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Honda Element

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Comments

  • brupopbrupop Member Posts: 63
    You might not want to call your E that where he can hear it; you could give him a complex ;)

    GregB
    PS. Be careful not to stubby your footie, OK I'll stop now.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Saw a black one yesterday and those are really toned down, almost look monotone in some lighting.

    -juice
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    I'm a big fan of the green, as well. The tone is the same as the grey plastic, but it looks good with the contrasting hue. I wish they had a slate blue or some other color with the same tone.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I'm telling you, if they offer a Yellow then H2 sales would plummet. How many people buy those just for the look? Element makes much more sense.

    -juice
  • raydahsraydahs Member Posts: 449
    Has definitely grown on me over the past year. Last week I had the opportunity to really check it out (playing with the seats and stuff) I really like it now! even the Orange has grown on me.
    I recieved an internet quote of $20,500 for an EX AWD Auto, which is fair to me, considering it's So.Cal.

    I highly doubt this vehicle will ever be considered in the same class of the Aztec, afterall it has the Honda badge. In June of 03' I checked it out for the first time, which brought back to mind the concept Isuzu came out with on 2001. If you look at the conceptual side of this product, it amazes me what Honda has pulled off. IMO, If the Element had an Isuzu badge on it, they would be sitting on lots everywhere regardless of a low MSRP. Check this out.

    Isuzu GBX
    http://www.cardesignnews.com/features/2001/010516isuzu-gbx/index.- html

    Honda Model X
    http://www.edmunds.com/news/autoshows/articles/45676/page030.html
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Boxy trucklets are popular in Japan, I'd like to see the Nissan Cube sold here, for instance.

    -juice
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    BTW, it's neat to look back now, at the concept. Besides the changes you'd expect from any concept -> production car, the Model X seems a lot longer.

    Hmm, what about an Element Plus? Honda might have been concerned about the weight, though.

    -juice
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    I read their long term wrap up on their EX FWD 5 speed last night. They said even though Honda travelled to many college campuses to see what college aged guys wanted in a vehicle and tried to meet those needs, the average age of an Element buyer is 42!!

    OTOH, they planned to sell 50K per year and are well beyond that.
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    Robr2 - Actually, 42 is the lowest of any Honda. Even VW, who has the lowest average, is in the high 30's or low 40's. No doubt Honda missed their mark, but mostly because the Element appeals to a much more broad audience than expected.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    varmint - Oh I know the E appeals to a much wider audience. My Dad (68 YO) sometimes wishes he had waited before buying his CRV. I saw 3 E's yesterday and none of them were driven by 22 YO unemployed males out for an X games adventure with their buddies.

    As for the average age thing - we have to remember that as a nation we are growing older and that the parents of the young target demographic think they are still 22 YO.

    I wonder what the average age is on the Scion?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Very young, I think they're among the youngest, 4th overall I think?

    Element is about average, I think you get both extremes though.

    Hey, most Buicks have median ages in the 70s!

    -juice
  • gee35coupegee35coupe Member Posts: 3,387
    the Element had like the 4th or 5th lowest age of all cars. Most 20-25 y/o buy used. More car for the money. It's the older buyers with the cash for a new car.
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    Yeah, people read "42" and they think "that's old!" But they never bother to look at the average age of all the other cars out there. Most of them range in the 50's and 60's. 42 is actually pretty young.
  • footiefootie Member Posts: 636
    I've had the GG EX FWD 5spd (nicknamed Stubby) for almost two months and got to take it on a road trip this weekend. On the return today 330 miles from northern Delware to Boston. Most driving at 70 mph in light traffic (averaged 66 mph including one stop). Stubby delivered 24 mpg.

    Around town for first month and a half has been 19 mpg. Stubby now has 1850 miles on the odo.

    Observations:
    * Many people had not seen an Element in Delaware and thought it was cute, cool and funky.
    * Seats were comfortable for the trip.
    * I wish it had an adjustable suspension setting for a softer ride on the highway. Rides like a buckboard.
    * The E handled well even in a lot of cross winds.
    * Stubby has lots of pep and 1st gear is geared WAY too low. On slightly damp pavement you can break the front end loose no problem.
    * Needs a sixth gear or much lower 5th for cruising. Car runs 3500 rpm at 70.
    * Buy carpet from handa. The urethane floor is cute and easy to clean. It's also very, very slippery. Anything you put between the front and back seats or out back slides all over the place.
    * When things slide around, they bang or bump into the plastic panels. (in the meanwhile a lot of things I carry around end up on the back seat).
    * The interior panels scratch and ding easily and the scratches show. The surface color of the interior panels is slightly darker than its interior so the scratches are easy to see.
    * The green high touch material on the dash and doors is hard to clean and gets dirty very quickly.

    I bought a cargo net. I don't think it's a good design. It attaches to the sides of the E in the back (like in most trunks). But if you lower the bottom tailgate it's right in the way of putting stuff in the back. When you open the top tailgate, it's quite a heave to get anything up over the bottom tailgate.

    The cargo net ought to attach to the lower tailgate like the bungies on the back of the rear seats (which are totally unreachable from the back of the car with the tailgates down right. Ultra Duh.

    No serious rattles yet, but little ones lurking from time to time.

    Great car for value.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Nice write up, I'm sure that info would be handy to a current shopper.

    -juice
  • bigdaddycoatsbigdaddycoats Member Posts: 1,058
    http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=47673
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    How was the detour on 95 in Bridgeport, CT??
  • footiefootie Member Posts: 636
    I usually go Mass Pike to 84 to Hartford to 91 to Merritt Pkwy to 287 to Garden State Pky to NJPkwy to DE.

    Going down on Friday 3/26 I got a call from a friend that I-95 was closed and that a lot of car traffic was clogging the Merritt so I went 84 thru Hartford to 684 to 287.

    Coming back on Sunday I jumped off 287 early onto Saw Mill River - saving a few miles on the 684 route, which showed me how good Stubby handled on a somewhat twisty 'parkway'. (geez, a Parkway with Stop Lights?)
  • friendsofamirfriendsofamir Member Posts: 1
    BEFORE PURCHASING THIS CAR, PLEASE BE AWARE THAT ON MARCH 25, 2004 MY GOOD FRIEND WAS KILLED IN A CAR ACCIDENT. HE WAS DRIVING A HONDA ELEMENT. ACCORDING TO THE POLICE REPORT I RECEIVED SECOND HAND, HE WAS NOT UNDER THE INFLUENCE AND HE WAS GOING 85 mph WHEN HE HIT GRAVEL. THE CAR SPUN OUT OF CONTROL, FLIPPED OVER, AND CRUSHED HIS BODY. I WOULD FEEL MORALLY WRONG IF I DID NOT INFORM POTENTIAL BUYERS OF THIS CRUCIAL INFORMATION.
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    My condolences for the loss of your friend.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Let's hope others learn from this tragedy. You can't drive an Element like you would a sports car.

    May your friend rest in peace.

    -juice
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    Well, I've heard stories of BMWs wiping out at about 90 mph with the same results. Does that mean that sports cars shouldn't be driven like sports cars?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    On public roads, probably not. US roads aren't built like the Autobahn.

    Those speeds should be reserved for the track, when equipment such as roll bars and helmets are employed.

    Honda puts a disclaimer on the sun visors warning drivers of the different dynamics a truck has vs. a car. I was implying that we should pay more attention to these types of warnings, for everyone's safety.

    -juice
  • gee35coupegee35coupe Member Posts: 3,387
    In an Element though. I don't think I'd do that. The U.S. interstated WERE designed for those speeds though. If the drum-braked barges of the 70's could handle 75 mph speed limits, the newer cars with the much nmore capable suspensions and brakes should/can handle 85 easily. If 85 were THAT dangerous there would be no drivers left in Ga. We'd all be dead.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    But in the 70's we probably had half the number of cars on the road.
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    I mentioned the Bimmer as it shows that any car can become unstable at that kind of speed. While I am sympathetic to the loss in this story, I personally would not let it impact my purchasing decisions.

    I mean, does anyone know of a car that has never crashed? Unless there is more to this tale proving some sort of fault with the Element, it's just a sad story.
  • jmessjmess Member Posts: 677
    A higher speed limit increases traffic flow. We really have twice as many inattentive and bad drivers on the road than in the past.

    People will spend money to learn how to play golf and etc but they won't spend a dime to learn how to be a better driver. I can't think of any sport where advanced lessons won't improve your performance.

    Common sense isn't an option that is available on the Element or any other car.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Those lead sleds had very, very long wheelbases. The Element has a short wheelbase and it a lot more top-heavy.

    Put it this way, would you have been comfortable doing 85 in an old 70s Jeep Grand Wagoneer? We had one in our fleet where I used to work, it was scary at 70!

    Trucks have lower handling limits, but it's up to the driver not to push those limits.

    -juice
  • mtngalmtngal Member Posts: 1,911
    " would you have been comfortable doing 85 in an old 70s Jeep Grand Wagoneer?" - I'm not comfortable doing 75 in my '98 Wrangler at any time, and yesterday I was driving it around 60 because it was so windy.

    When I test drove the Element, it seemed to have better aerodynamics, but it still felt like an SUV not a car. I don't quite know how to describe it, but when you drive a Wrangler, you are constantly aware that it will turn around on a dime. I call it "quick steering" and on the Wrangler it seems sort of squirrely to me.

    While the Element feels far more "normal" than that, it is also quite quick. I could see it easily getting a driver in trouble, especially if they weren't used to compensating for it. I'm not sure that is the best way of saying what I feel when I drove it - I've never really read anyone talk about this.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I think that's a fair assessment.

    Drive safely, folks.

    -juice
  • footiefootie Member Posts: 636
    As I said in my recent post, when I drove my E to Delaware and back last weekend, most of the travel was at 70 mph or so on dry pavement. It felt very stable at that speed, but I didn't feel encouraged to go much higher which is so easy in a car these days. Crosswinds were heard more than felt. The E is not a particularly quiet ride.

    I also watched the highway surface pretty carefully too. The E is 'bouncy' and roads with undulations or potholes are a pain in the ....

    We've had two days of rain here in the Boston area, some places over 7". The E has seemed fine hitting the lingering surface water.

    However, you do need to be light on the gas on the 5spd FWD when the street is damp, it will definitely break loose if you put your foot down in 1st gear.

    This car/SUV is much quicker than you would think.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Maybe someone here can do the math, but at 85mph aren't you running over 4000 rpm? Those kind of revs will make for a pretty loud cabin.

    -juice
  • hppypaulhppypaul Member Posts: 43
    is what some of you may need. I have a 5spd, awd E and drive it like a beemer most of the time. It's solid on the highway at 70 and I can punch it up to pass easily and without fear of disaster. It's not that noisy either. Maybe I just got a good one, but I feel very safe in mine in all conditions.
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    Not to be a nitpicker but a BEEMER refers to a motorcycle while BIMMER refers to the car!

    Carry on!

    tidester, host
  • lalagimplalagimp Member Posts: 61
    Tomorrow I take my Elephant to the claims center.
    He is silver and my friend named him.
    I hope I can have my baby back in under a month.
    We read ended someone and broke my radiator as well as crushing in alot of the front molding though the lights are intact.
    Very surprised the airbags didn't go off cause it felt alot harder than what's allowed; then again I've never been in one of these to know.

    Yeah it held up well enough, and there is more damage to my car than her's from what it seems.
    She was in a 92 Escort. My car ate her bumper but left her trunk alone.

    Husband and I are happy as allowed with this crash experience.

    I know for a fact, Mercury Mountaineers don't handle things quite as well.

    *LOOKS UP TO NO WHERE AND THANKS THE NICE LADY FOR THE POLE IN HER LEG*

    The End.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    LOL, tidester, that's the way for a host to keep us in check! :o)

    -juice
  • rojachirojachi Member Posts: 1
    Anybody bought a dashcover for their Element? I'd like to get a little feedback on what brands are good and bad. Thanks!
  • footiefootie Member Posts: 636
    Our E is about 2 months old (it's a 5 speed) .

    Every now and then as I am accelerating, I feel a short change in engine speed, almost like the a/c compressor is going on or going off. Since it's still chilly here in New England, the a/c is obviously off, but the heater is on.

    I don't notice it as much with the heater off, but did notice it a few times yesterday.

    Is this normal in an E or other 4 cyl Honda vehicles?
  • lalagimplalagimp Member Posts: 61
    I don't know, i've had vehicles that do that before... I've had my element for 4 months and on cross country road trips as well as city driving. I think i know what you're talking about- cept it's on our stratus, not the E for this house

    If you still have your warranty , have someone do a diagnostic for you if it's worrying you so much. if there is something real going on you need the option early to fix it or trade.
  • ztorinztorin Member Posts: 48
    Road noise?? How would you ever notice with a stereo system like that??? Sure, if it's completely silent in the vehicle, you can hear some noise while on the highway, but who the hell drives in silence?? My stereo is on ALL the time !!! That thing rocks! I've had no problems with handling either in the city or on the big roads. I do NOT agree that it drives like a truck. It handles better than my '95 Corolla and that thing zips around town. I love my "E". Even people who hated it, absolutely love it now that the've seen it in person. I'd recommend to anyone who is even remotely curious. And for $600 Under invoice, I love it even more !!!
  • footiefootie Member Posts: 636
    I talked to my sales guy today (now the Honda Excel guy for his dealership). He said they covered this in a Honda training course he was at two weeks ago. The Element's a/c compressors cycles a few times per day for a short period of time to insure that they stay properly lubricated. This prevents freeze up due to non-use. This is true even in winter (he said).
  • stevengordonstevengordon Member Posts: 130
    What are the chances of Honda adding a different kind of rear seat (and it accompanying seat belt) to turn it into a 5-seater?

    I was in a Scion xB. Very surprised at how jiggly the ride was--but then they had these low-profile sport tires on it. The test drive covered a bumpy old city street, and a more subdued church parking lot. Didn't like the ride. But I'll have to test drive a more normal tire on the xB. I did wish that Honda made something like it for our family of 5.
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    Honda does make a five seater version, but it is only shipped overseas. Given how similar the CR-V and Element are, I sorta doubt that Honda will add a 5th seat to the US spec Element. Family hauling is the CR-V's job.
  • nowakj66nowakj66 Member Posts: 709
    If Honda wants the CR-V to be the family hauler, they need to increase driver leg room. The Element has driver leg room but the CR-V does not. Its almost as if the CR-V is designed for a smaller (female?) driver with tall men relegated to the back seat - plenty of room there!
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    That little niggle hasn't stopped sales to families, yet.
  • nowakj66nowakj66 Member Posts: 709
    Maybe the 2007 full model change will address the tall person market. Till then, I see the CR-V limited leg room upfront as a stealth Pilot sales campaign. :-)
  • gee35coupegee35coupe Member Posts: 3,387
    I'm 6'6' and there was no way I was fitting in that front seat.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Nowak: I had the same problem in the CR-V's front passenger seat. Can't stretch my legs!

    Check out the seat track, if you could get it to move 2-3" farther back there would still be plenty of space in the rear seat.

    They make a 5 seat Element for the JDM? Cool. Do the seats still fold up?

    -juice
  • varmintvarmint Member Posts: 6,326
    I'm not saying that the CR-V's legroom is plentiful. I just don't see what it has to do with families.

    Juice - Yes, it has a fifth seat between the two rear positions. They make them here in the US, but ship them overseas. I'm not sure how they manage the folding process (whehter it's still a 50/50 split or not), but they do fold.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Not families. Tall parents. :-)

    There is much more rear leg room than there is front leg room in the CR-V. Perhaps the designers were short parents with tall kids?

    -juice
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