Why does my car have sporadic acceleration?

I have a 2003 Honda Element 4 spd auto with almost 140,000 miles and sometimes I noticed whenever I get on the gas from a complete stop, I have to accelerate faster than normally to get up to speed but occasionally if I give it a little gas, the car picks up speed quickly and the transmission downshifts responsively?

I experienced this whenever I driving on a COMPLETELY FLAT road with no small hills or any other steep grade.

Why does my car act like this? What could be the cause? The only thing I had a mechanic at pepboys tell me was that I need a 3 step fuel service cleaning, and after that bc I have a check engine light that reads a faulty o2 sensor I need a new set of spark plugs. This does not make sense bc I use iridium NGK plugs and they should last me for a long time. It was replaced around 95,000 miles. I changed the air filter. I'm suspecting the fuel filter might be a cause however my particular Honda model only sells the entire fuel pump system.

If power steering is whining very noticeably, but not really leaking that much, should I chance it by adding Lucas stop leak to my pump? - 1

I have purchased the "Stop Leak" by Lucas as well as the regular p.s. Pump fluid made by Lucas (that says that it is adaptable to ALL p.s. Systems, even Hondas). And have read the online reviews for both products on Amazon, and have some saying that the thick fluid of the "Stop leak" cause their steering system to blow, whereas most say that it works great and stopped the leak. But since I don't really have much of a leak (if it is leaking it is doing it very slowly), but have a noticeable whine noise… Should I chance it or not"? Why?
I just want the whine to go away

Should I still get a valve adjustment done? Will it help with compression?

My car is a 2003 Honda Element 4 speed auto awd. Lately I've been posting questions here(I'm sure some of you know) and some answers have been suggesting that Honda's need a Valve adjustment every 60k. The thing is, my car has almost 140,000 miles and the engine revs healthily and the car sounds quiet when warmed up. However I have a check engine light due to a faulty o2 upstream sensor as far as I know. However is it worth the job of getting my valves adjusted still? What benefits will it give my truck?

Does my car need a valve adjustment?

My car is a 2903 Honda Element 4 speed auto awd. Lately I've been posting questions here(I'm sure some of you know) and some answers have been suggesting that Honda's need a Valve adjustment every 60k. The thing is, my car has almost 140,000 miles and the engine revs healthily and the car sounds quiet when warmed up. However I have a check engine light due to a faulty o2 upstream sensor as far as I know. However is it worth the job of getting my valves adjusted still? What benefits will it give my truck?