[SamIam]

Ah, my 2005 Green Honda Element. Wow I've had so much fun with you! So many mods!

Here is what is going on with my E now and I am wondering if it's just time to retire it.

76K miles.

Right now the front right tire wears way faster on the tread, and to drive straight you have to turn the steering wheel slightly to the left. Alignment or worse?

Also, the other day the car went into safe mode. Wife had to replace #10 fuse, and ever since then the passenger airbag light is on. The only thing I could figure out was the gas cap, but we have a locking gas cap from Handa so it is, stock I guess.

I love my E don't get me wrong, I'm just surprised that this much stuff is wrong with a Honda at this point.

 

[Jackson49]

In my opinion 76K is way too early to think about retiring the E.
Sounds like your tire wear could be caused by an alignment or front suspension component issue.
As for your air bag lamp being on since changing a fuze; I do not think it is caused by your gas cap since those two systems are not related or connected to each other as far as I know.
Again, it is not time to retire the E, these seem like easy things to rectify.

 

[FastEddieB]

...and ever since then the passenger airbag light is on.

Probably not helpful, but...

I had that light come on intermittently when my E was new. It was because I was putting my briefcase in the passenger seat, and there's a sensor that deactivates the airbag when it senses certain combinations of weight distribution in the passenger seat (I think).

BTW, that's not a lot of problems to have in almost 5 years - and alignment is more of a routine wear issue that should be checked periodically regardless.

 

[PawsEtraction]

I was very surprised by the alignment in the front. It was like my E was running along pigeon toed with the driver front tire turned in a little more than the passenger front tire. Apparently this seems to be a characteristic of the E so I will have to have my alignment checked more often.

 

[funcar4me]

I can relate to your concern.

I'm just not as convinced as most people that this car is going to last. My 2005 just passed 30000 miles. I've had to have some repairs that concern me quite a bit.

At 20000 miles I had to have the front rotors resurfaced. At the same time they found grease leaking from the half shaft bearing.

At 30000 miles the front drivers seat started the rocking issues. After three trips to a dealer to get it resolved, I still don't feel that safe in the car. The first trip, they told me that all the seat tracks and brackets were loose and a couple of nuts were missing. On the third trip for the same issue, they performed the repair to the bushings. I've never removed the seat or made any kind of modifications so I know it came this way from the factory.

I drive very conservatively in town with occasional highway trips. I doubt it will make it to 100000 miles before I get rid of it. I've never had any of these issues on other cars and I've driven a lot of cars over the years.

I'm sure people will respond to this post with a bunch of things that I should do to correct the problems, but I'm not going to jump on the "Honda is perfect" bandwagon. The car has been to the dealer every 5000 miles for regular maintenance. I've done my part. I just don't think that Honda has done their part. After all, this was a car that was advertised to be problem free for the first 100000 miles. This hasn't been my experience at all.

 

[ramblerdan]

Surely not every Element that rolls out of the factory is perfect. Dealers even less so. Sorry to hear your bad experiences, Funcar4me, but don't give up. I don't recall advertising claiming that the first 100K would be problem-free, but that has in fact been the case for the majority of owners to have reached that milestone.

 

[funcar4me]

I'd continue searching through the Problems & Issues part of this forum

SamIAm:
It seems that there are several people with issues. After a quick browse, I didn't see any particular references to the 2005 model year but there have been several reports of problems with alignment, suspension, etc. in the Problems and Issues section of this forum.

I will reiterate (since someone has already disagreed with me) that my experience with the 2005 model year has not been all that great. If you feel at 76000 miles that you don't want to deal with the hassles anymore, you should definitely look for something else. I understand the hassles of dealing with a car with more problems than you expected at such low mileage.

 

[Yoda E SC]

Ah, my 2005 Green Honda Element. Wow I've had so much fun with you! So many mods!

Here is what is going on with my E now and I am wondering if it's just time to retire it.

76K miles.

Right now the front right tire wears way faster on the tread, and to drive straight you have to turn the steering wheel slightly to the left. Alignment or worse?

Also, the other day the car went into safe mode. Wife had to replace #10 fuse, and ever since then the passenger airbag light is on. The only thing I could figure out was the gas cap, but we have a locking gas cap from Handa so it is, stock I guess.

I love my E don't get me wrong, I'm just surprised that this much stuff is wrong with a Honda at this point.

get an alignment, if you have never had it done at 76000 then it needs one. you should have it done everytime you change tires, are you still on the original tires? when they check/adjust alignment do good shop will also check your tierod ends, ball joints and other suspension components to make sure the alignment will last.

antyhing airbag related is covered for something like 10 years from honda if i remember correctly. it should say in your manual but you should just be able to bring it in and have it looked at/fixed under that SRS warranty. that is if it is not as simple as putting something in the front seat that the ocupent detection system thinks may be a small child therefor turning the airbag off (as fast eddie said)

SamIAm:
It seems that there are several people with issues. After a quick browse, I didn't see any particular references to the 2005 model year but there have been several reports of problems with alignment, suspension, etc. in the Problems and Issues section of this forum.

I will reiterate (since someone has already disagreed with me) that my experience with the 2005 model year has not been all that great. If you feel at 76000 miles that you don't want to deal with the hassles anymore, you should definitely look for something else. I understand the hassles of dealing with a car with more problems than you expected at such low mileage.

all vehicles will have problems depending on the habits of the driver and the conditions that they drive in. no one ever said that the truck would be trouble free for 100K, they say no scheduled maintinance (like a timing belt, water pump, etc.) it is sad to hear that you have an issue with your seat, but if you really feel that it was made that way and you have documented the issue by bringing it to the dealer several time then you should have made them replace it by now. my local honda dealer is great and they replace things that need it before i ask them to. maybe you just have a not so great one by you. things like brakes, air filters, spark plugs, tires/alignments are designed to wear out after their life expectancy is thru, you wouldnt try to drive the truck 100k without changing the oil would you knowing that it should be changed every 3 months or 3500 miles? the same holds true for other items that people just dont consider like suspension parts and such.

 

[funcar4me]

I guess people will just continue to hijack this thread.

No offense Yoda E SC but do you drive a 2005 model year? Not according to your profile. The 2005 model has had issues that other years haven't. The 2003 model year had windshield issues but my 2005 hasn't. If you don't drive a 2005 model year, how does your experience help?

Before you accuse me of not performing maintenance or try to tell me what performance promises were told to me, why don't you re-read my post. I've been to the dealer every 5000 miles. As for the seat (which wasn't my only issue) I appealed the cost for the repair of the seat to Honda America and they refused to accept any responsibility even though it is a known issue on 2003-2006 model years. I got the repair cost covered by the extended warranty company (not Honda). They were shocked to hear that Honda would not accept any responsibility for such a repair. The warranty company considered it a driver safety issue and covered it without question.

This thread is a perfect example of why I don't post on here very often. A bunch of jerks try to jump onto every thread and talk about how great their experiences have been or how much more they know than everyone else. None of this helps the person with the problem.

 

[ramblerdan]

Jerks? Sheesh. Everyone on this thread has merely tried to help.

Also, AFAIK there is no 2005 curse. It's not very different from a 2004 or a 2006.

 

[Justinb845]

I'm just not as convinced as most people that this car is going to last. My 2005 just passed 30000 miles. I've had to have some repairs that concern me quite a bit.

At 20000 miles I had to have the front rotors resurfaced. At the same time they found grease leaking from the half shaft bearing.

At 30000 miles the front drivers seat started the rocking issues. After three trips to a dealer to get it resolved, I still don't feel that safe in the car. The first trip, they told me that all the seat tracks and brackets were loose and a couple of nuts were missing. On the third trip for the same issue, they performed the repair to the bushings. I've never removed the seat or made any kind of modifications so I know it came this way from the factory.

I drive very conservatively in town with occasional highway trips. I doubt it will make it to 100000 miles before I get rid of it. I've never had any of these issues on other cars and I've driven a lot of cars over the years.

I'm sure people will respond to this post with a bunch of things that I should do to correct the problems, but I'm not going to jump on the "Honda is perfect" bandwagon. The car has been to the dealer every 5000 miles for regular maintenance. I've done my part. I just don't think that Honda has done their part. After all, this was a car that was advertised to be problem free for the first 100000 miles. This hasn't been my experience at all.

OK I have a 2005. Seat Issues well I had that. Mine was a bolt that was broken they re welded it Fixed, I was also 500lbs I think that helped the bolt die, they did the TSB that has been all over the boards on here. Brakes Well depending on how you drive and or not driven they might need to be resurfaced. Did you have brakes done? How were the pads on the brakes? I did the front brakes in the front myself disks were fine no issue. My Mom had a 2005 before a person decided to total it. She had the rocking seat issue also. No issues with brakes on hers. I have 43000 on mine hers had I think about 30000 on hers. She loved the E for safety she got another on. If something happens to mine I will get another one also. Does that help you?
I hope so. Also you mentioned 3 trips for the seat Is it fixed now? Seals are not golden from the get go. Seals fail. there are many Es on here that last a long time I know one who has 144000 on hers no issues except ROUTINE items that need to be fixed. If your not happy with the E feel free to trade it in.

 

[dorienc]

Right now the front right tire wears way faster on the tread, and to drive straight you have to turn the steering wheel slightly to the left. Alignment or worse?

I love my E don't get me wrong, I'm just surprised that this much stuff is wrong with a Honda at this point.

76,000 miles, and you have "this much stuff wrong"? Your car needs an alignment after 76,000 miles and a minor sensor problem the dealer will fix? You have very high standards, my friend. Obviously only a Lexus or Mercedes will do for you. But they will need to be aligned too...

 

[in2steam]

If the OP had problems with this Honda I recommend they try a Chevy, Mopar, or Ford and make it to 76k. I am/was a Ford guy and they are typically on the 2nd set of brakes and needs new rotors. GM's need alignments all the time, the brakes last about the same as Ford. With Mopar they run great until the warranty goes out, then well anything could happen (engines, trans, etc) .
I switched to Honda because of easy, frequency, and lack of maintenance and repairs. I did do research before I bought 05 element used, but I knew about the seat rocking which mine has(its a $29 repair plus my time). I also knew the brakes are not the best, but nobody's brakes are perfect and rarely covered by warranty.

Out curiosity how much did the OP spend on these horrible unsafe repairs? If you feel unsafe, I would seriously consider not driving, because the cars all around you are far less safe in these tight economic times. I have seen an unnerving trend of vehicles which have no brakes, poor steering, and rarely run right. I drive a tow truck part time and I see alot of the accidents that happen, I would take a honda on a bad day over nearly any other similar sized car air bag working or not.

Chris

 

[Yoda E SC]

No offense Yoda E SC but do you drive a 2005 model year? Not according to your profile. The 2005 model has had issues that other years haven't. The 2003 model year had windshield issues but my 2005 hasn't. If you don't drive a 2005 model year, how does your experience help?

i had an 04 SOP that didnt have any of the issues that you described, sorry, for me it just didnt happen. not saying it didnt for you but for me it did not.

Before you accuse me of not performing maintenance or try to tell me what performance promises were told to me, why don't you re-read my post. I've been to the dealer every 5000 miles. As for the seat (which wasn't my only issue) I appealed the cost for the repair of the seat to Honda America and they refused to accept any responsibility even though it is a known issue on 2003-2006 model years. I got the repair cost covered by the extended warranty company (not Honda). They were shocked to hear that Honda would not accept any responsibility for such a repair. The warranty company considered it a driver safety issue and covered it without question.

no one has accused you of not doing services to your car. i DID read how you brought it in for service evry 5000 miles which is exactly why i asked what i did. people think that the only yhting they have to do to keep a car up is change the oil which is not the case. all the things i mentioned before do wear out and need to be replaced on EVERY make/model/year of car. How offen do you change your windshield wipers? when they need it right? same should hold true for brakes, suspension parts, tires....need i go on?

i am sorry to hear that american honda didnt pay for your seat being fixed, but there are 3 sides to every story. if tht is fixed what still is your complaint? not being a "jerk" about it but simply asking. the brakes? everyone that drives like a "jerk" and brakes hard and accelerates from the light like a drag race says they drive "conservativly." any other issues, or just those 2, cause good luck only haveing 2 minor issues with some $hitbox GM or something....

and as stated earlier i had an 04 SOP that never had any of these issues and you just acknowledged that there was no difference in them

This thread is a perfect example of why I don't post on here very often. A bunch of jerks try to jump onto every thread and talk about how great their experiences have been or how much more they know than everyone else. None of this helps the person with the problem.

everyone is telling the OP to get his/her alignment checked/adjusted. if that is NOT "helping the person with the problem" then i guess you are in the wrong place. what would you like us to do? (waving jedi hand) "this is not the problem yo think you are having with your truck." there, fixed. maybe i should do that with every thread instead of the actual time i spend helping people with their issues on here.:-x

 

[Justinb845]

what would you like us to do? (waving jedi hand) "this is not the problem yo think you are having with your truck." there, fixed. maybe i should do that with every thread instead of the actual time i spend helping people with their issues on here.
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Dude I love this I needed that thanks........:lol::lol: