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Car Forum / Nissan / Nissan Maxima / August 2006Maxima . . . Premium? Regular?
Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! Anyhow, there's at least one bit more to octane use that some of you may not appreciate. Given any car's altitude, its octane requirements will vary. A car at sea level will tend to require more octane than a car at 5000 feet above seal level. I wonder if all those people with Maximas that ping on regular (My 98 Max SE did it on 87 octane with enthusiastic throttle openings) live at or around sea level? I'm in the NYC area so that's pretty much sea level. A Maxima owner who lives in, say Denver, may be fine on 87 octane. So then, this discussion should include where the maxima owner lives and drives. The Max owner who swears by 87 octane and has never heard a ping, do you live at sea level? Do you "get-on-it" as it were? CD > Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! > [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > > CD === Good point CD I have a 2002 SE 6sp I live in Calgary Canada (1049 meters / 3224 feet above sea level) I drive my max the way is should be driven, sometimes WOT sometimes cruising. -But always just a little aggressive -it's just too fun not to! I use REGULAR (87 octane) 75% of the time without any problems. When I do use premium (92 octane) I do feel a difference though. It's more of a "butt feel" but it's there. Smoother, tires chirp a little sooner with a little extra "pop" in 2nd & 3rd. I asked my dealer and got the company line: "high octane gas is recommended for maximum performance & reliability" BUT " your car will run just fine and be covered by any warranty if you use regular" I'm going to start using premium all the time, because the extra $10 a month it will cost is less then I spend on coffee a week... My 3 1/2c BR > > Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! > > [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > === > Good point CD Good point about the altitude,,, You in Calgary have yet another thing going for you (though in mid Jan you might disagree with me,,LOL). Cool weather. Cooler engine will be less likely to ping. >I have a 2002 SE 6sp >I live in Calgary Canada (1049 meters / 3224 feet above sea level) [quoted text clipped - 41 lines] >> === >> Good point CD > Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! > > The Max owner who swears by 87 octane and has never heard a ping, do you > live at sea level? Do you "get-on-it" as it were? I almost always use 87 octane and have never heard a ping with my 2000 SE. I live in the LA area at sea level. Of course, the car is pretty much exclusivly used for short drives. Its a thread that makes zero sense anymore,,,91 octane,,which is what the manufacturer of the car recommends, and what the car is 'tuned" to run best on is only 4 percent more than 87. Anyone who runs this car on 87 - and complains about preformance, and accuses Nissan of 'fraud", simply need serious pyschiratic help. If you can hear pinging - aka the sound of your Grannies sowing machine, then you have mucho problems with fuel quality - the ECU and knock sensor can no longer retard the timing enough to stop the pre igintition,,,,,,you should never hear pinging; never,,,if you do you had better get better fuel or get to the dealer . Running at sea level and in a cool climate does matter. >> Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! >> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >SE. I live in the LA area at sea level. Of course, the car is pretty >much exclusivly used for short drives. > If you can hear pinging - aka the sound of your Grannies sowing > machine, then you have mucho problems with fuel quality - the ECU and > knock sensor can no longer retard the timing enough to stop the pre > igintition,,,,,,you should never hear pinging; never,,,if you do you > had better get better fuel or get to the dealer . I can run 93 octane from Chevron and 89 octane from Chevron (from the exact same station) and the car (03SE) runs perfectly fine on 93, no problems whatsoever, great mileage, etc. If I get cheap and throw the 89 in, the sucker lugs, dings, pings and the mileage is worse by a good 40 miles a tank. I think that if the car had evident mechanical problems, they'd show regardless of the octane. >>Man this topic is SUCH a Rage! I love it! >> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > SE. I live in the LA area at sea level. Of course, the car is pretty > much exclusivly used for short drives. Short drives would suggest that your car may not even reach operating temperature. Does it? Also with short drives, your mileage must be terrible because while not running at optimal temps, the car is running rich. Lastly, if this drive is that short then pinging wont even become an issue until the car has warmed up. CD > > I almost always use 87 octane and have never heard a ping with my 2000 > > SE. I live in the LA area at sea level. Of course, the car is pretty [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > CD My commutes are tyically 8 miles each way on city streets five days a week, plus driving afterhours and on weekends within a 10-mile radius of where we live. We use my wife's newer car for long-distance driving. No doubt the driving distance has something to do with the fact that I've never heard a ping in the four years that I've had the Max, which I bought "pre-owned." However I do remember pings in other cars I've owned and used similarly within the last 10-15 years. I have to say that the Max SE is the car I've most enjoyed driving of all the cars I've ever owned! Don > The Max owner who swears by 87 octane and has never heard a ping, > do you live at sea level? Do you "get-on-it" as it were? > > CD I live at about 2200 feet. I "get-on-it" regularly. I live outside of the city and there is plenty of 'zoom room' for me. It DOES go better with premium though. It just doesn't ping with regular or 87 octane. I will be heading to the coast in a couple weeks and I will see what it does at sea level. > >> The Max owner who swears by 87 octane and has never heard a ping, [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > the city and there is plenty of 'zoom room' for me. It DOES go better > with premium though. And would get better gas milage as well as not overheat the exhaust valves. > It just doesn't ping with regular or 87 octane. Of course it doesn't, it has a KNOCK SENSOR!  SignatureSteve http://www.atlantaracing.com >> I live at about 2200 feet. I "get-on-it" regularly. I live >> outside of the city and there is plenty of 'zoom room' for me. >> It DOES go better with premium though. > > And would get better gas milage as well as not overheat the > exhaust valves. It does get better gas mileage with premuim but the 'cost per mile' is about the same. What does octane rating have to do with valve temperature? >> It just doesn't ping with regular or 87 octane. > > Of course it doesn't, it has a KNOCK SENSOR! I KNOW that. I merely put it in as there are a couple people that say it WILL ping. > >>> I live at about 2200 feet. I "get-on-it" regularly. I live [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > It does get better gas mileage with premuim but the 'cost per mile' > is about the same. So why use the cheaper gas? You lose performance, damage the exhaust valves and manifolds, and then save nothing.. > What does octane rating have to do with valve temperature? Nothing. The ignition timing on the other hand does have a direct relationship to valve and manifold temps. The clue here is: what does the knock sensor do when the car has cheap gas in it? Retarded spark timing overheats the exhaust valves and the cylinder walls. > >>> It just doesn't ping with regular or 87 octane. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > I KNOW that. I merely put it in as there are a couple people that > say it WILL ping. Actually it does ping until the knock sensor hears the detonation and retards the spark. SignatureSteve http://www.atlantaracing.com My brother bought a 350 Z last year and you can use and grade gas! He called up the dealer and asked why since his maxima requires 91and the person that sold him the car said that was correct and he could not explain it either. > >>> I live at about 2200 feet. I "get-on-it" regularly. I live > >>> outside of the city and there is plenty of 'zoom room' for me. [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] > > http://www.atlantaracing.com |
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