There is absolutely no reason whatsoever to use premium in the NA V6.

I know strange that highway is better than city but it has been that way since the day i purchased it??? Oh well.

Tim

Cyclemut,
I had my knock sensor replaced last year (under warranty). This past summer my truck was pinging again. At ECXC someone read my codes and the knock sensor coded came up again, along with several other trucks there. There was certified Nissan mechanic guy there. He said that knock sensor location was a bad design under the Nissn hood; that too much heat is generated under the hood and does not escape. That the heat can cause the knock sensor to go off (or bad).

Your opinion on this?

In your experience, what is the frequency for the Knock Sensors to go bad? Is this a "yearly" part like changing the PCV valve?

To stop the pinging, I disconnected the battery (when I got a new Redtop) this past fall. The pinging has not come back. But it also has gotten colder here in NJ. The truck does not ping when it is cold out.

The reason I haven't gotten fixed again is I don't feel like explaining/arguing with the "service consultant" at the dealership and having them charge me $85 for something I know is wrong. Maybe in the springtime.....

Stone

You can always get a Flowmaster muffler they reduce the heat underneath the hood, possibly prolonging the life of your knock sensor AND you get the nice little itty bitty rumble from the engine

Thanks for the replies. As for the cold weather related gas problems, this X is on the west coast of Florida. STILL love it though. Maybe if I cap off 4 of the fuel injectors, it will run like crap but I'll get 30 MPG????

How does a muffler (higher flow of above) reduce the heat under the good?

It doesn't.

I don't need a Flowmaster, I already have a Magnaflow cat-back system on. Nice suggestion though...

Stone

If anyone wants to read a lot about fuel ecomomy, hybrid info. etc., check this discussion out:

http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/05/12/1436225&mode=thread&tid=126

Well, jackass, I've also spoken with a couple of Nissan engineers (they come around during our schools, getting questions and ideas from us assholes that make money off of you) and they stated the fuel mixture gets fattened up as well.

You seem to forget tahoe_x that I also have an Xterra. I don't relish working on my own rig. I don't sell knock sensors every day. I know it's expensive for you, but it's a huge pain in the ass for us 'thieves with wrenches'.

Do it or don't do it, I don't really care. I don't work on everyone's vehicles here, only a couple. I don't give a rat's ass if anyone takes their vehicles to a dealership to get repaired or does it themselves.

Most folks here are more than capable of doing the sensor themselves, if they'd get the gumption to.

So it you're going to sit there, and question my advice, then don't take it. But you'd better quit bitchin' about your gas mileage, lack of power and anything else mechanical about your Xterra.

Go out and wash and wax your X. Vacuum the french fries out of your seats and hit the mall.

That rediculously expensive repair...

Made my X feel like NEW!! Engine perfomed so much better, fuel economy went back up. So by all means if you want your vehicle to run like crap get terrible gas mileage and more dont replace it.

I believe most people blow it off because the check engie light does not come on with it and figure since it did not come on it is not important enough to replace.

I think I will investigate the sensor more after the new year. I will keep yall posted on the results if any.

Is there any way to protect the sensor, wrap it in some header wrap or build a little heat shield?

Sounds like it's a pain to get to, but might be worth it in the long run.

On my anual trip from Northern WI to Milwaukee for Xmas, I drove the 2002 Pathfinder because it has more room than the X. Set the cruise at 73 and only saw 3 Xterras (they all passed me) during the entire trip down and back, and all were going at least 80.

A tip for fuel economy-SLOW DOWN!!!

Another thing that a lot of people tend to over look that plays a big part in the whole fuel economy thing is the tires. Remember that in the warmer months that the air inside the tires heat up so that causes the tires to expand a little more then usual and the opposite occurs in the winter time. That is a reason to keep an eye on the tires during the winter months since the cool weather causes the tires' to have a lower pressure.

Lower pressure= crappy gas mileage and NO higher tire pressure will not increase your gas mileage.

Hell, even going 70mph eats gas like a sucker.
65 is better.

Enough with mileage posts already.

On a recent trip to Tennessee and back I got about 15-16 mpg doing 65-70 on the spedometer, but the GPS said 75-80 mph. I have 32 inch tires so if the mileage on the odometer is corrected it may be closer to 17-18 mpg. This type of gas mileage is not bad for an underpowered 5000lb truck.

There was on exception when I got 9.8 mpg going 60 mph. I suspect the gas was watered down.

Allen replaced my knock sensor under warranty, so if you are still covered have it fixed. It will make a world of difference in power and mpg. I couldn't believe the power the X gets at sea level compared to Denver.