Premium is recommended for the Pathfinder's VQ.

Multiple tanks, we've verified the numbers a few times (we've had the Pathfinder since 2001).

Same driver, same style of driving, same routes.

 

Cool, thanks. This is actually really informative then.

 

Add mine to the list.

The guy is the head mechanic for one of the Z teams here in SoCal and he is the service manager at Raceway Nissan in Riverside. I asked him if there was any issue at all with running regular fuel vice premium. He said no except for the expected lower preformance. I haven't had a reason to burn anything other than premium but I would if I couldn't afford the extra $0.20 a gallon.

 

The dealeship also filled up my Z with 87 octane when I bought it, and it ran just fine. Switching to premium made little difference in my mileage. The argument of premium getting better gas mileage has been discussed all over the place for decades, and there is no final conclusion. I have never proven it to my satisfaction either way, especially when the route/speed isn't EXACTLY the same. I believe other variables are more important to gas mileage, such as the type of car, whether it was designed for premium, and what type of driving you do (I'll get there eventually, or I have to be there yesterday). My V6 Chevy van gets BETTER gas mileage on 87 than 93, and I have driven it for almost 300K. I suspect the Z should get better mileage w/ premium, but I haven't driven it enough to say for sure, and I don't plan to be putting 87 through it very often.

 

Bunch of cheapasses. Buy the premium!!

 

The problem is that each engine combination is different. Some engines don't care, others care a lot. Oh also for the record, I filled the tank, my wife drove, so she didn't know what kind of gas was in the tank.

We generally just run Plus in the Pathfinder, the cost difference isn't that much over time and we can be more careful and get closer to the same mileage as Premium. We do notice some pre-detonation when getting into the mountains when we use Plus that we don't have when we use Premium.

 

Most 350Z problems begin with "Nissan mechanic told me..."

 

Amen brother!

 

gosh...quit crying about your gas-prices!!

Here in germany a Gallon Super (95 Octane) cost 6,62$ ....... and Regular (92 Octane) 6,15 $....... and it's still goin up!

 

How does 30 cents savings add up to $30 out of every $100? Your math is ridiculous. 30 cents (only 20 cents diff in my area) for 15 gallons is $4.50. You save $4.50 per fillup at most and realistically you shouldn't be wating for your car to need 15 gallons. A 10 gallon fillup for 20 cents diff adds up to $2. If you want to risk your $30K car for $2 per fillup then have at it. I am sure most people won't. I wonder why you never hear garbage like this on the Vette boards and Porsche boards.

 

HELL I put premium in my civic because of the advanced timing map that I run and at 35.00 a tank wow never thought I would see the day but I am glad to do it

 

I wanna move to Hawaii gas capped at 2.78 cheapest gas around

 

I think we should all take advice from this math wizard.

$100 of $3 regular is 33.333 gallons
33.333 gallons of $3.20 premium is $106.667 so you save less than $7
even if you assume $.30 markup (never see it in my area) its only a $10 savings.

If you get more than 1mpg drop in your mileage you negate any of these savings. I don't care to run the experiement in my Z but I would be willing to bet mileage goes down more than enough to make up the difference. If you are living on the edge of your budget that close you seriously bought the wrong car.

 

I would agree that 85 octane is probably not the wisest, but telling someone that if they want low horse power to get another car is stupidity. I bought a Z because I think its the best looking car on the market. I would not care if it had a 98hp 4 cyl in it.

 

Your calling my comment stupid and your justification is that you bought the Z based totaly on its looks and not its performance? Whatever dude, was your last car a Fiero with a Ferrari body kit? ha ha ha

 

i have always been a little **** about mpg - my dad used to have a honeybee b210 that we ran in gas mileage rallys in the late 70's -(could get 60+ ave mpg with cutting the engine off down hills and long coasting to stops[not recomended with current power everthing cars!]) so anyway i have always recorded all my fillups and with this car noted which type of gas - i run 85 2/3rds of the time and 89 the fillups before autocross weekends
13400 miles to date on my 04 base 6mt purchased 1/16/05
ave mpg to date 25.1 - no difference between octane ratings (~.1 worse on the premium which i'll put down to autocrossing [6.9 mpg for the event but a nice 27mpg for the 45 mile trip there])
got ave of 27.333 mpg for the 4100 mile round trip central fla to (and up) mount washington New hampshire- all on 85 octane
(recorded 94.4 mpg for a while on the coast down mt wash!)
can't really tell the difference on the butt dyno either - i punch it and it goes, on either octane
anyone have one of those g-tech computers? - i'm interested to see some hp / torque numbers / 0-60 #s on the various octanes

as for different octane mpgs though 'mythbusted' in my book

-jim b(ymmv)

 

Wholly Crap thats allot!!

are those prices in Marks?

how much is it in US $ on the military bases?

 

Thanx for a good opinion. You should have seen the *** chewing i got on MOTORING about putting 87 in my car. You would have thought I told them I was gunna put diesel in my car!

 

The "risk" of lower gas mileage and lower performance?

 

i think im gonna try a tank or 2 of 87 octaine (lowest grade here)
for ***** and giggles and see the results.