Chevron Gas Problems

[RAP]

so i use costco gas cause over here in NORCAL sanJo costco is the cheapest! but my gas mpg is pretty bad around 15-18 mpg average with barely over 300 sometimes on the regular... what wheels would be bettter swapped to improve gas mpg? i currently run 7 spoke 350z rims & do you guys know of any fluids that can be added to improve the gas mpg? i saw that red iso-heet stufff but i wanna try something that for sure is proven & works (im a college student) thanks!

The urge to razz you is almost overpowering!!!

What is proven and works??? Take all the wheels that you have presently, with all the cars above, and trade the whole shebang for a SENTRA, if you want to stay with Nissan cars. That will give you reasonably good GAS mileage.Better yet, go to Toyota and get the Prius for even better gas mileage. Honda has a gas saver car also. There are many other cars available if SAVING gas is what you want. OLD Q 45's are not where it's at.

YOU are already a collage student and that is where you should start studying more about cars, in the engineering department? ? ? if there is one.

Sorry. Jack

[Q45tech]

What happens when you blindly trust a station for quality, without sampling prior to fill up.I always carry a ventable clear Pyrex container to look at the quality of any strange station I'm forced to use prior to filling tank.........then dump back the sample into tank.

Rush in full up rush out is whose fault.....................New Jersey may be more difficult since the operator fills the tank.

When the cruddy fuel costs $6 per gallon maybe people will spend more time examining what they buy before they buy.

[maxnix]

People that use Costco gas. ... He tops up to 385 miles on Costco gas where as Shell/Chevron will top him 350miles if hes lucky. The disadvantage is that it gives him and me the least power out of any gases (although power does NOT matter, mileage is the main concern). Though he and I get the best mileage in our accords with Costco, I also get the absolute WORST mileage on my Q45. Guess its not good for V8's or what? I count mileage nearly EVERY fill up.

Your results may be due more to driving style variances, time of day you fill (less dense later in the day), or variablity routes taken.

It is obvious that higher energy content and higher mileage are correlated, not the opposite as you state. I've used Costco Premium mostly in my VH45DE and VH41DE and never suffered a problem. In Seattle, I think they used MTBE, but never ethanol that I can recall. Different in California, I bet.

[drftard]

sorry sir jack, new to the forum man... just trying to get accustomed to all these intelligent extremely informing guys that know about almost everythign their talk'n bout...

but the thing is i got a 92 Q from a friend ending up tracing back to 2 great previous owners, that are even on NICO now... and so I DEFINATELY won't trade it & besides it has alot of goodies intact already!

i'd just like to IMPROVE the gas mileage of the vehicle as much as possible since it gets on avg w/ costco gas around 15 mpg withi a combo of highway&city but mainly highway... once i got 18 but i am in the process of returning the car to most stock oem standards in search of the best mpg, and 'maxnix' has been a real help in other threads... i agree with the driving style variances since the NICO ecu in my car is very picky if im really kind & ease on the gas all day it'll b a bit slower (like soccer mom driving speed) but the gas will be much more predictable... & btw LOTS of time when gasing up @ costco there are EXTREMELY long lines so... im sure alot of costco members & ppl flock there for cheap gas! even if its bad =[

as for the Q...i really like this car and am in search of all NICO's members wisdom that you guys are willing to give without getting really "razz"-ed up...

unfortunately san jose state university is more for computer engineering... i wish they had more support for car engineering or mechanical engineering gearing toward cars & that of sorts but its unfortunate.... i think the place u would refer me to is somethign like wyotech & vocational schools???

BUT! if i did get a sentra(fwd) i would 'attempt' to throw a s15 sr(rwd) into it with a t3/t4 turbo & see how it goes! or maybe a prius with a 2jz 1 day! haha, & honda fits w/ their crazy k24 & k20 engines with hasport instructional swaps & comptech supercharger kits! HEHE! or maybe 1 day some1 will b crazy(maybe retarded) to attempt to throw a f20 in a fit!

i actually saw an issue on the stands (since i've kinda been built off ricers mentality) an s13 coupe w/ a f20 turbo charged... i thought the f20 was built off a 50/50 weight distribution for s2k's!?! the s13 coupe chasis doesn't have that weight ratio... i thought the only car that was close was the rx-7 fc generation!?! i thought the only thing it had in common w/ s13s & s2ks are the fwd, the s13 is well balanced as chosen for drifting but not for an engine swap like that!?!

wOw real offtopic SORRY GUYS! but you guys are awesome hopefully finding a solution to gas prices... & hopefully not burning me and baning me in the process... haha!

[Jesda]

We don't have Chevron here, so I've been very pleased with BP/Amoco and Shell. They all have E10 anyway.

[Jesda]

as for the Q...i really like this car and am in search of all NICO's members wisdom that you guys are willing to give without getting really "razz"-ed up...

Your Q was owned by previous NICO members? Any idea which ones? How many miles? Got pics?

[drftard]

YOU!!! man i've been looking for YOU for real long! the car that i currently owned is YOURS JESDA!

i got to chat with wes luckly catching him on aim online 1 day & described the car to him! haha i got a lucky snatch from larry "chinaonnitrous"

& so supposedly this car has been passed down from the infamous 'jesda' himself from missouri all the way to the bay sanjo now!

car has about 230XXX miles now & has some issues but im try'n! actually it'd be great with your guidance to get some help & all the help from NICO members to bring this car back to your standards since you took such good care of it!?!

traced from you i believe the car was babied by you in stock form & had lots of matience done before being driven to CALi where larry i presumed bought it from you & started to modify it...

the car has a JP kit on it now -minus sideskirts, has some SPL parts im trying to figure out but im sure are the upper links @ the least & tension rods... it has as strut bar engine-wise it has a short ram apexi air filter & a NICO ecu i believe but it has some issues plaguing it unfortunately...

the most pressing issue (posted in infiniti mechanic) is the power steering issue & engine noise im going to get to right after... the resivour has liquid inside & larry said he had replaced the lines so i believe the pump is friend & dead so i got a remanufactured pwr steering pump but have been on the hunt to find a FSM & manual to install is asap to get to the engine noise...

if anyone could help & look @ my other posted threads & help out i appreciate it alot! THANKS TO ALL GODLY NICO members! your help is awesome

[Jesda]

I (and Wes who did tons of work, and Scott who did the guides) took very good care of it, but I have to admit to completely neglecting the tires, suspension, and upholstery. I couldn't afford to give it the care I wanted. I was very very picky about using fresh high-quality fluids. Synthetic EVERYTHING ahead of schedule.

Do you still have the service records? Thats thousands of dollars I'll never get back. :P



Some day, I want to own that car again. If you ever decide to part with it, let me know. It was a big part of my early 20s and I miss it tremendously.

[RAP]

I note that NO ONE has come to your rescue concerning saving gas.

Why? Well because there is really no practical way to alter the configuration of an automobile as delivered from the manufacturer. Cars are built at optimal configurations for the general public.

There are really no differentials available to change the "rear end ratios" which is what would need to be done. At least I don't think so for your Q45 car.

. Now if you were talking about Detroit iron then that is where it's at. For instance my '91 GMC pick-up has four different differential ratios available. (Ring gear and pinion). My current set-up is 411 to 1. I burn lotsa gas but there is plenty of pulling power. However the engine turn at higher RPM burning gas. To save gas I would need to change down to a 293 to 1. I would save gas but lose efficient pulling power meaning that the transmission would shift down to a lower gear at low speeds. I could achieve a higher top speed at a lower RPM (saving gas) on the open highway but in the low speed zones the trans would be operating at a lower gear(burning more gas). This is what I have to offer in broad terms because there is more to it than that but beyond the scope of this post.

All of the high tech postulation from Q45 Tech is not realistic for us since non of us has the test equipment that is needed to measure much of anything.

All of that "high tech" info is presented in the FSM, lotsa of it, BUT you need the testing/measuring equipment to use it.

Jack

[maxnix]

All of the high tech postulation from Q45 Tech is not realistic for us since non of us has the test equipment that is needed to measure much of anything.

All of that "high tech" info is presented in the FSM, lotsa of it, BUT you need the testing/measuring equipment to use it.

When computers are involved, more that just wrenches are needed.

A DVM, an OBD II code reader, or the OBD I ECU readers are invaluable aids.

[Haitian_King]

Um. I believe that there are at least 2 other differentials available for the G50 besides the stock. I believe they are the 4.11:1 and the 4.08:1 (IIRC).

Seems like you're doing your impression of a G50 driver again.

[Q45tech]

The 90-96 Q is no more complicated than a V8 Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lexus once they copied the coil on plug in mid to late 90's. Surely less complicated than a brand new Crown Vic.

Most people seem to have problems in tranfering I4, I6/V6 to V8

That is the rub new cars are beyond 95% of the dealer technical work force.It is scarey for these mechanical employees.

Lexus is using a new AI system where techs enter symptoms and computers at corp match symptoms with previously entered solutions once some brillant or just hardworking tech solves a problem, and a corp engineer checks it out the answer is avaiable to all immediately............no waiting for TSB or updates.

[FarFetched]

What happens when you blindly trust a station for quality, without sampling prior to fill up.I always carry a ventable clear Pyrex container to look at the quality of any strange station I'm forced to use prior to filling tank.........then dump back the sample into tank.

Rush in full up rush out is whose fault.....................New Jersey may be more difficult since the operator fills the tank.

When the cruddy fuel costs $6 per gallon maybe people will spend more time examining what they buy before they buy.

I gotta stick my $.02 in here!I haven't noticed motorists in Germany inspecting their fuel before fill up. FYI avarage "regular" is about 5.50-5.80$$ perr gallon in Statgurt, GermanyAnd still autobahn is full of 100+Mph cars !!!Geramny in conjunction with UN is talking to reduse autobahn speed to old-lady-oriented 80Mph I think we, the Americans, should be thankful to have cheap gasoline. Or better yet to stop this tear shed , move to Venezuela ....cheepst gasoline in the worlds as of late!!!It is so much fun to be overtaken by a bloody-fast GT1 ... and feel violent turbulence created by it

[FarFetched]

Lexus is using a new AI system where techs enter symptoms and computers at corp match symptoms with previously entered solutions once some brillant or just hardworking tech solves a problem, and a corp engineer checks it out the answer is avaiable to all immediately............no waiting for TSB or updates.

That is bloody brilliant

[Jesda]

Its about time! Microsoft uses a central database for technical support (I worked in MS software support for years) so that front-line techs wouldnt have to go through the same nonsense over and over.

Nothing like punching in keywords and resolving an issue in minutes.

[RAP]

I gotta stick my $.02 in here!I haven't noticed motorists in Germany inspecting their fuel before fill up. FYI avarage "regular" is about 5.50-5.80$$ perr gallon in Statgurt, GermanyAnd still autobahn is full of 100+Mph cars !!!Geramny in conjunction with UN is talking to reduse autobahn speed to old-lady-oriented 80Mph I think we, the Americans, should be thankful to have cheap gasoline. Or better yet to stop this tear shed , move to Venezuela ....cheepst gasoline in the worlds as of late!!!It is so much fun to be overtaken by a bloody-fast GT1 ... and feel violent turbulence created by it

When Hillary C**t becomes Prez we may well be on the way to HIGHER gas prices ? ? ?

There are much higher gas prices throughout Europe. However YOU can get around without cars if so inclined. There are excellent public transportation systems throughout, buses, trains and planes. Sorely lacking here and really needs to be addressed but...

However the Europeans do like their cars and go through hell and high prices to have them.

Jack

[Jesda]

I'm not a fan of HC either, but there's no need for that.

As for public transit, the US is a REALLY FREAKING HUGE country. Cars and planes are the most efficient and practical way of covering all this territory.

[RAP]

Lo siento.

No need for WHAT?

This is a hugh country indeed. But there are high speed trains that would be really efficient to use here.

Currently you are damn near required to be at an airport two hours prior to departure of your flight. That is after you get there. Getting to the airport can be a time consuming ordeal in major cities especially. Once on board, at busy airports, there are additional delays depending on time of day, weather, etc. prior to actual departure of the airplane.Arrival at destinations, more delays, and on and on...

A good well run high speed rail system would really work well, considering the above, for 500 to 1000 mile distances.

However the automotive industry is really at fault here for this dependence on the automobile. They got the politicians in their pockets and now you are immobile if you don't have a car. To our detriment.

Used to be that one could travel around the country via bus and there was good coverage of most areas. Now even they too, have abandoned small towns. They travel to, and, stop only in major cities.

That's not good public policy.

Don't know yet if HRC will ascend the throne but she stands a very good chance. No matter who it is, somehow we'll muddle through, as we always do.

Go Barak

Jack

[Haitian_King]

A high speed train system wouldn't be a bad idea. Japan is constantly developing new bullet trains.

Whoever the next President is (I'm hoping for Rudy), hopefully they'll push for nuclear power expansion. I did a research paper on it and found that nuclear power is much safer than it's believed to be. With the advances in engineering and architecture, I don't see why we can't do it. Three Mile Island was ill designed and outdated. Now designs would include gravity pumps to be used in cooling to prevent meltdowns. Not to mention, the old reactors were from 1950's submarines. A hell of a lot less emissions than coal, even the "clean coal" Western PA is all about. We could expect to see a nice decrease in foreign petroleum consumption. Maybe that'll placate the unfriendly Arab nations that view our presence there as a nuisance and insult.

I'm all for nuclear.

[maxnix]

Hydrogen or hybrid powered cars assume a fission or (if possible) fusion power source to reduce pollution.

The problem with spent nuclear fission fuel is the half llife is 25K years. Let's see, we've been writing for 5K? Difficult to locate stable geologic formations for storage. What a legacy!

Three mile island was not "outdated" when it was designed and built. Using the lowest bidder approach doesn't work well on the long run when it comes to fission.

[Haitian_King]

Hydrogen or hybrid powered cars assume a fission or (if possible) fusion power source to reduce pollution.

The problem with spent nuclear fission fuel is the half llife is 25K years. Let's see, we've been writing for 5K? Difficult to locate stable geologic formations for storage. What a legacy!

Three mile island was not "outdated" when it was designed and built. Using the lowest bidder approach doesn't work well on the long run when it comes to fission.

True. But designs have improved drastically. Especially in the emergency cooling systems.

Yucca Mountain is our best option at the moment (Not to mention our current one) because of our reluctance to recycle the spent fuel rods. Low chance of groundwater contamination and it's far enough away from residential areas.

Can hydrogen and hybrid cars match the energy output of gasoline vehicles? The Toyota Prius has terrible acceleration I've been told.

I'm not much for getting rid of gas. I love the way it smells. (Weird right?) But if we can lower the demand for other petroleum products and coal, we can see a nice decrease in carbon emissions and be that much closer to achieving the UN Millenium Development Goals.

[FarFetched]

NFM ....I am a sleep deprived person....
Modified by FarFetched at 10:01 AM 1/9/2008

[Haitian_King]

Glad to see you modified your post. The one I'm seeing now doesn't match the one I read in my email. If that was an attempt at humor, I'd like to say that it was quite crass and low-brow. Certainly well below the caliber of a Q owner. At least on this board.

As far as politics go, I strongly feel the urge to vote Republican. I honestly do not wish to see a green, wet behind the ears first term Senator in the White House. Nor would I like to see Hilary in that seat of power. I think that out of all of the candidates for the Presidential election, Rudy Giuliani may be the best one. Running NYC is as close to running a country as you can get IMO. He did a great job cleaning up NYC. He did it so well that the new mayor of Philadelphia plans to implement Rudy's techniques to clean up Philadelphia.

Wow, how we digress.

I would like to see gas prices go down, and it can happen, provided we stop being stubborn and start taking steps in other directions. Prices are high because of short supply and less than desirable foreign relations. The less crude we use for other things besides gasoline, the better. Then we can use the available crude for gas and bring the prices down. It might be a little expensive in the beginning, but the long term gain will be great. Or would we rather continue the torture of steadily rising gas prices. Those days when 92 drops below $3 are becoming few and far between for me. I hate getting excited when it's cheap and filling up, and the next week, my heart is broken to see it up above $3 again.

But then again, wtf do I know?

[FarFetched]

Hydrogen or hybrid powered cars assume a fission or (if possible) fusion power source to reduce pollution.

"Every day we are told the GLOBAL WARMING is comming. And that the car is to BLAME" J. Clarkson's quote Hybrid is so BS ....It is, once again prove, that we are taking wrong approach to solve compounding problem. After all America is all about CAPITALISM - main engine that proppels this doomed country nowhere! Al Gore and his becoming as a Nobel laureate bolstered Hybrid techology to the level that we forget that we need simpler thing in life. We need infrastructure, solid understanding of our own resources...Not some foreigh oil wells that are gitting emptier day after day.

A q45 owner or any other owner of a luxury car with a mighty V8 must not support Hybrid techology. Simply because you are (plural) the main cause of GLOBAL WARMING Ha-Ha-Ha...

I'd rather die happy under scorching sun somwhere up horth when GW reaches it's peak than fall for this conspiracy that cars and human carbon foot print are to balme ...

[Haitian_King]

Uh. Global warming is real. I live in Jersey. Normal January temps should be in the 40s at the highest. It's like 65 today. Same for yesterday. I drove to work with the windows down and sunroof open. I have a gigantic winter coat with a fur hood that I haven't worn since last winter, simply because it isn't that cold.

Your leftist rants against capitalism won't change the fact. Cars are not the sole culprit behind global warming and carbon emissions. But they do play a significant role. I think that seriously reducing emissions from other sources besides cars may give us a nice drop in the amount of carbon we emit. I think that trying to redesign cars to use other sources of fuel and maintain the same level of performance may be quite costly and time consuming. Iceland has currently converted their public transportation system and fishing fleets to hydrogen power. Maybe we could do the same with public transportation. These vehicles are constantly running their engines. Buses don't turn off until they hit the yard. These vehicles aren't focused on superior performance and wouldn't suffer as much from hydrogen power. Imagine the number of buses running in the US (School, coach, and public transportation) on a daily basis. Now if all of them were converted to near-zero emissions systems, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere would decrease. I'm not saying that it'd be a huge decrease overnight, but it would gather over time. Upon seeing the success of these methods, other countries would follow our lead (hopefully) and that would also contribute to global emissions reduction. It'd be the opposite of a vicious cycle.

[96Qowner]

Lighten up, Haitian.

FarFetched is "not from here", not originally. There's no offense intended. I have always liked his honest demeanor, once you understand.

[Haitian_King]

Did you see his original post? I'd put it up, but I don't think that sort of ugliness should be found on this board. Quite frankly, we're better than that.

But I'll leave it alone.

[Jesda]

Oooh, fun thread!

I'd love to see a high speed rail network, but you have to do that by creating incentives for private industry to develop it.

1) Stop subsidizing and loaning money to airlines.2) Stop subsidizing "alternative energy" (which amounts to corn subsidies)3) Stop overtaxing air travel and train fare.

Basically, take the government out and let the market develop the most efficient transit network possible based on market demand.

Hybrid technology is a stopgap, not a solution.

[Haitian_King]

True. Maybe we need to adopt a laissez-faire approach?

[RAP]

NFM ....I am a sleep deprived person....

Modified by FarFetched at 10:01 AM 1/9/2008

You should have left your original rant intact. I note that someone has said that you are not from here?

Well if that is correct I am thinking GB or OZ??? since you use the term "bloody". No problem with either for me. I also think Mexicans are nice people.

The fact is that YOU are tolerated! So too will a "chick or a nigga" be tolerated as an elected Prez. It's how things work here. We adjust and the Republic keep rollin' along.

Weather either one, the chick or the nigga, will ascend the throne is not known as of yet. However there is a feeling that a party change is due, as has been done in the past, so be prepared for a Democrat as prez.

If HRC is the one you can be sure that she WILL try to push more government into our lives. THEY ARE DEMOCRATS but more so, especially HRC believe that the government should be more involved in the lives of the citizens. plus they are PROFESSIONAL POLITICIANS, more so HRC. Professional pols are just that and they really have no other interest. GOVERNMENT is the answer for the common good and they just don't mean filling potholes and that, is Bil and Hil's raison d'etre. They wanna bring "changes" to our lives.

What does that have to do with Q45's hmmmm??? well I don't know yet. They, the pols certainly will not talk about ANY changes to the status quo yet, as far as cars are concerned except for "CAFE" standards maybe. They do mouth that slogan "reduce our dependence on foreign oil" but that is generic.At this juncture it would not be wise for an aspiring pol to scare the voters with wild ideas ? ? ? So don't expect any major policy statements as concerns gas guzzlers from any of the current contenders for the top job.

The real way to reduce our dependence on foreign oil is to increase the gas taxes, increase the taxes on high horsepower cars at the sales point, annual taxes on cars based on HP, in short make it financially painful to own and operate anything other than 1.5's. Kinda like the tobacco settlement. Yet people still smoke. I'll stop here since this site is really about

BIG wheels Mp3's body kits etc.

Real important stuff.

Jack