Are you using the right gasoline for your Nissan vehicle? - Charlie Clark Brownsville (2024)

FAQs

What type of gas should I put in my Nissan? ›

Most Nissan vehicles will run fine whether you use regular grade or premium grade fuel. If a vehicle requires premium gas, though, using regular gas could cause more wear and tear on the engine.

How Do I Know What Fuel My Car Takes? You'll find the minimum octane rating in the owner's manual, and cars that require premium fuel will usually say so on or near the gas cap, and sometimes even by the fuel gauge. If your car specifies premium fuel, use the good stuff.

Most cars on the road recommend a standard grade 87 or 89. Premium gas 90-93 is completely okay to put in a standard vehicle. Car experts say there is no risk of damage to a standard car using premium fuel.

For the most part, almost all Nissan vehicles will run just fine using regular grade fuel.

The primary consideration is whether your car requires premium gasoline. If it does, you should use 87-octane only in an emergency. Otherwise, you risk hurting your engine. If your vehicle doesn't require premium gasoline, 89-octane will work just fine.

If your car doesn't require premium, fill up with regular.

In a consumer notice, the Federal Trade Commission, notes: “In most cases, using a higher-octane gasoline than your owner's manual recommends offers absolutely no benefit. It won't make your car perform better, go faster, get better mileage or run cleaner.”

Chevron. Of America's largest nationwide chains, Chevron scores the highest points in overall customer satisfaction. Its reach spans over 7,800 stores, and while some gas stations offer convenient food marts, one location in North Hollywood goes above and beyond gasoline.

Premium. Premium is the highest-octane fuel you can buy and has levels of 91-94. Even though some companies market their different grades of gas with names such as “Super Premium,” “Ultra,” or “Ultimate,” they all refer to the gasoline octane rating.

If you put lower-octane fuel into your high-octane vehicle, whether by mistake or to save money on gas, you'll probably notice the effects right away: things like poor fuel economy, reduced acceleration, and spark knock, which sounds like a high-pitched pinging or rattling noise.

Benefits of Unleaded 88. It's good for your engine. Unleaded 88 burns cleaner and slower than regular unleaded, which has an octane rating of 87. The higher octane level helps boost horsepower and efficiency.

What happens if you put 89 gas instead of 87? ›

If the octane rating is less than 91, you could damage the engine and may void your vehicle warranty. If heavy knocking is heard when using gasoline rated at 91 octane or higher, the engine needs service.”

Yes, drivers can mix the two types of fuel. The combined gas types will result in an octane level somewhere in the middle — something the vehicle “will survive,” according to The Drive.

If you realize you've made the mix-up, stop driving the car. Parking and turning the car off will help to limit the damage. Otherwise, the car will eventually use up the gas in the tank and eventually shut down, since regular gas engines cannot combust diesel.

A Nissan Rogue SUV works great on regular unleaded octane-87 gasoline or higher.

It's recommended that you fill your Nissan Altima with regular grade 87 octane fuel.

There's nothing wrong with mixing premium and regular gas in the same tank. In fact, this is how midgrade gas is formulated at the station. Rather than drawing from a separate storage tank for each octane rating, gas pumps actively mix high-octane fuel with lower-octane fuel to create midgrade gas.

The main difference with premium is its octane rating — 91 or higher compared with 87 for regular octane. The higher octane gives premium gas greater resistance to early fuel ignition, which can result in potential damage, sometimes accompanied by audible engine knocking or pinging.

No, premium gas does not last longer than regular gasoline in a fuel tank. A car owner might only consider the longevity of a car's gas if the vehicle has been sitting unused for an extended period.

It really is this simple: Equal amounts of 89- and 93-octane gas gives you a tankful of 91 octane.

Adding higher octane gas to an engine designed to use lower octane gas will never be a problem. However, you'll have performance issues if you add lower-grade gas to an engine that needs premium.

Does the brand of gasoline really matter? ›

In the consumer industry, brand often doesn't really matter, but when it comes to gas brands, it does. Gas brands differ according to detergent additives used to prevent carbon deposits from accumulating in your engine. “Top Tier” brands are known to use more detergent and/or additives than the EPA requires.

Kwik Trip has achieved a four-peat, once again winning the title of best gas station brand in the nation, according to the 2023 USA Today 10Best Readers' Choice Awards. “This Wisconsin-based, family-owned company operates more than 800 stores in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, South Dakota and Illinois.

THE ANSWER

No, there's no difference in gasoline itself but brands mix in different additives, which some studies have shown may impact the quality or wear and tear on your engine over time.

“93-octane fuels are more refined and contain more stable hydrocarbons. These stable hydrocarbons can last two to three times longer than those in 87-octane fuel. Even with proper storage, 87-octane gas can start to degrade in three months; 93-octane fuel should last closer to 9 months before degradation is noticeable.

However, all gas has detergents that prevent clogging in the fuel injector, and no brand of gas is better quality than any other for your vehicle.

Shell Gasoline is also certified TOP TIER™, a higher standard for engine cleanliness and performance set by auto manufacturers.

Nope. Regular, plus, and premium gas all come with detergents to mitigate against carbon deposits in your engine. Plus and premium don't come with special powers for cleaning out the engine. If you're interested in cleaning out your engine, you're better off taking it in for service.

Since the biggest problem with this is the deposits that will form in your injectors, the solution is to ramp up the detergency in your fuel by adding a detergent-based fuel additive. A good detergent will help remove deposits as they form, keeping your injectors cleaner as you burn through this old fuel.

General Motors recommends use of Unleaded 88 beginning with its 2012 model year vehicles and Ford recommends Unleaded 88 for its 2013 and newer vehicles. Unleaded 88 is also approved for use by Volkswagen, Audi, Toyota, Land Rover, Porsche, Jaguar, Honda, Subaru, and certain models of Mercedes-Benz and Lexus.

All gasoline and flex fuel vehicles 2001 and newer can use Unleaded 88. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tested and approved the use of this fuel in all light-duty vehicles made in 2001 and later*.

Why is regular 88 cheaper than 87? ›

Unleaded 87, 89 and 91 are up to 10% ethanol. Unleaded 88 is 15% ethanol, which is why it's cheaper.

Some cars that need premium only need 91 octane, and others may require 93 octane. If the owner's manual indicates premium gas is recommended, you can typically operate the vehicle safely on regular gas.

If you usually fill your tank up with 87-octane gasoline and you accidentally put in a higher octane blend (say, 91, 92, or 93), don't worry. You're actually filling your car or truck with a different blend of gas, which means it will burn differently in your engine.

If your car requires only regular gas, but the manufacturer recommends premium gas – try both and check out the difference in performance. Of course, you can stick with regular gas or dilute it with premium gas to save money. It is safe to use fuel with higher octane in standard cars that require only regular gas.

Fuel system cleaning cost can vary wildly from about $20 to over $1000.

Experts advised against switching to regular gas if a vehicle requires premium. If a vehicle requires high-octane gas but is filled with lower-octane gas, drivers risk damaging the powertrain, which includes the engine, transmission and other components, MacDonald said.

So, it's important to know whether there is a significant difference between brands of gas, what the differences mean, and whether cheap gas can hurt your car. The quick answer is it's generally fine to use the cheapest gas you can get.

The less octane, or the lower the grade, the faster and stronger it burns when pressurized. SUVs and sports cars run better on plus or premium (higher octane) since their motors produce more fuel compression for better drivability.

So, Chevy Tahoe, GMC Yukon, Chevy Suburban, Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Nissan Armada all recommend premium fuel.

What fuel does Nissan recommend? ›

However it is important to remember that some Nissan vehicles require Premium Unleaded Petrol (PULP) 95 RON as the minimum recommended fuel.

Most Nissan vehicles will run fine whether you use regular grade or premium grade fuel. If a vehicle requires premium gas, though, using regular gas could cause more wear and tear on the engine. Regular fuel will still work in a pinch, but it shouldn't be used every day.

Premium gas is also often referred to as high-octane gas, thanks to an octane rating of 91 to 94. Regular gas typically has an 87-octane rating, and the 88-90 range is considered midgrade. While premium gas drives performance in certain engines, the idea that it's more fuel efficient is a myth.

The main difference with premium is its octane rating — 91 or higher compared with 87 for regular octane. The higher octane gives premium gas greater resistance to early fuel ignition, which can result in potential damage, sometimes accompanied by audible engine knocking or pinging.

Regular gas with 87 octane level is suitable for most engines, while premium gas with higher octane levels (91-94) is required for some high-output engines. Engines designed for regular-octane gas gain little to no benefit from using high-octane fuel.

If the octane rating is less than 91, you could damage the engine and may void your vehicle warranty. If heavy knocking is heard when using gasoline rated at 91 octane or higher, the engine needs service.”

Chevron. Of America's largest nationwide chains, Chevron scores the highest points in overall customer satisfaction. Its reach spans over 7,800 stores, and while some gas stations offer convenient food marts, one location in North Hollywood goes above and beyond gasoline.

However, remember this: when a premium fuel engine runs on regular fuel, there's a risk of combustion of the fuel mix before the spark plug even lights up. This causes a phenomenon called knocking, which is likely to damage the engine.

If you put lower-octane fuel into your high-octane vehicle, whether by mistake or to save money on gas, you'll probably notice the effects right away: things like poor fuel economy, reduced acceleration, and spark knock, which sounds like a high-pitched pinging or rattling noise.

If your car is performance-oriented or is a high-end vehicle such as Mercedes, BMW or Audi, this should not be done because most performance cars are meant to use higher-octane fuels, and mixing them would put your vehicle on the dangerous side of their octane limit.

What cars use 91 octane? ›