Honda Car Forum

I'm giving serious thought to this as my needs have changed from the
hybrid-sedan focus of a few months ago, and would appreciate knowing
your experience with one.

I assume reliability is high given it's a Honda, but that's what I
thought about my current Saturn as well, much to my dismay.

Thanks!

"Fustanella"
> I'm giving serious thought to this as my needs have changed from the
> hybrid-sedan focus of a few months ago, and would appreciate knowing
> your experience with one.

We drove one Friday. LOVE the turning radius!!!
We already have a fluff sedan with all the luxury
stuff. This car fits for going camping and mucking
about. I think the privacy curtains are a must optionwise.
I like the MP3 jack and sat radio. The washable
floor and seats are good for anyone with dust sensitive
asthma like me. You can give it a real good cleaning
to keep the dust down.

Not too thrilled about the 3/36 coming off a Santa
Fe with 12/120 (10/100 upgraded b/c of a manufacturer
error on listed HP).

The only bad thing I found is that a young child or
small person sitting in the back seats will have a
hard time seeing out. It's not a family car so that's
just how it goes.

Ruth CM

> We drove one Friday. LOVE the turning radius!!!

Good point - there's a U-turn I occasionally need to make which my
Saturn has to back-and-fill into; the Element handled it during my
informal test-drive with no problem.

> stuff. This car fits for going camping and mucking

What do you think about the tent options I saw for it? We camp out
occasionally, and not having to set up a complete and leaky tent would
be a godsend.

> I like the MP3 jack and sat radio. The washable

I'm leaning towards the EX given the enhanced stereo like you have,
extra air bags, armrests, more storage and some other treats. Does the
MP3 portion of the better CD player allow for folders?

"Fustanella"
> What do you think about the tent options I saw for it? We camp out
> occasionally, and not having to set up a complete and leaky tent would
> be a godsend.

I would think it would need some sort of platform to
keep floor condensation in check were you to do any
real camping.

For me it'd be great for going to a casino, playing 5-6 hours
of poker, crash in the car ... lather, rinse, repeat. I like the
privacy curtains as opposed to the tent for something like
that.

> I'm leaning towards the EX given the enhanced stereo like you have,

Sadly, I don't have one yet. I want a 2WD, 5 speed EX which
doesn't seem to exist in my area, I am told. :-(

> extra air bags, armrests, more storage and some other treats. Does the
> MP3 portion of the better CD player allow for folders?

Good question and I don't have an answer. See how
helpful I am? ;-)

Ruth CM

Fustanella wrote:
> I'm giving serious thought to this as my needs have changed from the
> hybrid-sedan focus of a few months ago, and would appreciate knowing
> your experience with one.
>
> I assume reliability is high given it's a Honda, but that's what I
> thought about my current Saturn as well, much to my dismay.

when i was researching cars back in 98, i briefly considered the saturn,
on price alone. the oil burning issue and the alternator problems
completely turned me off. and they didnt offer a hatch, so i got a 98 CX
hatch.

> when i was researching cars back in 98, i briefly considered the saturn,
> on price alone. the oil burning issue and the alternator problems
> completely turned me off.

I haven't had those issues ('96 SL) but head-gasket and tranny-rebuild
woes before 85kmiles did me in.

Fustanella,
Yes, I traded in my '00 Ford F-250 V-10 4wd crew cab for an '04 Element
EX 4wd in October, and love it. Going from 12 mpg to 24+ mpg is one
thing; it's also fun to drive, can park it almost anywhere, great sound
system, zippy, with 135 cubic ft of storage it's highly utile. And, as
you point out, it's a Honda so we should expect reliability over long
periods of time, and it should also hold its value reasonably well. My
Ford went from $35K to ~$17K over four years ... I expect better than
that from the Element.

Most people reading this probably have never seen the old Volvo PV544
or the 445 Duett see pics here: http://www.volvoadventures.com and
here: http://www.granfoss.net/arne/k100e/b...s/k1cpvodu.htm)

Although I'm "only" in my 40's I remember these cars were rock solid,
and the subject of some derision because they were funny looking. Hey,
I don't mind that the Element is a bit unusual looking -- if you are
looking for a reliable utility vehicle, I recommend it.

Best,
Steve

In article <33aodmF3trpjoU1@individual.net>,
"RPM1" <rpm1deleteme@direcway.com> wrote:

>
> The only bad thing I found is that a young child or
> small person sitting in the back seats will have a
> hard time seeing out. It's not a family car so that's
> just how it goes.

I've had two people of full size (one 5'9", another 6'1") ride in the
back and they say that the view in the Element is better than the view
from the back seat of my Expedition.

YMMV,

Al

Check out the new Element Owners Club
(http://groups-beta.google.com/group/elementownersclub)