I have nothing but love for BOTH my Element and Ridgeline. I haven't done an actual comparison, but I believe the Element can hold more with the seats out than the Ridge. The E has the added benefit of it all being inside under cover. If I wanted to do that with the Ridgeline, I would have to fork out several hundreds of $$ to get a cover and then that would cut down on the ability to carry overly tall stuff.
I bought the E in 03 and was amazed at the room, handleing, speed (for a 4-banger anyway) and everything else. My son who drives it the most now immediately loved the sound system, but was a little hesitant on the style, but he chose it over my 98 Ram Quad Cab 1500 Lariat while in high school.
To each their own, I say and I hope they keep making both of them!!!
Merry Christmas all!