My granddaughter and he boyfriend and rottweiler love her Element. They are canoers and kayakers and bike riders and they can load everything in or on the Element. Not all at once of course. My son foung her a clean rust free example in Florida, they live in. Buffalo, wher rust free examples of anything are very hard to find.
okâŠwhat about a honda or toyota minivan?
Should I look for one in Chicago (rust) or Bâham AL (less rust)?
It was based on the CRV that was sold here up to 2006, Honda kept it alive for a few years but didnât feel there was enough demand to warrant a new generation. Loved by those whoâve owned one but they canât get a new one.
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OK, so youâre looking for an 8 to 10 year old $6000 car and youâre worried about resale value ?
Around here, any Honda Element under $7000 is 15 + years old and the lowest mileage one has 243,000 miles on it.
Any Element with less than 100,000 miles start at $14,500 and go up.
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@lockstar You have multiple threads where you are asking about marginal vehicles or bought one that has major problems . I donât understand why you donât raise your sights and look for something that you can depend on.
Now if you really want a Honda Element then fine . Go to the Carmax web site ( I am not shilling for Carmax but have dealt with them ) and you can see listing for Elements and at least you might have some kind of warranty .
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Speaking of which, this outfit just opened in my area. It looks like they are trying to emulate CarMax. Has anyone ever heard of them? They are new to this area.
My opinion: Used Dodge and Chrysler minivans are plentiful and versatile and reasonably priced. They donât last forever but theyâre so darn useful! (Thatâs why Iâve had two so far, a 1999 and a 2007.)
The Honda Element was a niche vehicle. Itâs no longer made, and is on its way to cult status (and price.) Hondas can work very well for a long, long time. (Thatâs why I still have my 1999 Civic.)
The rear seats may fold flat, but the center row must be removed if you want the floor space. I doubt that they is room behind the second row to sleep stretched out. You can remove the middle row and leave it at home, but that means you canât use it during the trip. We have a 2019 Odyssey and like it. The three middle seats are heavy and awkward to remove, though Iâm getting better at it. We had an Olds Silhouette before, and the middle seats were a bit easier to take out.
They are a subsidiary of penske automotive that recently purchased carsense.
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The owners I knew enjoyed and held on to them. Theyâve developed an enthusiastic (read: irrational) following, and now seem overpriced when compared to other vehicles of comparable utility value. While Hondas generally are reliable, they had notable problems with Odyssey automatic transmissions back then, and the Element may have shared these.
You can get much the same function and maybe more flexibility in a minivan and likely can find a newer/less worn one for the same price.
The Element was essentially the mechanical twin of the CR-V, so I doubt if it had the same transmission as the larger, heavier Odyssey.
Furthermore, the Element used a 2.4L I-4 and the Odyssey used a 3.5L V6.
My SILâs 2001 Accord 4 cylinder also had the tranny go out, same engine as the Element.