Just took my 07 RDX in for a last check before the 36k mile warranty expires.

Had them take a look at the a/c compressor which has always been noisy, but knew going in that it was the design of the compressor and not a faulty part. But just wanted to check and make sure.

The tech came back reporting the valve were a little noisy, but did not recommend service or warranty work to adjust and tighten them.

The service advisor asked to make sure that I'd been doing regular oil changes and using Mobil 1. I have been, changing every 5k miles regardless of the % engine oil life reading.

I know that some engine oils, including Mobil 1, that were reformulated to reduce the amount of zinc anti-wear additives, have been widely reported to have caused pre-mature valve train wear. As far as I know, Mobil 1 has been re-reformulated to avoid that problem.

Has anyone else a similar problem with noisy valves, at any mileage?

I don't remember seeing valve adjustment being on the regular maintenance schedule.

 

you dont have a 36k mile warranty..your powertrain is 70k and vehicle is 50k!

 

Yeah, I noticed recently at 28000miles, the valves were noticeably noiser than usual, and definitely detectable during acceleration. I added Chevron Techron Plus, an after two treatments of it throuh 2 tanks of gas, it has quiet down a little. If you are not concerned about using the fuel system cleaner in your RDX, then you might want to try a 20 oz bottle in it.

 

Thanks for the tip on the Techron and the mileage warranty.

I've used Techron before as the cleaner, and always run either Shell V-Power or Chevron's premium with Techron. The last information I saw, which was a couple of years ago, was that Chevron and Shell put the highest levels of detergent in their gasolines, even better than that required by "top tier" regulations.

 

The other thing I have noticed is that for some reason, Pennzoil Platinum appears to make the engine quieter...