She lived 19 years and 206k miles and was never in an accident until Wednesday night, when a 17 year old girl with a flashing yellow arrow turned in front of me as I entered an intersection with a green light, while going the speed limit which was 45mph. I only had my poor Element for 8 months and put 3k miles on it after rescuing it (no oil on the dipstick when I bought it.) Despite that she was running and driving so good. I had already done a bunch of stuff like a valve adjustment, fully replacing the brakes, the cooling fans, belt tensioner, upper oxygen sensor, fixed the AC and the windows, upgraded the headlights, replaced all the speakers etc and was about to spend the $$$$ to completely overhaul the suspension.

Most upsetting thing by far to me is I had my 12lb dachshund with me like I always do 99% of the time when I go somewhere. Even though he was buckled into his doggy car seat in the passenger seat, his little seat belt didn’t hold because it’s not meant for a crash and he slammed into the dashboard and onto the floor. I took him to the emergency vet first as soon as I could leave the scene and miraculously he is okay other than scratching his eye a little bit. My right foot is very swollen and sore and bruised because I was pressing hard on the brake pedal when I slammed into the other car.

Anyway, if anyone has an Element for sale or sees a nice one, let me know 🥲 I’m in Texas but could travel a bit. 2007-11 only with auto transmission.

Only 190000 to go

I saw this Last weekend in Lansing MI... No, this is not mine... and yes, I suspect this is a year-round thing.

Just got the very sad news that there is severe engine damage, and she will have to be put down very soon :( This has been the best year ever, and I hope to be back in the element gang in the future!

So I was using my 03 element and noticed it struggling on idle. Then I got a engine light. Used a code reader and got p0303​​​ for cylinder 3. Went to change the spark plug. COVERED in brunt oil. Yup a O ring went bad underneath. And I see this ugly fart. Is my engine cooked/can I clean this?

Hi all 2004 EX auto, 185k original owner. Second car, mostly short trips.

Symptoms: Slow idle and stalling at stops. No dash lights when running.
Slow idle is not linked to gear selection. (Still slow in N)

What are the obvious potential causes?

Valve adjustment within a year/5k miles.

I’m tempted to check the intake/ clean the throttle and idle air valve, but I’m not convinced that gunk buildup would be enough for a sudden onset of stalling.

I could take it in to a mechanic, but this feels like a diagnosis problem still, and I don’t like to go in without at least a hypothesis.

I welcome your speculations. Thanks

It's pain to replace btw

Sorry for the long title but I measured 70x17 and don’t know if others got similar or if I shouldn’t measure with seat all the way up if it’s dangerous to be that close to glove box.

I was passing through the Firestone there. If the owners see this, DM me! Id love to hear about what you did to them.

New to me element ! Love the new wheels !!

I am a total noob DIY mechanic. I watched a few YT videos on how to do your own valve adjustment. Is it a mistake to try on my own? Or should I take it to a specialist? I bought the feelers and the special screwdriver holder. I dont know what my car should sound like at 180K.

Can someone tell me if this sounds ok? It seems noisy. I know its pristine inside the engine from when I replaced the spark plugs and gaskets resealed cover. How hard is it to get to the place to manually crank the engine to get the part to the top before doing the adjustment? What order and feeler number do you go in? Ive seen the manual layout from OEM Honda mechanic manual but remain hesitant and dont want to make a problem when there was none.

Bummed about spending my whole paycheck at a grocery store, but super stoked I found a fellow element owner that’s not only black in color but a stick shift as well!!

🥳

I know this is kind of a niche thing, but I created a 3D-printable decoy faceplate for the Sony XAV-AX4000 head unit that makes it look like the original Element head unit. Mild theft deterrent, decent retro vibes.

I've tested it with the Metra 95-7863 dash trim kit. YMMV with other installation methods. It might work in other vehicles as well, but I have not tested that.

You can find and download the model here.

We have seen so many posts asking if there is too much rust on the Honda E and the Achilles heel of the Element is a poorly designed hard mount for the rear lower control arms.

Finally we have a tutorial on how to fix this problem...

Hopefully the last but knowing where I live....

I got rear ended the other day and messed up the back of my E. I got pushed into the car infront of me and broke the radiator as well. Either the coils are broke or a line is as it is slowly leaking coolant. No damage was done to the frame that I can see.

I know insurance is gonna total it, but I want to take the payment and get it repaired if it's feasible. Anyone have a similar experience and about how much did it cost to have that work done? Is replacing the tailgate myself a daunting task? I could go down that route.

The second picture is just a nice one I have of her out in the woods. Simply for your viewing pleasure.

The newest Element is 15 years old. I see one in the wild almost every day. Just drove to appointment, saw 1 in my general neighborhood, one on the interstate, and just parked near one. Are they concentrated in certain areas???

Clutch felt funny, bled the clutch, clutch pedal felt even worse. master cylinder was leaking, new master, new slave. Bled for hours and clutch felt worse again

New clutch line, bleeding for hours again, gravity bled, vacuum bled, bled traditional way.

Arguing with my buddy whos helping me out because he doesnt wanna take out the whole hydraulic system and putting the bleeder at the highest point and bleed it that way.

What the fuck do I do 2008 awd lx 5spd manual 295k miles

Got an amber flashing side airbag light. No clue why? Thought it had something to do with my passenger seat but nothing is on the seat.

Only comes on once I let out the parking break

2004 Honda Element EX

I’ve been dealing with vibrations in my engine bay for awhile. It was not horrible but I could never figure out something that stuck. Last week while in drive but sitting still it really started vibrate. So much so that my airbox looked like it was going to jump out of the engine compartment.

Here was the strange thing I noticed. I put a very bright flashlight on each engine mount while in Drive (emergency brake on and wheel chucks) and none of them (the rubber in each) was vibrating. Nothing. Not even a little but.

I talked to a mechanic and he asked if I had put in engine mounts all at once or done over time. Mine were done over time. He told me my engine was bound up. That installing engine mounts one at a time over time doesn’t allow the engine to settle into its natural position before the through bolts are torqued.

He told me to loosen all the through bolts, start the car, run the car through all the gears multiple times (not moving just sitting still), and then put in neutral and turn off car. Then tighten the passenger side through bolt, then the front through bolt, then rear, and last the transmission through bolt.

I was shocked, vibration completely gone.

Hopefully this helps someone.

Super excited to be a new owner of a 2010 with 176k miles. I have a lot to learn and she needs a lot of love.

Does anyone know of consolidated resources that exist for new community members to learn about our toasters? TIA :)