alwaysremovecom-
pletely)
-Fixedrearspoilerorextendedrearspoiler
-Wheels(thewidertherimandthelowerthe
tireheight,thegreatertheriskofdamage)
-High-glosswheels(topreventthesefromget-
tingscratched,donotcleanwiththewheel-
cleaningbrushesofthecarwash).
[>
Pleaseconsulttheoperatorbeforeusingauto-
maticcarwashes.
[>Washanddrybyhandallpointsnotreached
byacarwash,suchasdoorandlidseamsor
doorsills.
Note
Automaticcarwashesspraywateratodd
anglesandhighpressures,whicharenotseen
innormaldriving.Therefore,watercansome-
timesfinditswayintothepassengerscompart-
mentduringorshortlyafterthecarwash.

Convertibletop
I>Neverremovesnowandiceusingasharp
edgedobject.
Incorrectcareandtreatmentcandamagethe
convertibletopandcauseleaks.Anyrepairwork
canbedonebyyourauthorizedPorschedealer.

Importantnote
Nofoldingtopis100%leakproof.

Duetotheconstantchangingofloadsand
strainstowhichacarissubjecttowhendriving
onroads,minorwindnoiseandseepageat
jointsbetweenthetop,bodyanddoorsoncon-
vertibletopscannotbecompletelysealedincer-
tainareas.Thereforesmallleaksareconsidered
normalforthesemodels.Inaddition,yourcon-
vertibletopshouldnotbewashedinacarwash.
Thetopmayexperiencedamagebythebrushes
ormayexperienceleaksduetothehighpress-
urewaterstreamsdirectedinareaswhichwould
notencounterwaterinnormaldrivingconditions.
Cleaning
Donotwashtheconvertibletopeachtimethe
cariswashed.
Itisusuallysufficienttosprayorwashitwith
cleanwater.
I>Brushdustofftheconvertibletopinthedirec-
tionoftheweaveusingasoftbrush.
I>Onlyifthereisheavydirt,wettheconvertible
topwithlukewarmwaterandthePorsche
Wash-Shampoo&convertible-topcleaner,
usingaspongeorsoftbrush,andrubgently.
RinseWash-Shampoo&convertible-top
cleanerthoroughlyofftheconvertibletopwith
cleanwater.
I>Afterwashingit,treattheconvertible-top
coveratleastonceayearwiththespecial
Porscheconvertible-topcareproduct.
Donotallowtheconvertible-topcareproduct
tocomeintocontactwithpaintorwindows.If
itdoes,removeimmediately.
I>Ifthereisleakageintheconvertible-topcover
oratitsseamsorfolds,thespecialPorsche
convertible-topcareproductcanbeused.
I>Pleasenotetheinformationonthecontainer.
I>Removebirddroppingsimmediatelysincethe
acidinthemwillmaketherubberswelland
theconvertibletopwillbecomeleaky.
I>Openconvertibletoponlywhenitiscom-
pletelydry,otherwisedampstainsandscrub
marksmayoccurwhichcannotberemoved.
I>Trytoremovespotsfromtheconvertible-top
coverbyrubbingcarefullywithasoftrubber
sponge.
Doorlocks
I>Topreventthedoorlocksfromfreezingdur-
ingthecoldseason,thelockcylindersshould
becoveredduringawash.
I>Shouldthelocksfreeze,useanordinaryde-
icer.Inmanycases,awellwarmedkeycan
help.
Neveruseexcessiveforce.
I>I>I>
Maintenance,CarCare
187

Paint

[>
Neverrubadustycarwithadryclothsince
dustparticlesareabrasiveandcoulddulland
damagethesurfacefinish.
Thepaintworkofyourcarisexposedtoall
typesofmechanicalandchemicalconditions,
particularlyclimaticonessuchasbrightsunlight,
rain,frostandsnow.Ultravioletlight,rapid
changesintemperature,rain,snow,industrial
dustandchemicaldepositsconstantlyattackthe
paintwhichisonlyabletowithstandsuchexpo-
sureinthelongtermifitisgivenregularcare
andattention.
[>
Donotapplysiliconepolishestothewind-
shield,windowsorconvertibletop.
[>
Donottreatmatt-paintedcomponentswith
preservativesorpolishesasthiswillspoilthe
matteeffect.
188Maintenance,CarCare
Preservation
Thepaintsurfacebecomesdullovertimedueto
weathering.Itisthereforenecessarytopreserve
thepaintregularly.
Thiskeepsthepaintshinyandelastic.Dirtis
preventedfromadheringtothepaintsurface
andindustrialdustispreventedfrompenetrating
thepaint.
Provideditiswashedandtreatedwithpreserv-
ativeregularly,thebrandnewfinishofyourcar
willberetainedforyearstocome.
[>ApplythePorschepaintpreservativeafterthe
carwashandpolishitdrytoobtainabright
finishorsimplyaddaliquidpreservativeregu-
larlytothefinalrinsewater.
Polishing
DonotresorttousingPorschepolishuntilit
becomesevidentthatthenormalpreservatives
nolongerproducethedesiredfinish.

Spotsandstains

[>
Removetarstains,grease,oilspotsanddead
insectsassoonaspossiblewithInsect
Remover.Theycancausediscolorationif
allowedtoremainonthepaintwork.
[>
Washtheaffectedareaimmediatelyafter
treatingit.
Minor
paintdamage

[>
Haveminorpaintdamage,suchasscratches,
scoresorchipscausedbyflyingstones,re-
pairedimmediatelybyyourauthorized
Porschedealerbeforecorrosionsetsin.
However,iftherearealreadytracesofcorro-
sion,theymustfirstberemovedcarefullyand
thoroughly.Coattheareawitharust-proofing
primerandfinishoffwithatopcoat.Thepaint
codeandcolornumberarefoundonthevehi-
cle'spaintdataplate.

Enginecompartment
Theenginecompartmentandthesurfaceofthe
enginearetreatedwithacorrosion-inhibitorat
thefactory.
Ifdegreasingsolventsareusedtocleantheen-
ginecompartmentortheengineiswashed
down,theprocessalmostinvariablyremoves
thecorrosion-inhibitingcoating.Itisthenabso-
lutelynecessarytohaveadurablepreservative
appliedtoallsurfaces,bodyseams,jointsand
assembliesintheenginecompartment.Thisalso
applieswhencorrosion-inhibitorpartsarere-
placed.
Effectivecorrosion-proofingisparticularlyimport-
antduringthecoldweatherseason.Ifyourcar
isdrivenfrequentlyinareaswheresalthasbeen
spreadontheroads,thewholeenginecompart-
mentshouldbecleanedthoroughlyafterthe
wintertopreventsaltfromcausinganylasting
damage.Afullunder-bodywashshouldalsobe
performedatthesametime.
ACaution!
Riskofdamagetothegenerator.
I>Donotpointthecleaningjetdirectlyatthe
generator,orcoverthegenerator.
Windows
Theroaddustwhichsettlesonthewindshield
andwindowscontainsparticlesoftirerubber
andoilresidue.Theinteriortrimandupholstery
releaseparticles,particularlyinstrongsunlight,
whichcollectontheinsidesofthewindows.
Thesedepositsareaugmentedbyimpuritiesin
theairwhichentersthecarthroughthefreshair
vents.
I>Cleanallwindowsregularly,insideandout-
side,withPorschewindowcleaner.
I>Ifyouuseachamoisleatherforthewindows,
donotuseitforpaintworkasitwillotherwise
pickupacertainamountofpreservativeor
polishandcouldsmearthewindowsandthus
impairvision.
I>RemovedeadinsectswiththePorscheinsect
remover.
Wiperblades
Wiperbladesthatareinperfektconditionare
vitalforaclearview.
I>Replacethewiperbladestwiceperyear(be-
foreandafterthecoldseason)orwhenever
wiperperformancedeteriorates.
I>Periodicallycleanthewiperbladeswith
Porschewindowcleaner,especiallyafterthe
vehiclehasbeenwashedinacarwash.
Iftheyareverydirty(e.g.withinsectre-
mains),theycanbecleanedwithaspongeor
cloth.
Undercoating
Theundersideofyourcarisdurablyprotected
againstchemicalandmechanicalinfluences.
Asitisnotpossibletoexcludetheriskofdam-
agetothisprotectivecoatingindaytodaydriv-
ing,itisadvisabletohavetheundersideofthe
carinspectedatcertainintervals-preferablybe-
forethestartofwinterandagaininspring-and
theundercoatingrestoredasnecessary.
YourauthorizedPorschedealerisfamiliarwith
thebodysealtreatmentproceduresandhasthe
necessaryequipmentforapplyingfactoryap-
provedmaterials.Werecommendthatyouen-
trustthemwithsuchworkandinspections.
Unlikeconventionalsprayoils,undercoatingand
rust-proofingcompoundsbasedonbitumenor
waxdonotattackthesound-proofingmaterials
appliedatthefactory.
I>I>I>
Maintenance,CarCare
189

/!\Warning!
Dangeroffireandseriouspersonalin-
juries.

t>Donotapplyadditionalundercoatingorrust-
proofingonorneartheexhaustmanifold,ex-
haustpipes,catalyticconvertersorheat
shields.Duringdrivingthesubstanceusedfor
undercoatingcouldoverheatandignite.
t>Beforeapplyingfreshunderseal,carefully
removedepositsordirtandgrease.Onceit
hasdried,thenewundercoatingcompound
formsatoughprotectivecoatingwhichpro-
videsefficientrust-proofingofthefloorpanels
andcomponents.
t>Alwaysapplyafreshcoatingofsuitablepre-
servativetounprotectedareasaftercleaning
theundersideofthebody,thetransmission,
theengineorcarryingoutrepairstounder-
body,engineortransmissioncomponents.
Effectiverust-proofingisparticularlyimportant
duringthecoldweatherseason.Ifyourcaris
drivenfrequentlyinareaswheresalthasbeen
spreadontheroads,thewholeenginecompart-
mentshouldbecleanedthoroughlyafterthe
wintertopreventsaltfromcausinganylasting
damage.Afullunder-bodywashshouldalsobe
performedatthesametime.
190Maintenance,CarCare
Door,roof,lidandwindowseals
t>Washdirt(e.g.abrasion,dust,roadsalts)
fromallsealsregularlyusingwarmsoapy
water.Donotuseanychemicalcleaning
agentsorsolvents.
Whenthereisafrosthazard,theouterdoor
sealsandthefrontandrearlidsealscanbe
protectedagainstfreezingintoplacebyasuit-
ablecareproduct.

Inordertopreventdamagetotheanti-fric-
tioncoating,theinnerdoorseals,thecon-
vertibletopsealsandhardtopsealsmust
notbetreatedwithcareproducts.

Headlights,lights,interiorandexterior
plasticparts
t>Use
only
cleanwaterandalittledishwashing
detergenttocleanlightlenses,plastichead-
lightlenses,plasticpartsandsurfaces.
Donotcleanwhendry.
Useasoftspongeorasoft,lint-freecloth.
Gentlywipethesurfacewithoutapplyingtoo
muchpressure.
ThePorscheinsidewindowcleanerisalso
suitableforcleaningplasticsurfaces.Follow
thecleaninginstructionsonthecontainer.
Neveruseotherchemicalcleanersor
solvents.
t>Rinsecleanedsurfaceswithclearwater.

Lightalloywheels

Alsoreferto"Carwashes".
Pittingmayoccurifmetallicparticleswhich
causecontactcorrosion(e.g.brassorcopperin
brakedust)areallowedtoremainonthealu-
minumfortoolong.
I>Ifpossible,washthewheelswithaspongeor
washbrushabouteverytwoweeks.Inareas
wheresaltisspreadonwinterroadsorthere
isalotofairborneindustrialdust,itisbestto
cleanthewheelsweekly.

ThePorscheLightAlloyWheelCleaner
(ph-value9.5)canbeusedforthispur-
pose.
Iftheph-valueofthedetergentisincor-
rect,theprotectivecoatingonthewheels
willbedestroyed.
Polisheswhichdissolveoxides,suchas
thosefrequentlyusedforothermetals,or
abrasivetoolsoragentsareunsuitablebe-
causetheybreakdowntheoxidefilmof
theprotectivecoatingandwillcausedisco-
lorationofthewheel.
I>
Everythreemonths,aftercleaning,coatthe
wheelswithacarwaxornon-corrosive
grease(vaseline).
Usingacleancloththoroughlyrubthegrease
intothesurface.

Leather
Characteristicsandspecialfeatures

Thenaturalsurfacemarkingsofleather,e.g.
creases,healedscars,insectstingmarks,struc-
turaldifferencesandslightvariationsinshade
andgrainaddtotheattractivenessofthenatu-
ralleatherproduct.
Aspecialmentionmustbemadehereofnatural
leather.
Fornaturalleather,carefullyselectedhidesof
thehighestqualityareused.Itisnotcovered
completelywithdyeonproduction.
"Nature'ssignature"isthereforeeasilyrecognis-
able.
Thisfinematerialisdistinguishedbyanout-
standingseatingcomfort,specialsuppleness
andatypicalpatina.

Leathercareandtreatment
I>
Cleanalltypesofleatherregularlytoremove
finedustusingasoft,damp,whitewoollen
clothoracommerciallyavailablemicrofibre
cloth.

I>
RemoveheavycontaminationwithPorsche
leathercleaner.
Pleasealwaysfollowtheinstructionsforuse
givenonthecontainers.

Causticcleanersandhardcleaningobjects
mustnotbeused.
Perforatedleathermustundernocircum-
stancesgetwetonitsreverseside.

Oncecleaned,leather(particularlytheheavily
stressedleatherseats)mustbetreatedonly
withPorscheleathercareliquid.
Maintenance,CarCare
191

Fabric,upholstery,carpetsand
floor-mats
t>Useonlyavacuumcleaneroramediumstiff
brush.
t>RemovestainsandspotswithPorschestain
remover.
ThePorscherangeofaccessoriesincludes
floor-matstoprotectthecarpetsinsummerand
winter.
A
Warning!
Riskofanaccident.
t>Alwayscheckthemovementofthepedalsbe-
foredrivingandmakesurethattheyarenot
obstructedbyafloormatoranyotherobject.
t>Securethefloormattopreventitfromsliding
intopositionsthatcouldinterferewiththe
safeoperationofyourvehicle-donotlie
themlooselyinthevehicle.
YourPorschedealerwillbegladtoofferyou
floormatsofthecorrectsizeincludingase-
curingpossibility.
192Maintenance,CarCare
Alcantara
Donotusealeathercareproducttoclean
Alcantara.
Forregularcareitissufficienttocleanthe
coverwithasoftbrush.
Cleaningwhenlightlysoiled
t>Wetasoftclothwithwateroraneutralsoap
solutionandwipeoffthedirt.
Cleaningwhenheavilysoiled
t>Wetasoftclothwithlukewarmwateror
thinnedwhitespiritanddabthedirtfromthe
outsidein.

Safetybelts

Ifitbecomesnecessarytocleanthebelts,you
canuseanymildwashingagent.
Allowthebeltstodrypriortoretracting,but
avoiddirectsunlight.
t>Onlyusesuitablecleaners.
Ifunsuitablecleanersareusedoranyattempt
ismadetodyeorbleachthebelts,theweb-
bingmaybeweakenedandthusconstitutea
safetyrisk.