I have 600 miles on my awd :? EX orange automatic E. Overall, very nice. Only draw backs are 1. somewhat underpowered, and 2. the roll or cornering at high speeds on the highway is somewhat unsettling. Even at 70 the cornering is dissapointing. What i mean is that you really feel the roll and feel unsafe, and have to slow. For the price I suppose I should not complain, but just my observations.

fanoesq,

Ummm, let me ask, what car do you go around corners in at 70?

This is a truck, not s sports car. If you are going around corners at 70 in a Element, congrats, I would not suggest it, but ok

I agree with RML, this is not a 'Vette! I have had mine up to 85 on the highway, and felt it was very safe and stable. If you slow down to a reasonable speed to corner, you should have no problems! 8)

Me too, Man! I go 75 + on the freeway and feel comfortable. I don't go around corners fast, even tho it is a tall vehicle and the body roll is better than expected.

fanoesq,
I have some questions. Are you talking about cornering, or curving? Your post mentions cornering on highways. Highways usually don't have corners, just curves. The reason that I make this distinction is that I think it's two separate issues, and perhaps some folks misunderstood your report. Are you saying that your Element feels tippy at 70mph on rolling highway curves?

I would expect the Element to handle highway curves at 70mph at least as well as other SUVs and trucks in it's class, which is to say, decently, but not as well as some lower, heavier, stiffer suspensioned vehicles. But I would not at all expect it to be able to handle true high-speed cornering in any meaningful sense of the word.

So, I'm just asking for some terminology clarification, please.

I took my E into a very sharp turn at only 112 mph and rolled it end over end for a 73 yards and landed on all 4's! Didn't even get a scratch, not even on the pastic panels. :roll:

Just kidding :wink:

I think overall the everyday normal cornering abilities of the Element are excellent. Even considering this is a SUV (kinda) and is tall and narrow (kinda), I find the Element takes on cornering much better than a lot of passenger cars that I have driven in, I'm impressed.
At first when I bought my Element and took it around corners it was unsettling, only because I was shocked because the vehicle was standing straight up with virtually no roll, while taking on a turn.
So far 2200 miles and lovin it. 8)

Wait a minute....!?

You mean I won't be able to take corners at 70 in an E...!?
I already do that with a 99 Odyssey and was looking to increase that significantly.....to say 80 or 90..
Hiway sweepers are no problem in the Ody at 90+, so I should be able to do 100+ in an E right ?!

Gee, I might have to reconsider and withdraw my deposit for an AWD 5spd if I can't do corners at 80+......... :roll:

[quote:14d10fd2b1="fanoesq"]I have 600 miles on my awd :? EX orange automatic E. Overall, very nice. Only draw backs are 1. somewhat underpowered, and 2. the roll or cornering at high speeds on the highway is somewhat unsettling. Even at 70 the cornering is dissapointing. What i mean is that you really feel the roll and feel unsafe, and have to slow. For the price I suppose I should not complain, but just my observations.[/quote:14d10fd2b1]
Maybe a high speed driving course is in order here. This will help to make you familiar with corerning techniques. Such as knowing the difference between and single or double apex turn ect. Just a thought.. :roll:

i usually take corners at around 130 miles per hour...and the E seems fine...maybe this guy who claims to be having trouble at 70 needs to speed it up a little....after all, its only human life

I use my "wing" attachment at 150mph and fly right over the corners! Never a problem!! :twisted:

Well from watching the Motorweek slalom (<-- man does that word look funny, the more I look at it the worse it gets.. :shock: ) test the E had almost NO body roll which shocked me and is a testament to the suspension and center of gravity setup. What I do notice is that the E's stock tires have quite a bit of sidewall and in cornering there could be some sidewall flexing making it feel "mushy".

As I have not driven one on the highway I cannot comment on how it might handle going 70mph in a sweeping curve.

-Dave

Being so tall and boxy, I realized it wouldn't go round corners at all, so I was looking for a nice straight road. But then since the engine is so small and underpowered, it can't go fast enough not to go round corners, so I found a bendy road to drive it on and it's fine. If I need to go quicker, I get the kids to push and that way when I get to a corner, they can lift the back round.

Try as I might - I just can't get my E to take the corners on 2 wheels! What a rip!

but, IIRC, the old "Screaming Chicken", aka Pontiac Firebird TA, circa about 1980, with the 400 c.i. WS6 package, would corner at .80 G. That was marginally better than the same year Corvette.

In terms of raw grip, the E is listed at what, .78 G? That's equivalent, within the limits of what you can actually feel in real driving, to the 'Vette, the Firebird, even the old 308 Ferrari.... Now, transient maneuvering is obviously a different matter, but I'm not going to quibble over an SUV than can hang a sweeping curve as well as a 1980 'Vette......

Just my $.02.... :lol:

Spike

Spike has a point (no pun intended). I've only been driving my Element for a week, two hours ago, and I've not had a problem with either curving on the highway where the Element actually handles better than all my cars but my old Jaquar or cornering on the city streets where I don't feel the lean anywhere near the Odyssey my wife drives.

Also, I don't seem to get it up on two wheels like the Mini. At least, not yet.

Last night I was driving on the highway and I was coming up to a pretty sharp curve. I was doing about 60, and decided to crank it to 70 to see if this was true. It took the curve just fine! I probably could have gone a little faster even. Just how sharp a curve are we talking about here?

My observation after 2,100 miles is that the Element handles much better than it looks like it should. Driving a FWD car is different and that takes some getting used to if you are new to front wheel drive vehicles. Driving hard on twisty roads is fun and, once you get used to it, the performance is very predictable and you really can tear it up if you want.

I have found that it feels scary if you start a fast turn a little too late, that is where you feel like you're hanging on for dear life. If that description resonates with you, then please try starting your turn two or three seconds earlier than it looks like you should and you will reap the reward of higher performance cornering. Try it, you'll like it.

Peace,

-jdef

Just ran into this on ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=6260&item=2428838372

I might be wrong but looks like someone was able to roll their element...

[quote:6148ad3475="jdef"]My observation after 2,100 miles is that the Element handles much better than it looks like it should. Driving a FWD car is different and that takes some getting used to if you are new to front wheel drive vehicles. Driving hard on twisty roads is fun and, once you get used to it, the performance is very predictable and you really can tear it up if you want.

I have found that it feels scary if you start a fast turn a little too late, that is where you feel like you're hanging on for dear life. If that description resonates with you, then please try starting your turn two or three seconds earlier than it looks like you should and you will reap the reward of higher performance cornering. Try it, you'll like it.

Peace,

-jdef[/quote:6148ad3475]

In addition to jdef's fine tip, I would add one more and that is to use weight transfer. Instead of braking before you get into the turn, brake as you turn. This transfers the cars weight allowing more tire to contact the road where you need it for a turn, in the front. A bit unsettling to get used to at first but it really does work.

Check out the following links for more detailed explanations and further tips:
http://www.turnfast.com/tech_handling/handling_weightxfr.lasso
http://home.pon.net/hunnicutt/perfdriv.htm

man I didnt look at your link but this technique is use in racing and if it was applied to a street style driving it would be dangerous...because when you stop braking or left off the throttle the car will start drifting...depend of the speed .... the best is too :

1 brake before turning
2 stabilize your speed to get get you to the apex of the curve
3 when you get to the apex : as the steering get straighter you accelerate...

this way you will have a faster exit of the corner too...the late braking give you a fast entrance in slow corner but on the highway this a really wrong thing to do...

thats the way to do and believes me because im a racing driver... in formula Ford series and in shifter series in karting...and done many schools

I hope this will help all of you... :wink:

The weight transfer technique is best used for situations like off ramps and winding back roads- not driving down the highway!

As with any advice, use it at your own risk, but I feel this is the single best method for controlling the line in a corner that you want to take aggressively.

I'll just agree to disagree with yellowturbo. :D

or in winter DRIFT IT SIDEWAYZZZZ !!!!

for the roll ...any body drop theirs E ... It could be good for the gravity center... :wink: SLAMMED Element .... not for off roading but nice in Florida.... 8)

[quote:ef294c4a1d="eMass"]
In addition to jdef's fine tip, I would add one more and that is to use weight transfer. Instead of braking before you get into the turn, brake as you turn. This transfers the cars weight allowing more tire to contact the road where you need it for a turn, in the front. A bit unsettling to get used to at first but it really does work[/quote:ef294c4a1d]

I would not reccommend this. A bit unsettling is exactly what that is. It quite literally unsettles the car and as weight transfers forward (off of the rear wheels mind) you run the risk of snap oversteer and spinning out if the conditions are right (or wrong as the case may be).
Obviously it depends on how fast you're going, how sharp the turn is, the condition of the road, and how hard you stomp on the binders but braking while cornering, as a rule, is a bad idea if you ask me.
"Brake straight. Acellerate out."

While we're talking about weight transfer though why not mention anti-sway bars? I don't know if the Element's suspension has these. If they do beefier aftermarket ones are almost certainly available. That's a surefire way to minimze bodyroll.

I think the Element handles and turns very well, especially for a tall SUV, but I can see where FANOESQ is coming from.

I've had my E since June and recently took the interchange from the eastbound 91 freeway to the southbound 5 freeway (in SoCal) at about 90 mph. Didn't even realize that I was going that fast entering that sweeping interchange (a testament to the E's stability) until the E started to lean and then drift a little bit. Backed off the gas a little, looked at my speedo and saw that I was going 85 mph through the curve. It was quite a shock to see that I could take that interchange at that speed with the E. I would never have consciously done so. I must admit that it was kinda scary to experience the lean and drift at that speed in the E for the first time.

Having said that, I think it really is a matter of your own comfort levels with driving limits and your E's. Driving anything new for the first 600 miles, you're still learning the limits of the vehicle in relation to your own limits. I now know that my E can easily handle that interchange at 80 mph and have no problems doing so whenever I can. Once you rack up more time in the E and your comfort level rises, your perceptions of the limits of the E will rise also. Live and Learn...