How come the spare tire is'nt under the car? That could be some extra storage the E really needs inside.

[quote:49d330a1e8="madskier"]How come the spare tire is'nt under the car? That could be some extra storage the E really needs inside.[/quote:49d330a1e8]

Do you see room for it under the car?

And did you just say the E needs more interior space???

Keep in mind they were engineering the Element to still have more undercarriage clearance than a typical automobile (to give it a bit of small SUV usefulness), but kept the floor lower than a CR-V to allow for more interior volume.

-brendan

If the tire were under rather than over it would take the same space. The only difference would be a solid rear floor without a spare cover.

[quote:a62f12755d="letmedance"]If the tire were under rather than over it would take the same space. The only difference would be a solid rear floor without a spare cover.[/quote:a62f12755d]

There may have been engineering reasons: moving the tire to under would involve changing the geometry of the suspension and drive train components, I believe Perhaps for worse, or perhaps for better, I can't say.

-brendan

The spare tire is where it is, because THAT'S WHERE IT IS. If it were anywhere else, you'd be hallucinating.

One of the reasons many manufacturers have started placing the spare inside the vehicle is simple. Have you ever tried dragging a spare out from underneath a minivan or SUV, when it had a flat? It is no small task. You have to have the vehicle jacked up, just so you have enough clearance to crawl underneath your vehicle (on a jack, on the side of the road usually), and drag out the spare. It also takes much more time to lower the spare on the little cable, drag it out and put it on.

With the spare mounted inside the vehicle you have better safety, better visibility (interior lights, etc) and less time. Also, as previously posted, you have more compatability with the drivetrain and suspension, while not compromosing your interior space much.

[quote:82b76f2fb0=" "]One of the reasons many manufacturers have started placing the spare inside the vehicle is simple. Have you ever tried dragging a spare out from underneath a minivan or SUV, when it had a flat? It is no small task. You have to have the vehicle jacked up, just so you have enough clearance to crawl underneath your vehicle (on a jack, on the side of the road usually), and drag out the spare. It also takes much more time to lower the spare on the little cable, drag it out and put it on.

With the spare mounted inside the vehicle you have better safety, better visibility (interior lights, etc) and less time. Also, as previously posted, you have more compatability with the drivetrain and suspension, while not compromosing your interior space much.[/quote:82b76f2fb0]

Definitely. Spares underneath SUCK to gain access to. I do however wish the E (and most newer SUV's) had a full size spare on a swingaway design from the back. I'm not sure why manufacturers are going away from this design on SUV's, but it was without a doubt the best functionally, although not always asthetically. Donut spares blow to drive on no matter where they are hidden :D

[quote:3032a6e890=" "]I do however wish the E (and most newer SUV's) had a full size spare on a swingaway design from the back. I'm not sure why manufacturers are going away from this design on SUV's, but it was without a doubt the best functionally, although not always asthetically. Donut spares blow to drive on no matter where they are hidden :D[/quote:3032a6e890]

My guess is that it was a convenience/design issue: they wanted the "fully open" feel for the car, and having to swing the spare wheel out of the way all the time breaks the design goal by making the back end encumbered and inconvenient to access.

Now, with that said a swingaway wheel backet would have been acceptable to me (vs. a door mounted wheel, which would have required a side swinging *door*), but I'm not on the Honda design team. :)

-brendan

And hear I was thinking that it was inside to stop a thief from snatching it!!!

[quote:766282ead3=" "]And hear I was thinking that it was inside to stop a thief from snatching it!!![/quote:766282ead3]

Not even thieves want that stupid little donut :lol: