[tom english]

I know what you mean about too nice for offroad too. My wife has a CRV. She loves it but we are not allowed to take it on trips (it is her clean around town car) and we have been renting for vacations. I used to take my 96 Intrepid on roadtrips and it is an awesome highway vehicle but a Dodge with 170,000 miles is at the end of its life. I don't trust it to drive to California anymore. It also is not a good vehicle for Forest Service roads.

The logic of getting the Element and putting the money elsewhere has appeal (as does the better mileage with the E).

Bigger, smoother ride vs practical, cheaper, better mileage. A tough call. One I'll be putting more thought into.

By the way I started my search early in the year and took my wife and a buddy to the car show. We sat in every last SUV. That really helped narrow the field as there are alot of cars that just based on seating, ergonomics, "feel" etc really sucked. I am sure you can guess what those were. Some others were dissapointing (new 4 Runner, new Pathfinder, new Grand Cherokee). The Honda's were all good standouts-the Pilot was the unanamous favorite of all SUV's. The Element was at the top for smaller SUV's and has a certain utilitarian funkiness that does charm ya.

I knew I posted this in the right place. Thanks for the input!

 

[Phill]

I would buy the E because you will look kewl and you can be a part of an outstanding on line club of sharing and a wealth of information,ideas,foibles, and an extraordinary insight into the world of Element ownership. Besides ... they are really a lot fun just to drive around. I feel better when I'm in my E.
I don't know why, I just am. When I'm in a chevy or some foreign car like that my feet swell, my back hurts and all the traffic lights stay red longer :grin:

 

[FlightNurse]

Well like you I had been looking for a SUV. I looked at the Escape,Tribute twins, I thought the V6 would be a good choice w/5 spd manuel. It rode like a SUV and was crude, even tho FoMoCo redesigned it 2004.5. I walked away very disappointed.

I looked at the Pilot, in the EX trim also, liked it a lot, but it was $$ that turned me off... Other then that I really liked the Pilot, rode like a Car, very comfortable and roomy, but its the $$ that stopped me.

I looked at the CRV, I really liked it, since the CRV and E are based on each other. Again it was the Price, I looked at a CRV-EX w/ 5 Spd manuel.

The E was it for me, but get the EX trim, its LESS then the pilot, added features are worth the extra $$, and you well save yourself about 7K over the Pilot. The Radio was a selling factor for me to move up to the EX as well as the added saftey features. The E will hold the same as the pilot but in a smalller package.

Tony

 

[flybigjet]

I'll throw my 0.02 in.

For starters, The Girl (i.e. the significant other) has a 2001 4wd V6 Escape. She loves it, and it's totally bombproof- has never been into the shop except for a minor recall and an initially squeaky rear hatch (coincidentally, the same problem my new Element had). It handles golf clubs, mountain bikes and Costco trips with ease, and works great on weekend ski trips to the mountains. The V6 provides nice power (especially in horsepower sucking Denver), and it's really a pleasant vehicle to drive (and we're very glad she passed on the leather- the cloth is much nicer imho). So, I'm not sure why everybody's bashing it, but it's been good for us- having lived with it for over four years, We'd make the same decision now that we made then. Nice little suv for a fair price.

As to the Element (my toy), it's apples and oranges to the Escape, Pilot, or the like. *Maybe* you can compare it to the Scion, but that's about it. It's (relatively) inexpensive, rugged, and utilitarian. The no-carpet, no-leather, plastic-for-as-far-as-the-eye-can-see look isn't for everyone- you either like it or not. . The AWD system is designed more for the occasional snowy/rainy day than significant off-roading. It works well on fire trails and the like, but the only way it would make it onto a real 4x4 trail is if you airdropped it. Essentially, it's a enclosed-bed pickup truck. I bought mine simply because my other car does *not* ever see rain or snow, and I wanted something that would get me up and down the mountain carrying bikes, boards, climbing gear and ski's. Also, I wanted something that was inexpensive enough to be a "throw away"; i.e., if it got scuffed or scratched inside or out, it wasn't the end of the world. Fwiw, you have to decide what you want; functional and bare bones (Element) or more creature-comfort oriented (a whole raft of other suv's).

The Element is a weird critter; there's a reason why every auto manufacturer is not rushing out to copy it- think of it as the platypus of the automotive world. It works for me, but if you're someone who is more into creature comforts instead of bare-bones functionality, you might want to think about it twice. The bottom line is that it's *your* choice- since you're on an Element board, obviously the opinions here are biased, to say the least. Ask a Pilot, Explorer, or Escape owner, and you'll most likely get a very different opinion.

Just my 0.02. R.

 

[bflrox]

I have in an Escape, and the first thing I notices was the low quality of workmanship. I told the owner that the parts of the insulation was becoming undone.

The worst mpg I have gotten is 23 mpg and average 26 mpg. If you know of Honda history, reliability is hands down. I have driven one civic and crx to the ground, and they still kept going when I sold them. 195k and 148k respectively.

You can't go wrong the the E.

 

[ElementPilot]

There are two key advantages the Pilot has over the Element. The first is that it can carry eight people, the Element, only four. The second is that the Pilot has far greater towing capacity. If these advantages are not important to you, than it boils down to price and personal preferences.

The E is far less expensive to own and operate. It can carry assembleld bikes in back with the rear seats stored up, somthing the pilot can't do.

My wife dirves my Pilot and I drive my Element. Other than bike riding, whenever we travel together, I drive her car as it is far more comfortable and quiter than mine. I love the radio remote control switches on the Pilot's steering wheel, somthing that no one has figured out to work with the Element's XM receiver.

The Escape is inferior in almonst every parameter.

 

[boywonder52086]

Ok, so heres my take on your problem. Heres what youll be needing it for:

1. road trips
2. off-road trails
3. winding mountain roads
4. large storage

And here are my answers:

1. great gas mileage, very comfortable for me (6'1")
2. if youre getting the AWD, you have nothing to worry about. if the escape took it fine, then the AWD Element will take it like a champ. also, with the rubber floors and stain resistant seats, its a breeze to clean after your off-road adventure.
3. the handling is great and the wind shouldnt pose a problem
4. the absolute most storage in any SUV its size, and most that are bigger. 9/10 people who see my E repeatedly ask me "WHY?!?!". but the second they sit in it, and turn around to look at the back, their jaw drops and they fall madly in love. you can store whatever you want and be perfectly comfortable.

Basically, in your first post, you talked about your road trips and the off-road capabilities. Well, youre not gonna take a Pilot off-road, youre just not. Save your money, buy bigger tires for more ground clearance, and shoot, find a way to do the Pilot-Element steering wheel swap and get an audio place to wire the radio controls. ITS THE MOST PRACTICAL SOLUTION FOR YOU!!!!

PS - 5/6 year vehicle?? my friend, its a honda, 10+ years guaranteed.

 

[Johnula]

We used our Element (2004 SOPY, manual transmission) this winter for a 10,000 mile road trip from Toronto, Canada, to Mexico City, Mexico, and back, via the Copper Canyon, Durango, Mazatlan, Guadalajara, and many other points in between. Is the Element the ultimate road trip vehicle? I dunno, but it did remarkably well.

We used PookSter's bed-frame concept (found elsewhere on this site) to build a PVC frame that allowed us to sleep in the E when desired, with our equipment stored in backpacks and Rubbermaid-style containers below. Since I'm 6'2", and my wife is 5'11", we modified PookSter's frame to include an extendable/retractable portion that lengthened the bed to over 6', once the front seats had been moved forward. If there's sufficient interest, I'll post pics on the frame design.

The amounts of storage in the E is amazing, the headroom is great, and the road handling is more than adequate. We took a number of backroads through rural Mexico, and although we didn't do any serious off-roading, we took a number of roads that contained uncounted potholes, washboard sections, bumps and gravel. No problems. We slept in the E on many occasions -- the high roof provides lots of headroom. The only concern was ventilation, but that can be solved by installing "Screenz" (www.screenz.com), or making your own facsmilie thereof.

We have some pictures of the E with our equipment, along with a number of shots of our trip in general at www.mycatlikesbutter.com/slideshows/mexico2 -- these pictures are normally for family and friends, but if you're interested in how this vehicle can be used for road trips, feel free to check it out.

 

[mmmTangy]

Escape vs. Element

Here's my $.02: I just sold my Escape and just bought an 06 Element EX-P. I had the Escape for 5 years and logged 130k miles on it and honestly liked driving it. I was considering buying another Escape because I like the design and form factor - small SUV, V6, 4x4, decent gas mileage. However, the reliability is another thing. Allow me to list the parts that failed:

- Alternator (not out of the ordinary)
- Some sensor on the engine (recall)
- Seat belt buckles (recall)
- Transmission ($2600)
- Sunroof
- CD changer
- Some other small stuff I can't remember right now

Otherwise it was a good vehicle. I'd say to anyone hell-bent on buying an Escape, do one of the following:
A) pony up the extra cabbage for an extended warranty
B) unload it when the factory warranty expires
C) buy an Element instead

You could also wait until the 07 CR-V arrives. It's a total redesign and looks like it might make another compelling alternative to the Escape.