1990 Maxima
Noticed pinging going up hills.
Knock sensor bad????
Also noticed a little loss of power/torque.
Had a Camry that had a bad knock sensor.
Replacing it made a big difference.
Nissan the same????
Has anyone relocated the sensors?????

 

The knock sensor is perfectly fine. Its job is to tell you that the engine is not running properly. You are telling us that the engine pings, so the knock sensor is doing its job. Fix the pinging and the knock sensor code will go away.

 

O.P are you being cheap and putting in 87 octane?? If so splurge a little and put in the good stuff on every fill up and do a fresh "synthetic" oil change and see if it stops after a week or 2..

 

I get the recommendation RE: fuel grade, but how is it that motor oil affects pre-ignition/detonation?

 

I have come across this phenomenon. You need to adjust the ignition timing in accordance with the firmware in the ECU. The service manual describes this procedure.

 

It just started.
I did check the timing and set it to 18'.
It doesn't knock/ping all the time.
Power is OK for being so old.
Runs good.
Millage is around 18mpg.
Just changed the plugs.
One was crusty, but rest were good.
Maybe just getting old.