DO U HAVE TO PUT PREMIUM IN A 1997 MAXIMA SE. I BOUGHT IT USED AND WAS TOLD TO DO THIS BUT IT SEEMS RIDICULOUS FOR SUCH AND OLD KINDA RUSTY 133,000 MI RIDE! PLEASE IF IT MEANS BETTER MPG OR WILL I DAMAGE THIS OLDER ENGINE IF I STAY WITH 89 GRADE? bOUGHT IN nOVEMBER 2010. thanks SO much for answering as I cannot afford a new car ever in this lifetime!

If this is not the SE-R then no you do not need to run premium in the car. If you drive the car normal and do not drive excessively hard then defiantly no premium will be needed. Hope this helps and answers your questions!

No you do not.

Regular grade unleaded is just fine unless you notice a condition called PING which will sound like a rattle from the engine under acceleration. This is caused by predetination of the fuel in the combustion chamber and is usually associated with carbon build up. Since higher octane fuel has a higher resistance to ignite it will help or eliminate ping.

A service know as a valve/intake/combustion cleaning can also help with ping and long term can be a lot cheaper than running premium.

there are other conditions that will cause this but the above is the most common.

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/jeremy_d728a59f986299fa