kayla robin

I am purchasing my first Nissan Maxima (2000) and I was recommended to use Premium gas in the car. I am currently driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee, so I am used to throwing a bunch of money away at the tank. I know I will be getting better gas mileage in the Maxima, but was wondering if putting regular fuel in will do damage to the car over time. What kind of issues will I face down the road if I don't put premium gas in? I'm a student and want to cut my gas prices, but not at the cost of doing damage to my car.

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

I would definitely recommend putting premium gas in. It benefits the engine in too many ways to even begin to mention and for a full tank its what, $3 difference total? This website has some good info http://www.toptiergas.com/ Congrats on the purchase

dared3vil0

I have never used premium fuel in my Maxima. I use it in the 05 Pathfinder, I know NOT using it may not be very good for the car, but the person i had bought it from never used it, and i haven't and there hasn't been any direct problems from 87 so far. just my 2 cents.

Amave

since buying my 2000 Maxima in Feb. 2010 i have used 89 octane and have had zero problems, i have read that using 87 octane just makes the ECU retard timing to prevent pinging thus suffering performance, but no ill effects have been noted, i have never used 93 octane and have no engine performance issues in over 2 years of ownership, my MPG prolly suffer ( getting around 200 miles per 1/2 tank according to the gauge ) and i may be getting better MPG's using 93 octane but the difference in gas prices negates me using it in my Max.


Hope that helps

Chris Gregg

iTrader: (59)

Here is the rundown:
Lower octane negatively affect performance and will require some additional fuel consumption.
All fuels are the same when they come to the distribution centers. Only then does "BP" or "Exxon" etc put in their own markers to differentiate the fuel and adds their own detergents. So buying is really a choice of which detergent you want.
Also, all gas goes to the distribution center being non-ethanol. The ethanol is added there with the detergents.
Finally, overall the best fuel to buy is non-ethanol.

yankeefan13

Thats interesting your getting around 200 for half tank, I only get about 300 miles for a full tank on premium...

Chris Gregg

iTrader: (59)

Measuring by 1/2 tank is subjective at best. At worst it is no better than guessing.

Dexterity

I own a 03 maxima se. I put 89, or 93 gas in mines. Just dont put the regular in there.
The 2nd one should be good enough if you are trying to save money on gas.
I do that time to time. Whenever I can afford premium, I fill it up with premium, when I am low in funds I fill it in with 89.

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

I get about 25 to 30% better mileage by using premium...more than makes up for the price difference.

kayla robin

Thanks for the input! I will be following the recommendations and stick to premium.

TheDude00

I also own a 2000 maxima and have only been running 87 in the car since time I bought it. I have never not had a problem with the car running poorly but what if I were to switch to Premium or even mid grade, would it cause the engine to be thrown off and run poorly?

Would it be worth running 89 over 87? (unless there is a substantial gain in mileage to use premium I can't justify spending that much more.)

Chris Gregg

iTrader: (59)

Try a couple tanks and do an accurate fuel consumption measurement. Then make your decision if it's worth it.

Proper way to calculate fuel economy is to fill tank and reset your trip meter to zero. Then run the car till you are comfortable. Refill your tank.

Calculation to get miles per gallon: miles traveled divided by gallons of fuel refilled.

Dexterity

if you switch to a higher grade like 89 or 93 your car will run more smoothly and cleaner in the long run..
Im not sure about the mileage per gallon. It differs per driver, it depends on how they drive.
its only based on your opinion if you want to switch..


sounds cool I will try that one day when I refill it to a full tank ^^ and see for myself.

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

Takes more than one tank though...I get 25 to 30 percent better fuel economy than I did when I first got my max.

Bought it from original owner who never put anything but 87 in it. I continued for a couple tanks and got my average of about 15 to 17 mpg.

Without changing my driving habits, I have used premium for 3 months now, and over that time I have seen my mpgs rise to about 20-22 in my normal driving...to almost 30 if I do mostly highway. The change was not instant. Took about 2 or 3 fillups with premium before it really got up there...but using the "per tank guesstimate" ppl seem to like.... I got about 200 to the tank when I first got the car. I just filled up the other day after 300 miles. 33% increase in mileage since going to premium..

....along with proper maintenance, don't forget.

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

When I used to almost exclusively drive highway I used to get very close to 400 miles on a tank. Now that I do mostly city? It has been cut in half. I want to put in a new front o2 sensor and hope that helps for a few MPG

Galactica

iTrader: (5)

Don't forget a new MAF if you haven't already done that. Even if it's working, if it's old it's time to change it (or so I've read)

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

Maf can be cleaned. Fuel filter is the one that most overlook...had mine changed and I attribute that to helping...might be worth a new front O2 sensor as well...they get old and lazy, can be out of tolerance but not throw a code.

raincity

I've tried all three grades in my Nissan multiple times. Mid grade and premium return exactly the same mileage and I can't detect even the slightest difference in performance between the two. Regular definitely causes the car to lose power and hesitate when stepping on the gas. I've been running mid grade for years with no problem.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

I think I've seen a thread just like this one in the past, or at least very similar.

TheDude00

How hard/dangerous is it to clean out the MAF and fuel filter. I don't want to end up messing something up. Also how much would a new O2 sensor even do. They are not cheap

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

About a million lol.

Thanks for the attempted tip on the MAF Galactica, but mine is in great shape as I clean it regularly. Expensive to just up and replace so regular maintenance can save you $$$$

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

One or two...

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

You only clean the MAF, you simply replace the fuel filter. To clean the MAF you run to the auto parts store and get some cleaner(ensure its MAF cleaner or else you will destroy it), take the MAF out and spray the cleaner as per the directions. Replacing the fuel filter is not difficult per se but the longer it has been the more time consuming it is(BTW, NEVER do this when the engine is hot). It has a hose going to it from the fuel tank and a hose running from it to your fuel rail. To remove it you must remove fuel pressure from the lines to make it safer to work. Remove the fuel pump fuse under your dash and turn your car over until it stalls from lack of fuel. Then turn it over a few more times, holding the key in the start position for about 5sec, to ensure fuel pressure is low and as little fuel is in the lines as possible. Then you take the hose clamps off the fuel lines and attempt to separate the fuel lines from the filter. If it has been awhile since the last change, it will be very difficult and time consuming to separate the lines from the filter because the hose will be stuck on. Once off you simply put on the new fuel filter in line and your done. Just insure its in the right position, feed line goes to the feed port and so on, the right orientation should be clearly marked though. It is a good idea to put a little vaseline around the ports on the fuel filter to make installation next time easier. About an hour job for difficult fuel lines

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

Little different for the 5th gen. We need to remove the fuel pump assembly from under the rear seat, remove the strainer and o-ring, and replace those parts.

http://forums.maxima.org/5th-generat...up-thread.html

Eirik

iTrader: (2)

Replacing my '02's fuel filter at ~125K miles did absolutely nothing for performance or fuel economy. =D

Some conjecture that running 87 in a high-compression engine shortens the life of its O2 sensors and cats because of the dialed-back timings. Like Chris G said, the most important thing is that you're putting in fuel from a Top Tier gas station.

FWIW: In (70% city) 30K miles I put on my '02, I spent an average of $110 more buying premium vs regular each year. My '05 (30% city--new job) is running way more miles per year, but only bumped the increase to about $175.

Just ask yourself, is the tradeoff in performance really worth $100 -> $200 a year? Are you seriously going to notice the extra $3.80 spent per 16-gallon tank when gas is hovering around $4 a gallon?

Midgrade is a joke. No performance boost yet charging $.10 -> $.16 more per gallon? Gas stations love you folks.