I've already taken the car to the local honda dealership (the shop manager is a friend of mine) and he told me it could be a number of things and he didnt want to tell me anything definite and be wrong, so I asked you guys.

You caught me. I've been contemplating purchasing a VAFC for some time, but I haven't been able to convince myself to do it. If it would help me with my fuel economy as well as performance that would definitely be a deciding factor in purchasing it.