I have 3500 miles on my 2006 TL Nav. At 1800-2500 rpm the engine makes a audible , but subtle, pinging noise. It only happens when a load is placed on the car. I only put premium gas in the car. I have tried many different gas stations-no difference. I even bought a tank full 103 octane fuel-no difference. This would argue against pinging(pre-detonation). I took the car to two different Acura dealers, they cannot find anything wrong with the car! My brother and co-worker have the same car, however, their cars does not make this noise!
I used to be a mechanic, so I am not making this problem up!
Help!!! Mark

 

When you say "I have tried many different gas stations-no difference." Do you mean that you tried different brands ?

I had a pinging problem too. I was using Exxon premium. So, I tried another Exxon station, but got the same pinging. I tried a different brand, Shell.... that fixed it. Never have used Exxon since.

 

shell is the only gas that i put that i get very little to no pinging. everything else gives me major ping and knock it retards the timing all the time

 

I would try Chevron for a while to see if that fixes anything.

 

I use Chevron in my '06 auto and have no pinging.

 

Depending on what stations are in your area, Chevron, Shell, Texaco or Phillips is the way to go. They all participate in the Top Tier Gass program.

There is a good article on Top Tier Gas here:

http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1

 

I ahve tried every gas station around! I am convinced it is not the gas. As I say above, I put in a tank of 103 octane gas and had no change in the noise. This makes me wonder if it is something other than predetonation?

 

Your pinging has nothing to do with your gas. My TL pinged as well as my mother's TL pinged. It is a defective part on the car called a heat shield. If you look at a some of the bulletins listed on this site, you will find the bulletin. My idiotic dealer (Appletree, Asheville, NC) told me to use better gas. I printed out this bulletin and took it to the dealer and told them it's sad when the customer has to diagnose his car problems. They replaced the heat shield and everything is fine. Good Luck.

 

The fuel you buy will always be substandard, no such thing as good gas, the TL will always ping do to the high compression, and it is not really a big deal, you should get used to it. all cars do it, most people dont notice. a little bit of pinging is ok, and you get the best economy with that. I wouldint lose sleep over it unless it sounds like valves that are floating...

 

I have two close friends with the same exact car. Neither of theirs ping at all!!! My car pings all the time. Again, it even pinged with >100 Octane fuel. I looked at the recall a few of you have described. That was from the 2004 model. I can't believe that they would not have fixed this issue in two model years.

 

I'm sorry, but I must chime in here:

Pinging/predetonation/knocking of any sort is never good, and no, the TL will not always do it; this is why premium fuel is required. Extensve knocking will lead to engine damage, period.

Not losing sleep and great fuel economy? Enjoy it while your pistons are still intact.

 

This gets my vote for the next thing to pursue.

 

I got my car fixed at the local Acura Dealer. However, it took a call to the local Acura Customer Support. Apperently there was a recall on a heat shield. This fixed the problem!

 

mnmasotto,

Thanks for the followup. This will further our knowledge database on the forum. Wow, I thought about the heat shield... it is a well known problem here on the forum. But, I think no one mentioned it because your pinging was at very low rpm. The heat shield is known for causing noises at higher rpm's. So, thanks for making us aware that it can happen at low rpms too.