So after 178000 miles (not all mine), the 91 Accord I had decided to develop transmission trouble. With a kid and two dogs, and the wife wedged into the passenger seat of our Escort, we decided we needed a gasp minivan. After being under whelmed by most of the offerings (except perhaps the new Mazdas), we were at the Honda lot and I saw the Elements. I had seen a few when I was on a business trip to LA and couldn’t quite decide what they were. So after forcing the sales guy to show us (“No, no, those are for young people” :rolleyes: ) we took a look.
Once you get past the looks, it seems to be an immensely practical car (suv, mini van, whatever). The interior is HUGE, it echoes (okay, that may be because there’s no carpet, but still). And with no carpet, I don’t have to worry about the afore mentioned kid and dogs making messes. The gas mileage is decent (not great), but at least on par with most mini-vans and better than most SUVs. It’s relatively inexpensive (for a Honda). I’m really not seeing a downside.
So what do you Dopers think? Am I hopelessly trying to recapture my carefree college days? Or is the Element a practical car for a wider demographic than Honda intended?
Back in the day, people used to refer to Volvo 240’s as boxy (remember it’s boxy but it’s good?). They were very practical cars, but boxy.
The Honda Element looks like the box that a Volvo 240 wagon came in. Brings a whole new meaning to boxy.
Probably as practical as hell.
You know, that’s what they say, and the TV commercials only show 20-somethings. But I have seen a number of Elements around town, and have yet to see one that wasn’t driven by someone older than my parents, who left their 20s many decades ago.
I’ve been checking out the Element myself for a while now. They are great if you’ve got kids and dogs. We have a New Beetle which is great for clean-up. We live ten minutes from the beach here in Savannah and the ability for a quick clean-up is mandatory with my two slobs… er, sons. The Element should clean easy since you can open it up totally. The rear doors have the support column built into them which allows you unfettered access to the interior. The rear seats fold out of the way for large loads. You can get the roof rack for long loads such as kayaks, canoes, or surfboards. You can even get a hitch for small trailers.
The salesman is an idiot. Every Element I have seen so far has been driven by a guy like me, forty-ish, balding and grey, with a small spare tire (not the one on the car). Volkswagon learned that their demagraphics were screwed up when everyone from 16 to 60, male to female, black to white bought the New Beetle.
I think the Element will appeal to the same crowd, but on a smaller scale.
Let us know what you decide and if you get the Element, how much you like it.
The first time I saw one on the road I was truly shocked that science had somehow developed a car uglier than the Aztek. I didn’t realize it was possible.
I’m sure it’s practical, but it’s so so so so hideous. Like a bread truck gone bad.
As Hello Again knows, I LOVE the look. Ugly in a cute kind of way. You’ll never lose the thing in a parking lot, that’s for sure. I drive a silver Honda, one of, oh, about 7000 in my town. That gets a little old.
Last month the damn Honda dealer/servicecenter shuttle driver left without me so I got my own personal driver to come get me. We started to gab and talked about a lot of the Honda models new and old. He drives all the cars, all the time. A real car guy. He told me he LOVES the Element.
My mom works for a Honda dealership, and she says it’s mainly the older crowd that’s been buying them. She’d kind of like to have one herself (she’s 72, BTW :D), I say , “Go mom!”
I used a Honda Civic S/W in ways that were not recomended.
The Element is what I want.
Never judge a book by its cover.
Form follows function.
Oh BTW find another sales person.
All I can say is that if you (meaning anyone, not just you GES) have ever said that minivans are too boxy for you then you have lost all credibility if you buy an Element. That thing defines boxy. It looks like a 1965 International Scout/Carryall (or whatever they were called). They may be practical but I find them to be really, really homely and I’d never consider one.
Having said that, everyone has different tastes and if you like it go ahead and get one. I just find it funny that some of the same people that put down minivans find the Element attractive.
Is it more practical than a minivan? Can you carry 7 people plus luggage? Can it haul 4’ X 8’ sheets of plywood flat? Can it get up to 28 MPG? I don’t know, maybe it can do all those things. If it can that only puts it on a par with our 1995 Dodge Grand Caravan. It would need to be way more practical than a minivan to overcome its looks for me to ever consider buying one, and I don’t think it is.
But you’re not looking at one for me so as I said before if you like it go for it.
It’s a lot smaller than said minivan. It’s also a bit slow, and yes, Honda is trying to market it to Gen Y, because it’s a really hot selling Gen Y car in Japan.
Not working here. Basically, it’s a more modern Vanagon. You know, the VW Bus? Deadhead car?
I like the look of it myself. It reminds me of the really old style Station-wagons. I’ll look into one the next time I’m ready to buy (in about 3 years).
The Honda Element just scored a “poor” in a side-impact collision test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. This crash test simulated an SUV-on-SUV side impact collision at 30mph.
The only small SUVs to score “good” were the Subaru Forester and the side-airbag equipped Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute (non-side-airbag-equipped Escape/Tribute scored “poor”)
Next best was the side-airbag equipped Hyundai Santa Fe which scored “acceptable.”
I don’t know if you want to compare it to a mini-van (espically a Chrysler POS). The element is smaller (actually it’s shorter in length, but taller I believe).
I also like the look of the element. I don’t like larger vehicles in general but it’s not too bad. It’s not a sports car, it’s just a practical vehicle. I own a Matrix myself (I have no family to carry around) and people question it’s looks (generally in a good way though )
I’d say because it’s Honda it’s probably reliable as hell. If you want something that’ll last for a good long time you shouldn’t have much trouble with it. And as you’ve said, it’s practical for what you need it for.
My point was that people (again people in general, not GES) trash minivans but then go on about how “practical” something like the Element is. I was just saying that if you really want practical in something larger than a car (as I see it anyway), then get a minivan. The Element may be the perfect vehicle for GES or thousands of other people, depending on what they are looking for.
(As an aside, our Dodge minivan has been very trouble-free, although we’ve only driven it 59,000 miles in the 8 years we’ve had it.)
Just wanted to mention that minivans are expensive, more so than the Element. The cheapest Dodge Caravan costs roughly the same as the most expensive Element. (And the Honda minivan is quite a bit more over that.)
A friend of mine just bought one. He’s single, gay male in his mid-20’s. (Brought up only to dispell all the “These cars are only for…” comments).
Whenever he comes by the house to pick me up, I run out and shout at him, “Hey! Who left their toaster oven in my driveway?” I keep trying to talk to him about putting foam rubber pieces of toast sticking half way out the top. He laughs politely, but I’m not sure if he thinks that’s as funny as I do.
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