So I just picked up my 2014 Maxima(Navy Blue) w/sport & tech packages on Friday. I am curious what to fill up the car with. I know that the manual recommends 91 octane. I do not want to put 87. I am curious about alternating fill ups between 89 and 93 when I reach roughly half a tank. Also does anyone have feelings about going with a certain gasoline brand over another ? I know there a lot of discussions on here about gasoline type but i did not see my specific question so I apologize if this question is repetitive. I am coming from a '94 Buick Regal so this is a pretty dramatic change for me (I do still own that car ).

 

Your idea of switching between 89 and 93 at half a tank in order to average 91 is fine.

IMO, I'd go to the big name gas stations and avoid the mom and pop type stations. Of the big names, I prefer Chevron and Shell. Mobil is my least favorite due to personal bad gas experiences. You're going to get so many opinions on this question, your head will spin and you'll start going crazy trying to decide

 

If you look back over the years here, you will find 2,364,975,963 opinions, but most are just that - opinions. Those who claim otherwise are not testing and confirming results in strict laboratory conditions.

I have owned nothing but Maximas since October of 1984, and always use premium the first 18 months of ownership, then midgrade very time afterward. Per my non-laboratory measurements, my performance and MPG do not change when I change octane.

Scientists tell us that an engine expecting 91 octane will get the same MPG on either 93, 91 or 89 octane because of the closeness of those octanes, but that electronic timing devices can detect a tiny difference in acceleration at wide open throttle depending on octane. But not enough to be detectable by the seat-of-the-pants.

Nissan recommends premium for maximum performance, but certainly does not require premium. That small electronically timed difference we get with premium fuel is critical at the track, but meaningless in everyday driving.

Some here say regular works fine, but most here who have tried do not get good performance with regular. I would not be using regular in the Maxima.

p.s. - There will be many here who always suggest we pay the extra 5 or 10 cents a gallon for premium. To that, I say why pay for something that gives us virtually nothing in return on the money? And they clearly do not live where there is a 20 cent to 30 cent difference per gallon between midgrade and premium.

 

Thanks for the detailed response. There is a '99 max in my family too and if anything other then 93 is put in that it knocks like you wouldn't believe and that is why I am so concerned with this car. I think I am going to go with 93 on the first fill up and then alternate between 89 and 93.

 

I personally only use shell because with my last three cars including this one 2014 maxima ive always gotten far more miles on a tank than with other brands. I also occasionally use chevron if shell is not available.

 

Going between 93 and 89, I loose 4 mpg.

 

I use 93 all the time. For the couple cents difference who cares why risk it? then again I fill up twice a month but even if I didn't I'd use 93.
Shell is great unfortunately the only shell station close to me the owner is an egotistical ***** so I won't give him my money.
I feel sunoco is very good as well and that's all I use now. Car runs fantastic on it. I can't speak for the mileage because I don't drive like a pansy to achieve maximum mileage. Cars made to be driven not babied.
The mom and pop places suck.
Gulf is good due to lowest ethanol

 

I stick with Shell (93 octane) in my Maxima. However, all my other cars that require regular will be filled up from Chevron. Whether or not the detergents from these two companies are beneficial to my engine, they are usually the least expensive in town and they are well-kept. The added detergent is just a way for me to be happy if it makes any difference, but I plan to keep these vehicles long term so why not? Controversial topic, but if you are interested, check out Top Tier Gasoline's website for more information and a list of retailers: http://www.toptiergas.com/

 

Unfortunately, there is not a shell close to me(at least 5 miles out of my way). After thinking about actually there are no higher end stations. I have multiple shamrocks, multiple valeros, a couple of deltas, a bp and a newly installed ExxonMobil. Ooh there is a Hess too.

 

I have used 89 almost exclusively for the last year and have consistently exceeded the Maxima's mpg ratings of 19 city and 26 highway. I'm at just under 25 overall with about 40/60 city/hwy and haven't pussyfooted it...

 

Wow I must drive it like I stole it. I'm lucky to be hitting 20.1 mpg's lol.

 

Like a few of the other guys here, I only fill up at Shell stations and use 93 every time.

 

Oh boy. You opened up a bag of worms.

Here's the deal: everyone has an opinion. Some people are so convinced that theirs is correct that they shut down and get angry and won't even entertain the possibility that they might be wrong.

Here's what you need to know. The engine is designed to run on premium fuel. Period. Will it run okay on midgrade or regular? Sure. First of all, octane is a rating of resistance to detonation. The higher octane requirement comes from the higher compression of the engine. The fuel is mixed with air, compressed, and then it explodes, moving the pistons. When you put in lower octane fuel, the engine computer has to adjust the timing to avoid engine knocking. This retardation requires the engine to inject more fuel and less air, meaning more gasoline is used to move each piston.

Now here's my thinking. Despite what others say, you will likely notice a difference in MPG using a lower octane gasoline than recommended. You may not notice the performance drop that comes from the engine adjusting to the lower octane fuel, but it is there and in some situations, you may notice it. Nissan spent a fortune designing the engine. They know best. Nissan doesn't make a nickle off of gasoline sales, so they have no motivation to recommend a higher octane than necessary.

I just filled up my Max with premium and put in 15.7 gallons. This cost me $56.34 (premium was $3.589). At the same gas station, mid-grade costs $3.389 and regular costs $3.189. That means filling up with mid-grade would have run me $53.21 and regular would have cost me $50.07.

I would not even consider putting regular gas in the car. I bought a premium car with a sticker price higher than $40k. It gets what the factory recommends and regular won't give me the MPG's or power promised me by the good people at Nissan.

So the choice become mid-grade vs. premium. People love to talk about costs. So cheaping out and using mid-grade, which is NOT recommended by Nissan, would have saved me an enormous, life changing $3.13. Holy smokes. Even if I filled up once a week for a year, that's an enormous, life changing $162.76, or roughly one nice dinner a year with my wife. That's some savings! Just think of what you could do with a hair under $163 extra every year! You could go on a cruise or start that 401(k) or start investing in the stock market!

Please excuse my sarcasm, but I can't help myself after a day representing people in two different courts.

The point is simple: the car was designed for premium, so I use premium. I justify this by understanding that the savings are such a small drop in the bucket that it isn't worth much more thought.

You bought a nice car. You wouldn't put off brand tires on it to save a few hundred dollars, so why put gas at a lower octane than recommended to save $100-$150 a year? I would argue that if your money is that tight, you should have bought a more fuel efficient vehicle that runs on regular grade gas.

Just for fun, let's assume that the resulting loss in MPG works out to 1-2 mpg difference. If you average 20 mpg and use 15 gallons, you travel 300 miles. If you average 22 mpg and travel the same distance, you use 13.6 gallons. Now apply price at what I saw today:
15 gallons x $3.389 (mid-grade gas) = $50.84
13.6 gallons x $3.589 (premium) = $48.81

In other words, a drop of just 2 mpg flips the equation on it's head and illustrates that by "saving" money, you may just be spending more. Naturally, this complicates the math used above and the cost difference now illustrates that mid-grade fuel may 'appear' to save you money at the pump, but ends up costing you more.

That's my very long 2 cents. Stick with premium. It's just not that much more expensive. In fact, it may end up being cheaper.

Of course, do whatever you want. "Save" money by putting in gas with a lower octane than recommended or don't. Personally? I don't.

 

I was going to find your post you made where you did the calculations and provided some analogies, but I did not enough time. Great posts each time. As to the OP, just remember that the dealer probably put Regular into the car to fill it up before delivery, so take it easy, and then go and dump some Premium in there. You should take it easy anyway for the first 1500 miles according to Nissan.

 

Well, thank you!

 

Thanks for all the responses, I pretty much expected these answers just wanted to confirm. I am going to go with 93 just have to decide what brands to stick with. And as far as the break in period the manual says 1200 miles, how true is this I have read so many different things.

 

Your car in under a manufactures warranty so the smart move would be to follow the break in proceedures and maintenance schedules that the manuals provide for you.

Good luck with you new ride

 

1200 miles* my mistake. I was following the guidelines set by BMW... yeah I know this is a Nissan but whatever. Also controversial topic, some say that the age of engine break-in is over as the engines have already been tested at the factory, built to tolerance or have been accounted for, etc. But essentially, allowing the engine to properly break-in allows for the rings around the piston to seal better. However, many also do not realize the tires, brakes, and other suspension components will need to be broken in during these times, so taking it easy for the first ~1000 miles is a good way for the car to settle itself overall.

 

It is going to be a long and painful wait until the 1200.

 

Just find tier 1 gas. I use CostCo or Speedway, depending on where I am and which is cheaper.

Frankly, my last car only ran Speedway gas and I never, ever had an issue with anything. Some folks seem to think Speedway gas sucks. I don't care much. CostCo gas is all I ever put in my Corvette though. It's a Corvette, I run it hard, and I want the detergents and additives that comes with top tier. On my Maxima, which I don't run that hard, it's not a concern.

I found this. I don't know if it is accurate. It is a list and it's on the internets, so it must be true:
http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html

 

Agree! Premium for me as well.

 

Well said!!!

 

@jeffislouie-couldn't have said it better myself. Well done, Sir!!

 

I've always used 93 since I got into my Max. I made the mistake have having my younger sister pump gas while I was in the store purchasing. Even after telling her to use 93, she still used 89 (by habit she said, lol smdh she doesn't even drive WHAT AN EXCUSE girl lmao).

Anyway, I also have been resetting my computer to see what my MPG's are for that tank. IN short, i could obviously see the difference from the 93 to 89.

I don't use any specific gas station really. I do use the same one down the street, BP, the most, but Sunoco is my go to for fuel perks when I have them. Anyway, I recently noticed a big difference in my MPG's drop on one specific occasion and I know most people will bring up driving conditions. But I take the same route to work and back, and the same trip to a friends on thursday and sunday, blah blah I have a routine. I'm that kinda guy, same ish different day.

My question from this ramble is... how do we know we're getting what we paid for from the gas stations? How do you know it's not pumping out a different grade of gas?

I'm sure this will stir up nicely .

Annnnnd Go!

 

Yeah man, I wonder this same thing sometimes. Not that this is the end-all, be-all (because it's certainly not) solution here, but I always go to Shell stations and make sure it's the official, corporate looking ones. Not some of these ones you see that haven't had sh*t updated since 1989. Lol

 

Thank you for a very well stated and accurate explanation of octane and what happens under the hood. This is often misunderstood and you are spot on. I have to agree that there are benefits to using the higher octane. I'll try 91-93 and see what improvement I get for both mpg and performance. I'm sure there will be.

 

Short and sweet... I have had 5 maximas all have used mid grade... and with that I am getting above the stated mpg.... nuff said.

 

Ran my 2007 on 87 octane for 140000 miles,,,,,no issues

My 2010 has 40,000 miles on 87 ,,,, no issues yet

Just did a 650 mile round trip to Kentucky averaged 23 MPG with the cruise set at 80 MPH half the time,,,, the last 140 miles there and first 140 home was rural 30-55 MPH roads.

Ive tried several tanks of 93 in both cars and never noticed a difference,,,, to those that do,,,, god bless,,,, I wish I did and I would run it also.

 

I personally have tried 87 one time and the car ran like poop, it's 91 or 93 for me....I haven't tried mid grade so I can't speak for 89

 

So I finally filled up. I used BP 93. Tank was down to a quarter.