Well, Honda Australia finally phoned me today about the pinging (Ken Sheppard if anyone is interested in talking to him as well).

I was given a lovely story about how Honda cares and everything is being done to find a fix to the pinging (however a timeframe for the fix could not be provided - I was actually advised it could be months if not longer). I was further advised that the constant audible pinging will not damage the engine! I asked that Honda put this in writing and they advised they would - to put my little mind at rest. I found this fascinating given the actual car manual (p334 I think) states that engine pinging can damage the mechanical components etc. I did point out this contradiction.

Apparently there is no safety issue either and therefore they would not meet my request for a loaner while a fix was being investigated.

I was informed that it's really only a noise issue from my perspective and that I shouldn't worry about it - they ackowledged that it may be annoying and reduce the level of enjoyment I might get out of the car.

I went on to provide some very honest feedback and how I will never purchase another Honda. Perhaps Honda may wish to rethink their ad campaign for this car; it is not about "precision" anymore, it's about "precision in stuffing it up".

I got the impression from Ken that he actually reads the posts on this forum. Maybe we should all give him a nice big wave hello

Well I am over all this. I had a problem with an IAC motor in a Holden many years ago. We had an auto and the engine would always stall. Holden simply replaced the IAC motor (about eight times all up). They never found a fix for that problem. My advice to all is consider getting out while you can - before the reputation of this car is really in the shit.