Premium for maxima? - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

mbchills · 03-24-2004, 02:37 PM

i have a 95 maxima SE, with 155K miles.. the manual says i should use atleast 91, but ive been hearing that it doesnt really matter

is this true? since gas prices are getting very expensive

is regular ok?

irseg · 03-24-2004, 02:42 PM

Your car is probably new enough to use a knock sensor to pull the timing if you use lower-octane gas. Which means it'll run fine on regular gas, but with reduced power.

Try it out, but if you hear any knocking/pinging when you accelerate (it sounds kind of like the rattle thing when you shake a can of spraypaint), switch back to premium. Otherwise it could damage your engine in the long run.

Peryn · 03-24-2004, 03:16 PM

IF you were to go down to lower grade gas, id only go to mid grade, not all the way down to regular.

You car is a 95. OBD2 wasn't required (at least in CA) until 96. If it is obd2, then it should have a knock sensor. But since it wasn't required until 1996, you might not. Try going down to midgrade and see what happens. Only do it with like a 1/4 tank though. Listening real carefully, try and put a large load on it. Try to get it real hot too. If you start to hear pinging when on the gas ( try WOT at real low revs) then you need to stick with premium.

Personally, I would stick to the recommended grade. If the car could get away with lower octane, the cheap ass manufacturers would. imo, go up in gas if you need to, but never down.

irseg · 03-24-2004, 03:24 PM

My 88 T-Bird has a fuel switch on the dash. Switching it from premium to regular reduces the maximum boost from the turbo, and retards the timing. I think that is pretty clever, I wonder why it never caught on! That way you know you're safe running regular, rather than hoping the knock sensor will step in if it starts pinging.

merkerguitars · 03-24-2004, 07:43 PM

Try to look up the specs of your engine...if it's a high compression ratio stick with higher octane....my roomates supercharged grand prix needs it.....alot of people says he doesn't...but serious engine damage can occur

MrGone · 03-25-2004, 04:33 AM

You have the VQ30DE. It has a 10:1 compression ratio

Now, yes the manual says you should use the premium gasoline (doesn't state a specific octane rating because it varies). Basically you can run 87 octane with out any problems, many people do it and there really is no problem with it effecting engine life or anything, I know lots of people who have put 250,000 miles on their VG/VE/VQ (engines) using nothing but 87 octane. irseg is correct, our maximas have knock sensors, so if the engine detect pinging or knocking it retards the ignition timing. Doesn't really hurt anything, but you aren't getting the best performance from the engine. Then again if you never really go above 3000rpm it is probably not going to be a big concern for you.

One thing I will add is that in my 1992 Maxima SE 5spd (it has the VE30DE engine) I noticed that when I run 87 octane I dont get as good of mileage compared to when I run the 92 octane. I did some math and most of the time its cheaper to run the premium than it is the 87 octane. My Dad has a 2000 SE 5spd (it has the VQ30DE-K engine, which is the same as yours except it has a variable intake, a composite intake manifold, and more agressive intake cams. It's rated at 222hp vs. your 190hp). I asked him if he would do the same thing (run a few tanks of 87 and see what kind of mileage he gets compared to his normal average with the 92), he had the same results as me, but personally I would go off his results more than mine because 1. his engine is for the most part identical to yours, and 2. he is a much more consistant driver than I am.

mbchills · 03-25-2004, 11:27 AM

and your dad got better mileage with premium?

MrGone · 03-26-2004, 03:32 AM

yeah, he got better mileage with premium, the same results I had. I'm going to be taking his car down to Oregon in about 5 hours hahahahaha, I'll let you know what kind of mileage I get. Last time I got alittle over 300 miles on about 3/4 of a tank at an average of 90mph, but found out that the right rear tire was pretty much flat for the trip (the tires needed to be replaced anyway so it wasn't really a loss).

This time I plan on keeping it down to 70-75ish, lol. It's just the car kind of likes to keep going faster on you, lol.

MrGone · 03-29-2004, 02:13 AM

Got 380 out of the tank at about 75-80mph avg? Using Premium. It's a 5spd so it doesn't get as good of highway mileage as the autos.

03-24-2004, 02:37 PM	#1 (permalink)
mbchills Insane Location: NJ	Premium for maxima? i have a 95 maxima SE, with 155K miles.. the manual says i should use atleast 91, but ive been hearing that it doesnt really matter is this true? since gas prices are getting very expensive is regular ok? __________________ rawr.

03-24-2004, 03:16 PM	#3 (permalink)
Peryn Junkie Location: San Diego, CA.	IF you were to go down to lower grade gas, id only go to mid grade, not all the way down to regular. You car is a 95. OBD2 wasn't required (at least in CA) until 96. If it is obd2, then it should have a knock sensor. But since it wasn't required until 1996, you might not. Try going down to midgrade and see what happens. Only do it with like a 1/4 tank though. Listening real carefully, try and put a large load on it. Try to get it real hot too. If you start to hear pinging when on the gas ( try WOT at real low revs) then you need to stick with premium. Personally, I would stick to the recommended grade. If the car could get away with lower octane, the cheap ass manufacturers would. imo, go up in gas if you need to, but never down. __________________ Dont cry kid, It's not your fault you suck.

03-24-2004, 07:43 PM	#5 (permalink)
merkerguitars Buffering......... Location: Wisconsin...	Try to look up the specs of your engine...if it's a high compression ratio stick with higher octane....my roomates supercharged grand prix needs it.....alot of people says he doesn't...but serious engine damage can occur __________________ Donate now! Ask me How! Please use the search function it is your friend. Look at my mustang please feel free to comment! http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthread.php?t=26985

03-25-2004, 04:33 AM	#6 (permalink)
MrGone Tilted Location: WA	You have the VQ30DE. It has a 10:1 compression ratio Now, yes the manual says you should use the premium gasoline (doesn't state a specific octane rating because it varies). Basically you can run 87 octane with out any problems, many people do it and there really is no problem with it effecting engine life or anything, I know lots of people who have put 250,000 miles on their VG/VE/VQ (engines) using nothing but 87 octane. irseg is correct, our maximas have knock sensors, so if the engine detect pinging or knocking it retards the ignition timing. Doesn't really hurt anything, but you aren't getting the best performance from the engine. Then again if you never really go above 3000rpm it is probably not going to be a big concern for you. One thing I will add is that in my 1992 Maxima SE 5spd (it has the VE30DE engine) I noticed that when I run 87 octane I dont get as good of mileage compared to when I run the 92 octane. I did some math and most of the time its cheaper to run the premium than it is the 87 octane. My Dad has a 2000 SE 5spd (it has the VQ30DE-K engine, which is the same as yours except it has a variable intake, a composite intake manifold, and more agressive intake cams. It's rated at 222hp vs. your 190hp). I asked him if he would do the same thing (run a few tanks of 87 and see what kind of mileage he gets compared to his normal average with the 92), he had the same results as me, but personally I would go off his results more than mine because 1. his engine is for the most part identical to yours, and 2. he is a much more consistant driver than I am. __________________ 1992 Maxima SE 5spd- Lots o mods. Maxima Guru 1968 Mustang Coupe 289ci Auto- Awaits 331 Stroker/T-56/Full Discs/and more.

03-25-2004, 11:27 AM	#7 (permalink)
mbchills Insane Location: NJ	and your dad got better mileage with premium? __________________ rawr.

03-24-2004, 02:42 PM	#2 (permalink)
irseg Junkie Location: Florida	Your car is probably new enough to use a knock sensor to pull the timing if you use lower-octane gas. Which means it'll run fine on regular gas, but with reduced power. Try it out, but if you hear any knocking/pinging when you accelerate (it sounds kind of like the rattle thing when you shake a can of spraypaint), switch back to premium. Otherwise it could damage your engine in the long run.

03-24-2004, 03:24 PM	#4 (permalink)
irseg Junkie Location: Florida	My 88 T-Bird has a fuel switch on the dash. Switching it from premium to regular reduces the maximum boost from the turbo, and retards the timing. I think that is pretty clever, I wonder why it never caught on! That way you know you're safe running regular, rather than hoping the knock sensor will step in if it starts pinging.

03-26-2004, 03:32 AM	#8 (permalink)
MrGone Tilted Location: WA	yeah, he got better mileage with premium, the same results I had. I'm going to be taking his car down to Oregon in about 5 hours hahahahaha, I'll let you know what kind of mileage I get. Last time I got alittle over 300 miles on about 3/4 of a tank at an average of 90mph, but found out that the right rear tire was pretty much flat for the trip (the tires needed to be replaced anyway so it wasn't really a loss). This time I plan on keeping it down to 70-75ish, lol. It's just the car kind of likes to keep going faster on you, lol. __________________ 1992 Maxima SE 5spd- Lots o mods. Maxima Guru 1968 Mustang Coupe 289ci Auto- Awaits 331 Stroker/T-56/Full Discs/and more.

03-29-2004, 02:13 AM	#9 (permalink)
MrGone Tilted Location: WA	Got 380 out of the tank at about 75-80mph avg? Using Premium. It's a 5spd so it doesn't get as good of highway mileage as the autos. __________________ 1992 Maxima SE 5spd- Lots o mods. Maxima Guru 1968 Mustang Coupe 289ci Auto- Awaits 331 Stroker/T-56/Full Discs/and more.