What fuel to use ?
03-31-2009, 04:01 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Posts: 1,380
What fuel to use ?
Hi
My Nissan Maxima 97 GXE.......A/T...167K miles
1-What fuel to use ? the cheapest ? the best ? if I can afford to pay.....
2-May the CEL light contribute to type of Fuel ?
3-Is it right to "don't go below half the tank" technique ???
Thanks ...
My Nissan Maxima 97 GXE.......A/T...167K miles
1-What fuel to use ? the cheapest ? the best ? if I can afford to pay.....
2-May the CEL light contribute to type of Fuel ?
3-Is it right to "don't go below half the tank" technique ???
Thanks ...
03-31-2009, 05:51 PM
#5
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: College Station, TX
Posts: 243
Shell or Chevron (Top tier fuels), 91+ octane.
#3 - No this technique isn't 'retarded', it keeps impurities that settle at the bottom of your tank from working their way into the fuel line/engine. I'd say 'under half' is a little extreme. I don't let mine go under 1/8.
#3 - No this technique isn't 'retarded', it keeps impurities that settle at the bottom of your tank from working their way into the fuel line/engine. I'd say 'under half' is a little extreme. I don't let mine go under 1/8.
03-31-2009, 06:09 PM
#6
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man i miss the .org in some ways
anything over 91 is a waste of money unless you installed a turbo
just use 91
you can get your tank down to zero, no difference, impurities only settle when youre not driving, when you are driving its all mixed up and looks like w brown mixture
anything over 91 is a waste of money unless you installed a turbo
just use 91
you can get your tank down to zero, no difference, impurities only settle when youre not driving, when you are driving its all mixed up and looks like w brown mixture
03-31-2009, 07:16 PM
#9
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Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Connecticut / Western Mass
Posts: 460
2) No.
3) Never heard of it, but it wouldn't matter unless you rarely drive your car. From the time you start the car to when you turn it off your gas is being circulated therefor passing the fuel filter. So to me it doesn't seem like a "technique". To each their own.
03-31-2009, 07:44 PM
#12
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Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Jersey
Posts: 92
yea pretty sure the fuel pump takes from the bottom, if i recall from one of the hundreds of threads pmohr talks of
04-01-2009, 05:37 PM
#16
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Lowell/Boston, MA
Posts: 1,613
I stopped using Shell because it tends to give me worse Gas mileage. I used to use it all the time because I like the Vpower but the issue I have around my area is 90% of the shells around here are owned by indian people. Alot of them are really cheap people too. Some not even going to the new shell logo at all. Now I heard some horror stories of some Shell stations in my area mixing there gas. In other words. If they are low on Prem fuel. They will mix the others if they have plenty and still sell it at prem price. I found this out by someone who used to work for them.
Anyway, Anything Mobil 93 is great. I been getting about 330-340 miles to the Gas Empty light from a full tank turned off form first click. I don't go below the light too often. Shell Vpower gave me 304 miles to the light. sooo yah.
Anyway, Anything Mobil 93 is great. I been getting about 330-340 miles to the Gas Empty light from a full tank turned off form first click. I don't go below the light too often. Shell Vpower gave me 304 miles to the light. sooo yah.
04-01-2009, 08:01 PM
#18
I stopped using Shell because it tends to give me worse Gas mileage. I used to use it all the time because I like the Vpower but the issue I have around my area is 90% of the shells around here are owned by indian people. Alot of them are really cheap people too. Some not even going to the new shell logo at all. Now I heard some horror stories of some Shell stations in my area mixing there gas. In other words. If they are low on Prem fuel. They will mix the others if they have plenty and still sell it at prem price. I found this out by someone who used to work for them.
Anyway, Anything Mobil 93 is great. I been getting about 330-340 miles to the Gas Empty light from a full tank turned off form first click. I don't go below the light too often. Shell Vpower gave me 304 miles to the light. sooo yah.
Anyway, Anything Mobil 93 is great. I been getting about 330-340 miles to the Gas Empty light from a full tank turned off form first click. I don't go below the light too often. Shell Vpower gave me 304 miles to the light. sooo yah.
04-01-2009, 08:33 PM
#19
Last week I averaged 20mpg on a tank of gas till about 1/8th left. That was using shell vpower. I haven't tried any other brand of fuel. I feel I don't drive too economically so that's not bad. It's so easy for gas stations to rip people off that it can be scary. I should try BP (formerly mobil1 around here) and sunoco to see what happens with mpg's.
04-01-2009, 10:24 PM
#20
2. Possibly if you use really low octane fuel or somehow by chance bought bad fuel
3. I think that technique is for us Washington folks, because there is a safety technique to keep water out of the gas tanks by not leaving the tank low on fuel or empty. And always making sure to leave the tank at least half or close during those winter months to be safe..................or more like winter year since it is spring and its still feels like its winter....................
04-01-2009, 11:25 PM
#21
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Eastern Long Island, NY
Posts: 56
ive been mostly using 89, but at least once a month use 91 or 93 octane. SUNOCO.
last couple tanks have been 23mpg, 24mpg, and today 25mpg. all very good.
car is a 98 auto, i honestly drive it pretty conservative, hence the 89 octane.
last couple tanks have been 23mpg, 24mpg, and today 25mpg. all very good.
car is a 98 auto, i honestly drive it pretty conservative, hence the 89 octane.
BEFORE you start a thread. 
:
04-02-2009, 09:47 AM
#26
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Join Date: May 2008
Location: Grand Rapids MI
Posts: 160
You can't get 91 here. All they sell is 87, 89 and 93 so I run the 93. Never had a problem in the 12 years of owning the car.
04-02-2009, 01:33 PM
#29
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Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 16
1) Follow the manufacturer's recommendation: 91 or higher
2) probably could, but something would be terribly wrong
3) That sounds like a huge waste of time filling up over the life of the car. Unless you genuinely expect to be stuck in bad weather, or need to eliminate the air-space in the tank to reduce the moisture, I wouldn't bother.
A few other things:
Ethanol & MTBE - reduce fuel economy. Ethanol is stoichiometric around 6:1 (air/fuel), where gasoline is at 14.7:1, means it takes a lot more fuel per unit air, and I don't believe it has any energy/unit volume advantage over gasoline either. I think in most states gas stations are required to disclose if they are adding these things, however many may not.
Octane requirements are determined by the effective compression ratio of the engine. Colorado, being at >5000 feet above sea level, has about 80% of the air pressure of sea level, reducing the compression of the engine closer to 8*sealevel:1, instead of 10:1. Boosting a car does the opposite, but, if you're doing that, you should know all about this by now...
2) probably could, but something would be terribly wrong
3) That sounds like a huge waste of time filling up over the life of the car. Unless you genuinely expect to be stuck in bad weather, or need to eliminate the air-space in the tank to reduce the moisture, I wouldn't bother.
A few other things:
Ethanol & MTBE - reduce fuel economy. Ethanol is stoichiometric around 6:1 (air/fuel), where gasoline is at 14.7:1, means it takes a lot more fuel per unit air, and I don't believe it has any energy/unit volume advantage over gasoline either. I think in most states gas stations are required to disclose if they are adding these things, however many may not.
Octane requirements are determined by the effective compression ratio of the engine. Colorado, being at >5000 feet above sea level, has about 80% of the air pressure of sea level, reducing the compression of the engine closer to 8*sealevel:1, instead of 10:1. Boosting a car does the opposite, but, if you're doing that, you should know all about this by now...
04-02-2009, 01:53 PM
#30
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04-02-2009, 04:53 PM
#31
You're not going to last long here with that attitude mate. 
The problem I have here is that you don't search, you just start a new thread. The fact that you ask the things you do, tells us a lot. I'm not trying to pick a fight, there's no point. I just don't understand why you feel the need to start X amount of 'new' threads. We are all here to learn / help others, but when you come off with questions such as yours - it makes it difficult to take you seriously at all.
The problem I have here is that you don't search, you just start a new thread. The fact that you ask the things you do, tells us a lot. I'm not trying to pick a fight, there's no point. I just don't understand why you feel the need to start X amount of 'new' threads. We are all here to learn / help others, but when you come off with questions such as yours - it makes it difficult to take you seriously at all.
04-02-2009, 07:07 PM
#32
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Join Date: Mar 2009
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Posts: 1,380
You're not going to last long here with that attitude mate.
The problem I have here is that you don't search, you just start a new thread. The fact that you ask the things you do, tells us a lot. I'm not trying to pick a fight, there's no point. I just don't understand why you feel the need to start X amount of 'new' threads. We are all here to learn / help others, but when you come off with questions such as yours - it makes it difficult to take you seriously at all.
The problem I have here is that you don't search, you just start a new thread. The fact that you ask the things you do, tells us a lot. I'm not trying to pick a fight, there's no point. I just don't understand why you feel the need to start X amount of 'new' threads. We are all here to learn / help others, but when you come off with questions such as yours - it makes it difficult to take you seriously at all.
04-02-2009, 07:09 PM
#33
If you make a thread, you have to be ready to deal with whatever comes your way. You can't decide who does and doesn't reply.
04-02-2009, 07:21 PM
#34
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 78
If you make a thread, you have to be ready to deal with whatever comes your way. You can't decide who does and doesn't reply.
04-02-2009, 07:57 PM
#35
couldnt have said it any better.
but in all seriousness i would deffently stay away from Holiday. Ive just had some bad experinces with freezing gas and water in the lines.
04-03-2009, 12:12 PM
#39
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Long Island
Posts: 45
my maxi only drinks.............shell gasoline....
04-09-2009, 09:30 AM
#40
J STEEL
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 15
Use only 91 octane to 93 octane. Anything else is uncivilized!