I purchased my 2003 Element brand-new in 2003. It's my first Honda and I couldn't be happier with it. In 4 years and over 33,000 miles, I have not had a single problem with it ever. It's reliable, comfortable, drives nicely, and it's versatile. It also gets pretty decent gas mileage for an SUV AND it's a low-emission vehicle. Another cool thing is the large amount of leg room in the back seat- the back seats also sit a little higher so people in the back can see what going on in front of the car (it's a great car for site-seeing!).

I have slept in the back on camping trips (either by removing the back seats or simply folding them up and hooking them to the sides). You can fit surprisingly large items in the back- I've moved trees, VERY large boxes, and even fit 2 big bookcases in it (that one was tricky- I had to drive with the back open).

It's not a fancy car or a high-performance car, but for the price, I couldn't be happier with it.

The only con I can think of is the blind spot created by the space between the windshield and front side windows. A lot of cars have this blind spot, but I think it's a bit larger on the Element and I'm horrified to admit there have been two occasions when pedestrians managed to line up perfectly behind the blind spots when I was making left turns at intersections and I might have hit them if I hadn't seen them in time! I would just suggest owners be aware of this and get into the habit of physically moving forward or to the side so you can see the space behind the blind spot before making left turns!


Amount Paid (US$): 19000
Condition: New
Model Year: 2003
Model and Options: automatic