[Paniolo]

Since I purchased my brand new black 2006 Murano SL, I'ved kept my high octane fuel 92. As of today (April 21), the price of octane 92 is $3.15 and climbing. The low octane of 87 is $3.05. I was thinking of going for the lower fuel and saving $.10 a gallon. Don't know if its worth it to change.

Have any of you still using the premium octane?

 

[Murano_driver]

Premium only….but I start having the same thought. Price today $3.39 for 93.

 

[njjoe]

Paniolo-

If you do alot of highway driving you will reportedly save money by using premium fuel in your MO. (This is not true of all cars.) The Mo's VQ engine is a relatively high-compression motor. It's computer is calibrated to optimize efficiency on Premium fuel.

Premium fuel has shown to give you MO better highway fuel economy as compared to Regular.

If Premium-grade gasoline is only 10 cents more per gallon then stick with the Premium. That's only an additional $1.50 per fill-up (assuming you fill when the gauge is between "1/4" and "E").

-njjoe

 

[Paniolo]

Much Thanks Njjoe on your "as usual" good advise. I'll stick with
Premium fuel.

 

[bob1]

We have had some major threads about this in the past. Each fuel spike brings up the subject. I stick with the good stuff after hearing a mechanic interviewed on a TV news show. His advice was simple, use the premium if your owners manual calls for it. He cited bad things happening if you don't.
We have many opinions on this board and some will denounce the need to use high test gas. I for one am not taking chances and I have in the past switched for a few tanks. I could feel the difference in performance, the acceleration too. My wife reported hearing a ping here and there.
Just my opinion that good gas matters in the MO.

 

[Eric L.]

The funny thing about premium vs regular with escalating gas prices is that it becomes marginally cheaper to purchase premium the higher overall prices go. For me, its always 20 cents between regular and premium, whether its $2/gallon or $3/gallon. So, rising gas prices shouldn't really affect your decision to switch grades. If anything, its a lower % increase to hop up to premium in our $3/gallon times.

 

[Frumunda Cheese]

So whats the answer?

I still use 87...
From the manual
FUEL RECOMMENDATION:
Use unleaded regular gasoline with an octane
rating of at least 87 AKI (Anti-Knock
Index) number (Research octane number
91).
For improved vehicle performance,
NISSAN recommends the use of unleaded
premium gasoline with an octane rating of
at least 91 AKI number (Research octane
number 96).
CAUTION

Using a fuel other than that specified
could adversely affect the emission
control system, and may also affect
the warranty coverage.

Under no circumstances should a
leaded gasoline be used, since this
will damage the three-way catalyst.

Do not use E-85 fuel in your vehicle.
Your vehicle is not designed to run
on E-85 fuel. Using E-85 fuel can
damage the fuel system components
and is not covered by the NISSAN
vehicle limited warranty.

 

[njjoe]

As the price of gasoline climbs it becomes even more cost effective to use Premium gas. When gas was $1.50 a gallon, Premium sold for $1.70, that is a 13% difference. Now that gas is $2.80 a gallon, Premium is selling for $3.00, or just 7% more. The incremental cost between Regular and Premium gas is shrinking. In the latter example, if Premium fuel improves your mileage by more than 7% then it is more economical to use Premium.

-njjoe

 

[mgthe3]

Yes, and what is sad is that a lot of folks who don't have high compression engines will run premium because they think it will give them more power--which it will not.
They WILL have cooler running engines--I've seen that myself with my 7.4 liter engines that were notorious for heat.
BUT, they will run no better cruising on premium as the Mo WILL.

 

[zebelkhan]

Best thing to do is to try it. The best way is to have your spouse fill it up but not tell you which grade he/she used. Then you can judge the performance and economy without bias. Do a simple fuel economy calculation, and find out which grade works best for the MO and for your pocket book. I tried it, and the answer was premium...

 

[gang]

I have used both 87 and 93 gasoline from various brands, and I reset the fuel economy meter every time I buy gas. The 93 does not give me consistently better gas mileage. I tried alternate between 87 and 93, and kept a record of the MPG for the last 6 tanks. In fact, the 3 tanks of 87 gave me 0.2 MPG better at 21.1 than 3 tanks of 93 at 20.9. Of course, this does not say my MO runs better or more efficiently with 87 gas. The ambient temperature and other drive time conditions probably have more to do with it.

 

[Sgt_Beavis]

Nothing higher than 87 octane has ever seen the inside of my gas tank. Driving in DFW traffic, my commute to work is half heavy traffic and half highway speed. I average 21.1MPG but I have gotten as high as 26 during highway trips where I stuck to 65MPH.

Recently DFW went to a 10% ethanol blend in place of MTBE. I've seen my mileage drop to 19.5MPG, however that might be due to the recent failure of my catalytic converter. I'm also wondering if the 10% Ethanol might have cause it to fail.

 

[gang]

Recently DFW went to a 10% ethanol blend in place of MTBE. I've seen my mileage drop to 19.5MPG, however that might be due to the recent failure of my catalytic converter. I'm also wondering if the 10% Ethanol might have cause it to fail.

The side effect of adding ethanol is that it allows the refineries to raise the octane number of the blend but it also lowers the cars' MPG because ethanol contains less energy per unit volumn than gasoline.

 

[Eric L.]

I thought all parts of the US use some ethanol (maybe not as much as 10%) in their gasoline as an oxygenate. So I am surprised people complain about it, since we don't have much choice what they use as an oxygenate. And it is better for the air.

 

[hfelknor]

I thought all parts of the US use some ethanol (maybe not as much as 10%) in their gasoline as an oxygenate. So I am surprised people complain about it, since we don't have much choice what they use as an oxygenate. And it is better for the air.

No. Not for the last few years. Not everywhere that's for sure.
Look up MTBE. It was the oxygenate of choice for the last few years. Pushed most heavily by California, of course.
It takes the place of Ethanol.

California was the first state to adopt it and push everybody else into it.
Now, California was the first state to outlaw it. Gets into the water supply and causes cancer.
So now we are going to Ethanol.
That's a problem.
Ethanol attracts water (After all, it is just alcohol....or "dry gas").
So you can't ship it via pipeline.
And it has to be put in Gasoline at the last possible point to be effective.
So, it has to be trucked to the various distribution terminals (Downstream of the refineries).
So it costs more.


Here's an overview of how Politics can kill us.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=16495

Homer

 

[wa4qfy]

Ethanol

I have to agree with Homer, I have live in the south and I have never really seen Ethanol at any gas station in AL. I really think it's just the larger cities with polution problems. At least there are no signs at the pumps that start the fuel contain Ethanol. When I go to KY to see my family I see some pumps with Ethanol up there. Seem like to me you need to be a "Corn Belt" state to see Ethanol... IMHO...

Have you Atlanta guys see Ethanol?

 

[Eric L.]

California stopped using MTBE quite a few years ago, not just recently. I remember, maybe it was 1999 or 2000, when almost every gas station in the SF Bay Area had their tanks replaced because of possible MTBE ground water contamination. After installation of the new tanks, MTBE usage declined and was replaced with ethanol.

I have not once heard of a problem using gasoline with 10% ethanol content in a modern car. Sure, in a 30 year old car it might not be good for the rubber seals.

Even when MTBE was in use during the early days of the California Reformulated Grade fuel, some suppliers still used ethanol in CA. Among them was ARCO.

 

[mgthe3]

nope, no ethanol here

 

[Kris]

Re: Ethanol

Have you Atlanta guys see Ethanol?

Yes, I did. When I went to Kansas!

As mghthe3 said - no ethanol here....

 

[tqt]

IL - up to 10% enthanol