Honda Element
I have a 2004 4wd auto. It gets 20-21 MPG with A/C on. Does not matter if it is around town or on the hwy.Great car for water person. I surf, kayak and pull a 17 ft Boston Whaler and a 21 Ft Seapearl sailboat. Tows the Whaler great. Easy to load kayak on the Yakima saddles. My oly disappointment is mileage and the Goodyear tires. I have 26,000 miles on them and I will be real glad to get better rubber. I am 6’4" talland get real comfortable ride and great headroom. I would buy it now after 26,000 mile test ride.
Well, After Having Discussed It…
…for 48 hrs and spending another session of “Playing” with one in the dealers lot yesterday in between a Dr’s appointment and work, we called the dealer this morning and will pick it up Monday. Ordered the 4 “Feet” to attach to it so our Thule will work just fine. We could put both our 72 lb Mad Rivers and have weight to spare (165 lbs is the limit). Thanks for your help and I admit, at first glance it IS “Butt ugly,” but if you try one out, you can’t help but like it! Kinda reminds me not to judge a book by it’s cover (LOL). Thanks again! WW
You won’t be disappointed
My wife has an '04 E – (4wheel drive, auto transmission, Yakima rack) and we love it. Roomy, comfortable, and functional. It hauls our MR Explorer with ease.
The one downside is the gas mileage – around 21-24 mpg. But that is because its auto and 4 wheel. It does beat the hell out of my Sububan for gas mileage.
People either love them (and buy one) or hate them and run screaming in the other direction. I’d buy another ina heartbeat.
Funny
The better half didn’t even want to look at the thing, and I really just wanted to look; here we are BUYING one. It seems to be ideal for hauling dogs, paddling gear, camping in (more roomy than my MSR Missing Link tent), and the gas mileage may be a few MPG better than what I get now. Looks to be nothing but a “Win, win, win,” proposition for us. WW
Ugly BUT
It does seem practical. 20mpg for a 4wd that is easy to take care of, plus room to haule lotsofstuff.i would like one myself. and would consider one if i needed a new vehical and could aford more than 16 grand i dept.
CRV vs. Element
Neighbor across the street just bought one and loves it-that funky copper color (I like the green also). I had looked at them and settled on the CR-V for two reasons: The captains’ chairs back seats that flip up against the sides in the Element preclude seating for five, an issue when I load my daughter and her friends, and I didn’t like having to open the front doors to open the rear ‘suicide doors.’ The CR-V is more refined overall, but the Element is just plain fun. Feels completely ‘flingable’ on a gravel road too, as one poster noted. The high beltline can make it feel decidedly ‘tublike,’ but the glass area is substantial and helps to offset this. A year ago, Elements in our area were sitting on dealer lots, the consensus being that Honda mistargeted their market segment, and were heavily discounted-about 2-3K less than a CR-V. They seem to be catching on now as a cult car, and for paddlers in particular, make a whole lot of sense, save the narrow span between the load bars on the roof. Have fun with yours-hard to go wrong with a Honda product.
element
definitely in my “element” when taking it to the rivers or the lake - also own a forestor - wouldn’t be without either one… both handle the 18’6" canoes without a problem…
element
it is a great vehicle, but foreign. that is the only reason i would not buy one. my parents have owned two. they have gotten better each year. next year they will have painted panels and redundant controls. should be even nicer. i have driven it for many thousands of miles and the mileage is always around 25. and that is loaded with gear. great vehicle. love it lots. -pc
Honda plant
is in Ohio. Since Ohio it is now foreign nation I guess we will need a passport to go to Columbus?
element plant
not to be mean off the bat, but where does the profits from said vehicle go?..japan. i am not pushing my agenda on you, but rather trying to say that is the only reason for me to not buy one. the percentage of us/canadian parts is rather high i must add as well. but they are assembled by non-union labor, not made in the u.s. by unionized labor earning a higher wage. oh and i dont buy american vehicles with a low percentage or assembled elsewhere either.not being rude, just clarrifying my position. i have to do this a lot as not many people of my generation care about such matters. cheers.
C.D. Cruiser
Picked it up today, and put it through it’s paces on the farm. Named it the C.D. Cruiser (Canoes & Dogs). No problem with ground clearance, crossed our two creeks without problems. Here’s a pic. THanks for your help. WW
http://community.webshots.com/photo/473607634/473610731FhjnLA
Get Real
Please support any company that wants to invest in building factories in the United States. Where do the Honda profits go? A lot of the profits go back into capital investment in R and D and production in the US. Profits from american automakers are building jobs outside of the US. Tell us which companies you believe are only using US parts, very little of US cars are built in the US.
element
again, just to clarify. i am aware of the global aspects behind even gm and ford. however the workers on those vehicles make a living wage and those building hondas and toyotas do not. they usually make 10-12 an hour to start. hardly enough when you have a family to support. i am outraged by the big three producing offshore, however more profits stay in the us from a domestic than an import. and workers make a decent wage. ford is habitually the worst offender, hence i am a chevy guy. but even though the new hhr is built in mexico, 73% of its parts/assembly are us made.
Lighten up Pork…
– Last Updated: Oct-10-05 9:03 PM EST –
Just be happy for these guys and their really cool new vehicle. I think he was asking about other people and their ownership regarding realiability and road worthiness. I don't think they were looking for a politcal or socio-economic statement.
BTW............ Terry & Margaret, CONGRATS!
Thanks, Jay!
I would like for you and Jarvis to come over here and paddle the Black and take a ride in it. WW
Congrats guys !!
Sorry I missed out on your posting until AFTER you went and bought the vehicle! We had looked at Elements recently when we were thinking on replacing our small pickup. The price, ride, seats, accessories, mileage, and cargo space were just wonderful.
Unfortunately I took a look at the load rating and realized it had a lower load capacity than a Honda CIVIC!! If I can come close to overloading a Civic with gear, I knew I would blow the suspension in an Element. My thought was that it was a inexcusable design error to provide cargo space without load bearing capacity to match.
Keep those dogs on a healthy diet and buy carbon composites and I’m guessing you won’t have any problems ;^). Can’t wait to check it out on the Black some weekend, that sounds like a good plan!
-Jarvis
Honda Element load capacity
Being a sterotypical male, I NEVER read the directions unless I just CAN’T make it work! 
I have a 2" receiver hitch on my '03 Element, 5-speed AWD.
When evacuating for a hurricane last year, I pulled my 6X12 enclosed trailer with a LOT more weight that the vehicle is rated for from Cocoa, Florida to Macon, Georgia and back, and it never even breathed hard.
Don’t let the specs scare you off. This little workhorse is sort of like a DeHavilland Beaver bush plane: If you can get it through the door, it’ll haul it!
Bob
Ratings are legal CYA for manufacturer
especially the roof load ratings on an SUV.
I Figured the Ratings…
…were to CYA also. That way if you overload it with a ton of gear, drive 90 mph and then roll it when you try to make that turn to sharp you can’t blame Honda. WW
cargo space questions…
Would a 4x8 plywood sheet fit inside w/ seats down or out?
What is the cargo length behind the drivers seat to the tail?
Thanks!
My '92 (247,700K) toyota van makes a good tent…more room than my tadpole 23 tent!
Do you use trekking poles for your MSR tent?