Whatever, I suspect the newer Honduhs do not have a knock sensor and are not as sensitive to octane requirements as a Nissan engine. Do what you have to do SilverMax04.

For interest sakes, do you have any friends in your area with a car like yours? What octane are they running? When talking to your local stealership, why don't you ask them what incidence there is of 6th Gen Maxima owners running 85 octane in your area? I suspect you are in the vast minority, but since you have 35 years in the petroleum industry you would know best.

 

Thanks dr-rjp, SilverMax04, for the great and detailed coversation. I was beginning to think that I was surrounded by individuals who had nothing better to do that put down other members due to their "substandard" practices etc. I drive a '99 max, auto se, and will be conducting a few tests of my own (recently switched to 87-rated fuel).

 

I can't find the comment you claim I made about "be careful about what I say". Seems you made that up. No credibility points here.

What I meant, specifically, was an engineer who built this engine. I have no doubt you know a great deal about gasoline and octane from your years of service, however, I have seen no explanation other than "honda can use regular" and "nissan and honda have similar high tech engines". I'm still not convinced. Sorry.

As for the spouting off comment, your opinion is still just that...an opinion. Two cars out of thousands does not a fact make.

 

Forum poll of 189 pro to 28 con would suggest an overwhelming majority agree to use premium.

 

There may be a few cheapskates who have crossed the line over to regular unleaded since the poll began!

 

Rumor has it that half the time the tankers dont fill the proper tanks and you can't know for sure what youre getting at the pump.

 

The knock sensor on your max works much harder, preventing detonation, with crappy gas than it has to with premium, your knock sensor will last much longer

 

Really? Where did you get this information.

 

All the knock sensor does is adjust when each plug sparks. That is not "working hard." It simply changes the time when the spark is sent to the plug -- not hard work at all. If it never had to change this timing, it might freeze in place and not work properly when it was needed.

 

I'm not a mechanical engineer, but I would say a knock "sensor" has no moving parts and is simply computer controlled spark timing. Nothing is going to "freeze" from over use. BTW, I run premium....why skimp?

 

My "freeze in place" comment was simply a joke in response to the "working hard" comment by others. Electronic controls rarely freeze (or work hard). In my mind this is all simply a non-issue.

 

Here is my final word on my ill-fated experiment with 87 octane regular:

After finally using up the regular and permanently switching back to Chevron 93 premium, my car has yet to get back to where it was before the switch -- which was more than four weeks ago.

Many of the other members here did not believe me when I told them that regular gas caused my car to feel like it was towing a boat, took longer to start in the morning, caused hesitation in downshifts, and generally affected my car in ways too subtle to describe. Yet, I do know my car better than I know myself, especially when it is not running the way I know it can.

I am so hypersensitive when it comes to my car that if it is not running EXACTLY the way it was running yesterday, I start to freak. Unless, of course, it is running better today than yesterday.

I understand that lower octane, by itself, should not cause these problems, but whatever came out of the Regular pump on that fateful day was bad enough to screw up my car's sophisticated engine management system -- not to mention my peace of mind.

I've heard reports of "dirty gas" or gas that had water in it. Which brings me to the following observartions:

1. We blindly assume that the gas stations keep their tanks free from any external contaminants. We also assume that their tanks are filled to capacity instead of the more likely scenario of them being nearly empty.

2. When gas prices were hitting all-time highs, people started flocking to whomever had the lowest price on regular. Following Katrina and Rita, there were major gas shortages in this part of the country. Taken together, the likelihood of a gas station selling low-priced regular having near-empty tanks is probably higher than imagined.

3. What do we really know about the quality and purity of the gasoline that goes into our tanks? How can we be sure of what we are actuallly getting?

If you get a stomach ache after eating something at your favoirte restaurant, it does not take a rocket scientist to determine that what you just ate is the culprit, and that if your pain does not last for long, you probably just had a case of indigestion instead of food poisoning.

Likewise, if my car was running in peak condition before changing what it "ate," but started acting like was sick after feeding it something new, well...you get my drift.

In other words, I may have picked the wrong day to give up premium.

I'm going to take my car in for a thorough fuel system cleaning, including cleaning the TB and IACV.

Maybe then my ride will be back to its old, happy self.

As they say on TV, "Your results may vary."

 

dr-rjp: Sorry to hear about your problems. What most on this thread seem to overlook -- each engine is slightly different. What one VQ from the same year Max may experience, may not necessarily be experienced by another engine from the same year. Each of us has to find what works best for their Max and then consistently do it. You apparently find that Premium should be used all of the time. I hope you are able to get your baby back to her old self.

In my 04 VQ I find that regular works fine (unless I'm racing). Your answer is right for you and mine is right for me. There is no single right answer for everyone on this thread.

 

Both of mine ping like crazy and surge with 87. With 93 the Max is silent and strong. With 93 the G35 still pings under light acceleration below 2,000 rpm. I have done my experimentation, and on the G35 the pinging was so bad I thought I might do permanent engine damage.

 

When you break it down, Premium gas doesn't cost all that much more than regular. Let's say regular costs $1.60/gal. Thats $24 for 15 gallons. In CT, premium gas is usually around 20cents higher. So at $1.80/gal, 15 gallons costs $3 more dollars. Why bother blatantly going against the manufacturers suggested octane just to save $3 per fill-up or about $20/month?

 

I would think that you people can find another way to find the money. How many people here go to the bar and spend 3-4$ a beer? I know I do. So drink one less beer. Get a smaller coffee. Pack your lunch, instead of going out everyday. There are many ways out there to save that few bucks. trust it sucks to have to spend 44.00$ to fill up. Just remember, its not gonna get better.

 

Amen, Brother!

My car knows when it is being fed anything less than the right stuff. It just runs very punkish.

Case in point. I filled up at a Shell station with V-power premium, but the only thing premium was the price. I would swear that the station had the pumps mislabeled, and I got low octane juice.

This is not the first time that this station has made a boo-boo. One time, I pushed the Premium button, and the cost-per-gallon meter on the pump read $2.39 -- the price of Regular. I noticed the meter only after I had started filling. I stopped pumping and was going to shut the pump off when I remembered that Regular at this station had a very, distinctive smell (since I had used it once before in another vehicle). The gas that I started putting in my car did not have that smell, and I decided that it really was Premium, but that the pump was displaying the wrong price. So, I filled it up, and the car ran fine.

When I drove back by the station a hour later, I noticed a yellow bag had been placed over the nozzle that said, "Out of Service."

That convinced me I was right!

So, I guess that this is kind of an octane Karma: one time I paid for Premium and got Regular. The next time I paid for Regular and got Premium.

Strange, but true.

 

what a thread ! i need to go back and read all 5 pages b4 this one, who knows i might have started this one ? lol !

I always forget the octane conversion so to speak but yesterday I put in 3 gallons of gas for my max at 6.19 cents a gallon. I use the BP98 here which is around 93 octane in the US.

The wife once put in 91 here which must be around 86 octane back home. The whole car changed to a pinging machine, lol !

While its tough to pay over 6 dollars a gallon for premium I do it 90 percent of the time. I have 167,000 miles at least on this engine and have never changed the knock sensor. No idea really but I ran 93 in the states 100 percent of the time.

Why 93 ? I dont know other than the manual says put it in, and the car seems to be faster running premium.

interesting car study:
http://www.nissan.co.nz/news/index.p...ews&sub_group=

 

Does it actually increase the effective octane rating?

It is any better or worse to use than fuel system cleaner?

Is global warming for real? {just want to see if you're paying attention}

 

That depends on what it contains. For example, you can blend 10% ethanol into gasoline without ethanol and add about 2 octane numbers to the final blend. But, remember that octane is not linear. Another 10 % ethanol will not give you another 2 octane numbers. The same was true back in the old days when TEL (lead) was blended into gasoline for octane. I little lead gave a big increase in octane. But adding even more did not give that same big boost. This is called "the law of diminishing returns."

They do not do the same function. A good quality fuel system cleaner (like Techron) will help remove deposits which will reduce a given engine's octane requirement -- which has been increased due to the presence of the deposits. I personally would rather use a known cleaner than an unknown substance called "octane booster."

Global warming is for real. What is not for real is to think that human activity is responsible for most (if not all) of the warming. Temperatures on earth have fluctuated for thousands of years. We appear to be entering a warmer periond (by a few degrees) than we expereiced before. But there were times in the past when the earth was this warm -- and people were not burning fuels that release so-called "greenhouse gases." Man's impact on any global warming the earth may be experiencing is minimal at most and likely not even measurable -- when compared with the massive forces of nature.

 

High Octane costs 3.00a gallon here..I should be the one complaining about gas prices..

 

Nowadays, $3 bucks is cheap!

BTW, whatever the price, I'm sticking to 93 octane. Anything less and my car runs like a dog, especially the gas mileage, so where's the savings???

Last check of highway mileage using full tank of Chevron 93 running at 65 mph with AC on all the time, I got 31.5 mpg. Not bad for a slushbox, IMHO!

 

When I had my '92 with the VE30DE engine I had to put regular in it once durning the Katrina shortages. OMG did that car gripe and moan and generally run like crap. The owner's manual said 91 octane and it darn well meant it. I miss the car but I am so glad I don't have to feed it anymore...

 

Great line.

Great thread.

 

Its funny to read how 14 months ago I was paying $2.15 for 93 now $3.19 is the norm here...ugh...still using it though, sucks. I think my highest fillup so far has been somewhere around $50 when im running on E.

 

You think you are paying big bucks for premium. I was in Aspen, Colorado last week and the price for premium (91 octane) in the down town area (Shell station) was $3.929 per gallon. You had to walk up to the pump to see the price, it was not posted in big numbers on the outside of the station. The price difference between regular and premium in Aspen remained at 20 cents per gallon.

The funny thing about Aspen is that if you drive about 20 miles out of town you could buy premium for only $3.209 per gallon.

When I drove past Vail, Colorado 91 octane was selling for only $3.379

 

Wed before memorial day, the cheapest I have seen REGULAR gas on Long Island is $3.09

 

Not bad...considering how much you pay in gas taxes...

 

That's what's up!

Do you think they will make a hybrid maxima? If so, will anyone buy it? Or do you guys just like doing 100 mph on the freeway?

 

i like doing 100 mph on the freeway.

 

In 1987, I purchased a brand-new, Toyota Tercel 5-speed, with an engine about as powerful as a lawnmower. Seriously, folks, I had to turn the A/C off whenever I encountered an incline of 25 degrees or more...if I wanted to keep going up it, that is.

Now, here's the kicker: the car pinged on anything lower than Premium from the first day I bought it! The manual said it took 87 octane. When I tried putting 87 in it, it really did start to sound like a lawnmower!

I did rack up 150K before I traded it in for my 1992 Max in April, 1996. At the time I traded it in, the clutch was shot, all four rotors needed replacing, and the A/C had gone out about a month before. I did get a $2,500 trade value on it because the dealer who had the Max had been unable to sell it because it had 103K and was less than 4 years old.

Over the next ten years, I put another 200K on it before I sold it to get my I30. In all the time I had my '92 Max, I never had to run it on anything higher than regular!

4 cyl. Tercel -> 93 octane. 6 cyl Maxima -> 87 octane.

Go figure!

 

You should have taken the Tercel back to the dealer to complain that it did not perform properly on regular.

The VQ engine represents the best that "modern engine technology" can provide in an engine. It has the ability to determine what grade of gasoline it is burning and adjust the engine to perform properly on that grade. I normally burn regular in my 04 Max and only get light spark knock when climbing the hill to my house when the engine's RPMs fall to low. I simply downshift to the next lower gear, and the light spark knock goes away. It's a great engine that will perform at its best burning premium gasoline -- but performs quite adequately burning regular.

 

The dealer probably would have retarded my timing. Then I would have had a real screamer!

(me, not the car).

 

Like was said above, no matter how much you pay for premium, it is only .20 - .25 more than regular. Not saving that much. I'll stay with premium. IMHO

 

Yeah, that's what I don't really get. My G has the same size gas tank as a Max (and of course, a VQ35 under the hood, just pointed a different direction...) -- 20 gallons. With that, the full-tank "delta" is about four whopping dollars (about half the price of a six-pack of good beer). In exchage, I get greater output, and a total absence of ping, regardless of what I do with the gas pedal. I too will be staying with 93 octane, but that's just me.

 

I put premium in my Maxima... and I live in the state that has the highest average per gallon costs in the nation. Last week, I paid $3.49 per gallon for 92.

Price of living in "paradise"? Blah... Give me the smog of LA any day.

 

As a state, you are correct about Hawaii having the highest prices. But I was in Aspen, Colorado in April (before the recent price jumps) and regular gasoline was selling at Shell for $3.799 with 20 cents more for premium -- just short of $4. If you drove about 30 miles north of Aspen the price went to $2.999 for regular. Have not been back, so don't know what the recent price increases have done to these prices -- but at the time I'm certain that Aspen prices were higher than those in Hawaii -- in fact April regular in Aspen was higher than your recent Hawaii price for Premium.

Prices in the mountains of Colorado are always higher than they are in the big cities to the east of the mountains -- but Aspen is even higher still.

 

I am sure that Aspen prices were very high that time in April. But thats what happens when you are in a tourist trap. But my entire state is a tourist trap. Honolulu prices are still pretty reasonable (by our standards) but it you go to one of the outer islands like Maui or the Big Island, then you will see prices in the $3.60-$3.70 range for regular all the time. You can go to http://www.hawaiigasprices.com/ and see for yourself. Of course, the most expensive stations were not listed (I used the site to look for Aspen gas stations, and none were listed).

Its kinda pointless to argue this, since we are stuck paying for gas. I love driving, so I don't plan on taking public transportation, and I don't think our Maxima runs on bio-diesel so making our own gas is not a possibility either. Is their any IT job openings in Colorado? I would love to move there.

 

Aspen is not only a tourist trap, but a town where many of the residents don't bother to look at prices -- they can afford what they want and so buy it. But others in the mountains do look at prices, which is why prices about 30 miles away were 80 cents per gallon cheaper. I will also admit that for the mountains of Colorado, the distribution costs of getting gasoline from the refinery to the station is very high versus more populated areas. That fact also applies to the more "remote" islands in HI that you cite.

The city of Colorado Springs has, in the last 6 months, seen a growth (again) in jobs. It also helps that MONEY Magazine picked the city as the best overall city in the country to live. I suspect there may well be some IT jobs here. Being retired, I can not quote any specifically. Denver and Boulder also have quite a few IT firms that may be looking for employees.

 

I like reading back when I posted one of the first responses to this thread in march 2005 and I was paying $2.16 a gallon for premium, last time I filled up at Sunoco with 93 it was something like $3.21...a fill up is now in excess of $55 when im near empty. I don't like to think about gas prices anymore!