versatility. I can fold up the rear seats for my music gear, and camp in it with the available screen and privacy curtains. awesome handling. responsive braking. enough power to pull 2 jet skiis.

1. don't expect Audi Quattro performance from the Element 4WD (a $1400 upgrade on the manual tranny). Based on my one day snow test, the front tires ALWAYS slip even when power is needed by the rear tires. But, of course, some power IS better than no power. Read the review of the Element and CR-V in www.boatmagazine.com and you will see that for towing, you want the 4WD. And, 1500 pounds is enough for 2 jet skiis. The electronically controlled 4 disc brakes worked excellent. No slippage at all. There was no side-to-side slipping on my parking lot test. 2. The radio. 270 watts? No way. The reception wasn't incredible...probably due to the small antenna. And, the sound seemed muddy. It was certainly far from perfection. Granted, I still need to tweak it, but I may look into installing an extra equalizer or a filter for that subwoofer. For all the hype, I expected much better.

I just purchased my Element tonight and drove it home in the snow. I even took it into a parking lot to test out the skid factor. Obviously, I feel this was the best choice for me, because, I bought one. My original choice was the Nissan Xterra. But, I didn't like the drivability (it felt unstable in the wind) and couldn't shake all the bad reviews here on carreview.com. I recalled that Kawasaki POS, I mean "Ninja 900," that had 7 shop visits in one summer. Kawasaki? never again. Renault (the makers of the Xterra)? I'm just not ready for a French SUV. 45 minutes after leaving the Nissan dealership, I strolled onto the Honda lot. Not looking to buy, I just took a manual DX for a test drive. Wow. I was impressed. The Element hugs the road, accelerates quickly, and was very responsive. All from a 4 cylinder engine. I chirped the front tires twice during the test drive. I then tried the EX automatic. When the overdrive switch is turned off, the EX was quite responsive, but lagged about .3 seconds on the curves. I went for a manual EX 4WD, a green one. I love the Element and it is perfect for me. Inspite of its drawbacks, I would definitely buy it again. I get 72 hours from the dealership, but I'm keepin' this one.

Similar Products Used:

Dodge Ram 2500; Acura 3.2 TL; Honda Nighthawk 750; Ford Mustang; Toyota Corolla; Nissan Xterra

Passenger room, cargo area, power, price, flexibility etc...

None yet.

My first impression upon seeing the Honda Element was 'My God, what an ugly little car!' But then I got curious and started doing a little homework. Well I can't say that my opinion about the exterior has changed, but I do feel strongly defensive of my ugly little Ute. I have been driving an Element for sbout two months now, and I have been very, very impressed. I have yet to find anything wrong with it, and I must say that this may be Honda's best product yet. Say what you will, but the Element is definately a vehicle to be looked more closely at.

Similar Products Used:

1990 Jeep Wrangler 1996 Ford Explorer

Very functional and stylish SUV. Sporty handling. Best vehicle in the world for high school and college kids to take on a road trip.

No sunroof up front.

READERS WATCH OUT!!!! The only person here trying to skew the overall rating of the Honda SUVs is Homer/Seth/Nathan. Why else would he write the same comical review several times? There is no way he can tell the reviewers IP addresses. He accused me of being a Honda employee from CA when in fact I live in MA and work for an architectural/engineering company. Email me and I can prove it. He also says that the positive reviews only occur during the week when in fact many of them are written over the weekend. Honda didn't get where they are today by writing fake reviews on web sites. They wouldn’t waste their time. Besides, do you really think people are following the reviews on this site blindly? No of course not. Today’s car buyer is informed and takes a thorough test drive before plunking down their hard earned cash. How do you explain all the positive reviews and best in class ratings from the professional publications? You will not find one negative professional review anywhere. Even the one you point out from Edmunds where the dealer failed to fix a defective part they still had an overall positive experience. How do you explain its highest in class resale value? How do you explain the fact that they are selling all they can make without the huge discounts and incentives of the other manufacturers? And how do you explain the hundreds of thousands of happy new owners every year? Obviously Homer/Seth/Nathan is desperate to tarnish Honda's impeccable reputation. Sorry Homer it’s your opinion against all the professional opinions and millions of happy owners. So if you’ve come here looking for an honest review you will have to sort through all of Homer/Seth/Nathan’s reviews to find them. Even with his dozens of fake posts this is still one of the highest ranked SUVs on this site.

snow,no problems goes right up the hill. peppy,more than my f-150 six. full size spare and hidden in the floor smooth ride,and what a ride with that cd six changer audio,excellent.

driver's armrest,could use a center console

Drove stick ,and just came out of a 4 wheel drive full size pick up.This meets all my needs.Automatic,all wheel drive,great gas milage,and I can still sport around building materials.My Pick up was a loaded XLT,so I needed all them perks,like power windows,tilt wheel,cruise,air,comfort.I am 6ft 7in,wow what head room,leg room,in general room all over.Fun to drive,there just isn't enough time in one day to experience the experience

Handles well, not tippy feeling. Nice pep considering the small displacement of the engine. Awsome that you can flip up the back seats and fit a couple of bikes in there.

Doors ring when you close them. They feel rather thin compared to an American car. Element pulls to the right when you take off really fast. In addition to the wind noise there is also a lot of raod noise. I guess that's because it's unibody. It's not in the least bit comfortable, (I'm used to the chevy blazer with the seats that wrap around your but). The stearing whell is not placed properly in alighnment with seating position. It needs a switch so you can switch into 4 low if needed.

I traded in my 2001 chevy blazer for a 2003 honda element. 5 months later I'm back in a blazer. I'm having a hard time deciding. The blazer is by far a better car, but I really do like the fact that I can crawl between the front seats of the element to get to the back and that is importand to me.

Similar Products Used:

Chevy Blazer.

Everything: Honda quality, feels expensive, drives expensive, but is relatively inexpensive Styling Handling Power Stereo! Comfort ROOMY

Keyless should be standard Gas mpg is only average, lead foots will see low 20s at best. Families with more than 2 kids might need a minivan instead. Rear windows don't go down.....the dog would like that.

This is still one of the best vehicles I've ever driven. Just to update my inital review of the E. Have had the E now for about 7 months and 6800 miles. I must admit I'm driving it much less now that I got a new motorcycle but in the rain, sleet, snow...etc the E is my ride. After the initial "high" of having the new E, I must say that this vehicle's attributes do NOT wear off over time. Just an incredibly smooth ride. Still feels brand new. It's very comfortable and stable at any speed and handles like a sports sedan.....no floaty, heavy steering with the E. For those who think it's ugly, I think they're nuts. The E has a nice clean aggressive and muscular shape to it. I used the E recently to move...worked great. I fit a decent sized loveseat in it with the rear hatch closed! Anyone debating or curious about purchasing one of these, end your ambivalence and get one! It's EASILY the best and most fun car I've ever owned and will be for most people.

Similar Products Used:

too many to list

economically priced, all-wheel drive, easy cleanups, sound system, tons of available accessories, i-v-tec engine

no passenger side armrest, no power moon roof

One question keeps coming to mind, could I love this car any more? After 10 months of ownership and 16,000 miles later, the answer is STILL yes. This vehicle lives up to it's billing as a great all around car for the person with an active lifestyle. From hauling cleaning equipment to work or hauling my three dogs to the mountains for a hike, this car rocks!! The sound system is great, cleanups are easy, and the suicide style doors make loading anything a breeze. On Dec. 6th @ 7th we got 38 inches of snow and both days we drove the 120 miles round trip to our favorite ski area. The car perfomed great in it's first test in serious snow. The all-wheel drive is truly a gift from heaven.

Similar Products Used:

My Subaru Outback was a similar vehicle, but with a lot larger pricetag.

I test drove a Honda Element because of all the glowing reviews on this website. I found the ride almost as harsh as a Honda Civic and the noise level very high. Compare with the Honda Accord, which I drove the same day, the workmanship on the Element is disappointing. Signal lights did not work on my test car. The parking brake was also stuck. The blind spots are very bad so rely on your mirror. The SUV seats only 4 people. If Honda removed the cup holders on the side of each back seat, there would be probably room for 5. I also do not care for choice of colors, which was a deal breaker for me. I wanted a silver exterior but the interior color trim is comes only in blue. On the positive side, the Element is very roomy inside and has good visibility. Power is okay. I would also avoid this dealership. Poor service and I do not trust them.

My friends always make fun of it, but they just don't understand how great it is :)

This is easily the best vehicle I've ever owned. And, I'm not the outdoorsy type. I think it looks cool and it handles great. I'm looking forward to testing it out in the snow this winter! I traded in a 2000 Pathfinder for my Element, after 1 little test drive. The whole inside being waterproof has been great, I've already had 4 spills so far and all you gotta do is wipe it away. The sound system is awesome and there is SO much room. I weigh 300 pounds and I have no problem getting in the back even without putting up the front seats. My pathfinder was bigger yet it had almost no room in the back, expecially for big or tall folks. On top of all that, the price tag is the best part about it. You get a great vehicle for a really low price. It's been worth every penny.

Similar Products Used:

2000 Pathfinder

Driving comfort, versatility, roominess, reliability.

Mileage (with A/C mostly on) is only 19MPG. Sometimes I wish it had a nice hefty 6 cylinder power plant.

I still am loving my Element after ten months of driving (10K miles). I have the two wheel-drive EX and it handles like a sedan with great manuverability and very short turning radius. The 4 Cyl. engine is amazingly responsive and generally seems powerful enough. I've driven with five passengers and the ride was comfortable and tight. Everyone loves the "stadium" rear-seating. The sound system is awesome too.

Similar Products Used:

Honda Passport, Ford Bronco