2003 CRV petrol sounds diesel-y

[Bill Carr]

My 2003 2.0 petrol CRV sounds fine at idle, but under load in lower gears it sounds distinctly gruff and diesel-like. I have not owned the car long so am unsure if this is a common characteristic or indicative of a problem. The car has FSH and the oil is only 1000 miles old. I was thinking it could possibly be loose sparks as I had a similar problem on a mx5 I formerly owned, which was a simple fix.

All advice appreciated.

[Robb F]

Could be pinking, have you checked the condition of the spark plugs?