fuel use what type of grade

[cowboy57]

bought my versa hatch in feb.08 so a little new to site. this is my first post question. i dont know if its been asked before i have searched the site but havent found any info.

question is what type fuel do you all use?? reg. or prem. which do u think would get a better mpg. and has anyone try to run a poll on this to see.

08 versa hatch s / with spoilermeg grayfogs doneint. light by foot wells donewindow tint dueair int. duenew rims due

[07Vsdn]

the car was designed to run on regular so we use good 'ol 87!

[my_new_v]

the car was designed to run on regular so we use good 'ol 87!

Yup...what he said

Welcome to the forum!

[biggie]

An occassional fillup with 89 won't hurt (like once every couple months or so). Should help clean out any deposits. But yeah, otherwise 87.

Welcome.

[daan]

Unless it's super, super hot outside (think over 100) using higer octane won't really do much for MPG or performance unless you're running advanced timing or a turbo. And those "Octane Boost" stuff only raises the octane level in your tank like .05% so they totally aren't worth it.

[cowboy57]

so using a higher oct. gas wont do a thing it would just be a waste of good ol cash????

[Andrews Chalmers]

so using a higher oct. gas wont do a thing it would just be a waste of good ol cash????

Yes... higher octane does not "clean" the engine, or mean higher qualify gasoline. Higher octane just means higher activation energy... so the engine can compress the fuel/air mixture further before it'll detonate.

An economy engine not intended for high compression simply wastes fuel.

[cowboy57]

thanks alot for the info....guess i can save a little money......

[keanucosmo]

I use "top tier" http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html gasoline in my Versa & Vette and have never had any fuel related issues. Even though Nissan isn't one of the manufacturers involved in creating the spec, I believe it is a spec that ensures good quality gas. And the spec is for all grades of fuel.

[Knightro2]

I think saving money is a moot point nowadays with the gas prices they way they are!

[cowboy57]

hahaha no sh** time to ride the horse to work oats are cheaper

[07Vsdn]

""There is no gain. You're wasting money," insists Jim Blenkarn, in charge of powertrains at Nissan in the USA. "

There you go.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/...x.htm

a bit dated, but still a very good read.

[cowboy57]

thx hate wasting good ol cash

[Great White Versa]

That article brings up a point that I have never understood. In my mind, as the price of gas goes up, the relative cost difference between regular and premium (assuming that it stays at 10¢ per grade increase) becomes less significant. But as the price of gas increased people bought less premium gas. It makes no sense to me.

For example, back when I was in high school and was driving gas was usually $0.99, $1.09 and $1.19 which would give the premium gas a 20.2% 'price premium' over regular. But today gas is $3.39, $3.49, and $3.59 making it only a 5.9% 'price premium'.

Am I alone in thinking that way?

I don't use premium today only because I have a car that doesn't benefit from it. As soon as I get my car to the point that premium does help, then I will only use it.

[07Vsdn]

i agree with your logic for the most part.

yes, premium fuel, in percentage terms of additional cost, becomes less expensive.

however, it is still 20 cents more. as the price of fuel increases one can still save money by downgrading to regular.

but, as the article also points out, you don't really save all that much. so, is the performance worth the cost?

when considered with other downgrades in life to reduce costs (downgrade to basic cable, cancel subscriptions, quite smoking, eat in, etc...) it can definitely add up.

[XterraVersa]

I use "top tier" http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html gasoline in my Versa & Vette and have never had any fuel related issues. Even though Nissan isn't one of the manufacturers involved in creating the spec, I believe it is a spec that ensures good quality gas. And the spec is for all grades of fuel.

Top tier gas my a$$. I see the shell truck deliver fuel to Sams Club & King Soopers after the Shell station. Sams & King Soopers are $0.10 to 0.15 cheaper than Shell. I guess the extra 10-15 cents goes to pay Kevin Harvick & others to sell the same old crappy gas you can get else where cheaper.

I fill up anywhere gas is cheap, from the no-name Ma & Pa stores to Shell. Only once in my 17 years of driving have I ever had a fuel problem. It was from a Shell in Kansas, that I swear they watered the gas down. 10 mpg in my xterra when It had gotten 15-19 on the previous & subsequent tanks.

Gas is gas is gas. Use the cheapest possible that doesn't cause your engine to knock. There is no performance increase in upping the octane rating from the manufacturers recommendation.

[keanucosmo]

Top tier gas my a$$. I see the shell truck deliver fuel to Sams Club & King Soopers after the Shell station. Sams & King Soopers are $0.10 to 0.15 cheaper than Shell. I guess the extra 10-15 cents goes to pay Kevin Harvick & others to sell the same old crappy gas you can get else where cheaper.

I fill up anywhere gas is cheap, from the no-name Ma & Pa stores to Shell. Only once in my 17 years of driving have I ever had a fuel problem. It was from a Shell in Kansas, that I swear they watered the gas down. 10 mpg in my xterra when It had gotten 15-19 on the previous & subsequent tanks.

Gas is gas is gas. Use the cheapest possible that doesn't cause your engine to knock. There is no performance increase in upping the octane rating from the manufacturers recommendation.

Top Tier has nothing to do with octane rating. It has to do with detergent additives in the gasoline. The additives must be in all grades to qualify for Top Tier. If all gas was the same, I doubt GM, Honda, Toyota, BMW and other manufacturers would have come up with a gasoline spec for a non-existant problem. I use QuikTrip which is considered a "Discount Brand". As far as Sams Club getting Shell, they probably buy whatever is available in the market. It may be Shell one time and another brand next week. I'd rather pay 3 cents more (the difference between Sam's Club and QT) & know what I'm putting in my tank.

[Ever Victorious]

Funny to me that the only gas that has ever given me (personally) problems was on the top tier list. Had a tank of Texaco kill the injectors on one of my Legacies. Yet I've used Arco (now part of BP) for almost 15 years with no problems, and it's always significantly cheaper. Oh yeah, I also remember my dad complaining about the Shell gas he used to use eating the seals in the carburetor of his '82 Subaru. He switched to Chevron and never had the problem again. This may be the reason why Shell has never seen the inside of my gas tank.

I was starting to buy into the myth that there really was a difference between "Top Tier" and "discount" gas last September when I was forced to fill up at a 76, and got 2mpg better than normal. The next few subsequent tanks were the same.

But then the winter came, and there was absolutely no difference between the 76 and the Arco as far as fuel economy. Now that it's spring again, the 76 is still getting bad mileage, but the Arco is beating it. by 3 mpg.

So EV's personal take: Buy whatever 87 octane is cheap from a reputable station, and put Gumout or STP in your tank once every 10,000 miles.

[XterraVersa]

So EV's personal take: Buy whatever 87 octane is cheap from a reputable station, and put Gumout or STP in your tank once every 10,000 miles.

That makes more economic sence than paying extra at a "top Tier" place. I want pure gas from the pump, not gas watered down with detergent. I do get better mileage from the pure gas at Sam's than the diluted gas at Shell.

As to why some manufacturers promote top tier... Sponsorship deals in F1, NASCAR, Indycar... Why soe gas companies don't buy into top tier, because they would rather sell in bulk than nickle & dime the folks for a marketing scam.

I work in a sort of related field to gas production. It is the left over black gooey stuff we pave roads with.

The engineers at the refinery have told us many times, gas is gas. They don't do anything differently for Shell or the generic buyers.

[keanucosmo]

As far as a tank of bad gas causing problems, I would attribute that to a gas station issue rather than a brand. I had a couple of friends in my corvette club stop at a Shell station right before a track day at Sebring. Two blown engines. No one in the club quit using Shell as a result, but that station is on the no-fillup list . I would rather buy no-name gas at a station that turns over their inventory once a week than at a name brand station that only turns over their inventory once a month.

I was starting to buy into the myth that there really was a difference between "Top Tier" and "discount" gas last September when I was forced to fill up at a 76, and got 2mpg better than normal. The next few subsequent tanks were the same.

OK "Top Tier" is a brand certifying a level of detergent additive. It does not have anything to do with the price "discount". Does Turkey Hill Minit Markets sound like a "Discount" brand? It does to me. As I stated before, I use QuikTrip which is considered a "discount" brand. I've been using this brand for 25 years in everything from high compression 60's muscle cars to the Versa. Before there ever was any such thing as Top Tier, they guaranteed their gas against any engine problems caused by bad gas. I have never had so much as one bad tank of gas from them.

But then the winter came, and there was absolutely no difference between the 76 and the Arco as far as fuel economy. Now that it's spring again, the 76 is still getting bad mileage, but the Arco is beating it. by 3 mpg.

I wish we had Arco, it sounds wonderful. If I consistantly got 3 mpg better, it's the only gas I would ever use.

My average mpg on my 08 S 6 spd is 32 for 9500 miles. It was 31.7 for 15000 miles on my 07 S 6 spd. The 08 has cruise, the 07 did not. This is 30-70 City-Highway driving. I've never had a variance of more than 2 mpg and when that happens, it's because of thrashing the car when around some idiot in traffic.

So EV's personal take: Buy whatever 87 octane is cheap from a reputable station, and put Gumout or STP in your tank once every 10,000 miles.

OK I never said anyone should use Premium grade gas. I use 87 octane Regular from QuikTrip in my Versa. It's the cheapest brand that is on my route. I've never needed any Gumout or STP.

That makes more economic sence than paying extra at a "top Tier" place. I want pure gas from the pump, not gas watered down with detergent. I do get better mileage from the pure gas at Sam's than the diluted gas at Shell.

OK you stated in an earlier post that Sam's Club gets Shell gas and there was no difference other than price. Now you say there is a difference & that Sam's Club is "pure". Which is it? I wouldn't call adding detergent watering down the gasoline

The engineers at the refinery have told us many times, gas is gas. They don't do anything differently for Shell or the generic buyers.

At the refinery that may be true. This article states that detergents are added after gas leaves the refinery. The article also talks about Premium vs Regularhttp://www.edmunds.com/advice/....html

[cowboy57]

what does adding gumout or stp do to help?? nissan states in the owners manual that it doesnt recommend the use of fuel additives.could the use of these void the warranty??

[keanucosmo]

what does adding gumout or stp do to help?? nissan states in the owners manual that it doesnt recommend the use of fuel additives.could the use of these void the warranty??

It's a fuel system cleaner. It's supposed to clean fuel injectors, valves, remove carbon etc.

Essentially what gas with detergent additives does.

A friend of mine who is as ASE mechanic will only use Techron additive.

[daan]

+1 on the Techron. I read a study a while back that of all the fuel cleaners, none of them actually did anything other than Techron (and that didn't do much either) If you have "Chevron" brand stations by you, Techron is the same stuff as their gas addative.

[faction]

what's all your opinions on ethanol? or is that the 87 you are talking about?

I've always used ethanol blend because I'm poor and it used to be the cheapest, and I never had a problem with itbut I know a lot of people who won't touch it.

[Andrews Chalmers]

what's all your opinions on ethanol? or is that the 87 you are talking about?

I've always used ethanol blend because I'm poor and it used to be the cheapest, and I never had a problem with itbut I know a lot of people who won't touch it.

Ethanol mixes are stupid. You get worse mpg & the reduced price comes at the cost of taxpayers.

Corn ethanol also isn't environmentally friendly, not really sustainable - and net energy output is minimal at best.