2004 HONDA ELEMENT NEW CAR BUYER'S GUIDE

What's New for the 2004 Honda Element?
A new 2004 Honda Element LX trim level debuts, including a four-speaker audio system with a CD player, air conditioning and a passenger seat armrest. Remote keyless entry is added to the Element EX and Fiji Blue Pearl paint replaces Eternal Blue Pearl on all trim levels.

Advantages of the 2004 Honda Element:

• Control layout and operation
• Comfortable rear seats
• Lots of rear legroom
• Plenty of fun to drive
• Handy tailgate design
• Excellent build quality

Objections to the 2004 Honda Element:

• Uncomfortable front seats
• Clamshell doors a liability in tight parking lots
• Rear seats are a hassle to fold or remove and install
• Rear sunroof is difficult to remove and install
• Noisy interior

Editor's Advice:
Honda wanted Generation Y consumers to buy its “dorm room on wheels,” but instead Boomers showed up in showrooms looking for a fun antiquing vehicle to tow behind the RV. Problem? Price and styling. Unlike in Japan, where youngsters want a car like this to escape the tiny apartment in which they live with their parents, American teens and twenty-somethings don’t need a mobile hang out. Plus, who in this demographic has a job to make the $400 monthly payments or established credit to get a loan? Add in the fact that the Honda Element is not the most beautiful set of wheels to roll out of a showroom and it’s no wonder that Generation Y continues to buy Civics and a bunch of aftermarket parts to make an individualized automotive statement. That said, the 2004 Honda Element is a practical, reliable and well-built urban runabout based on the Honda CR-V and propelled by a 160-horsepower inline four-cylinder engine. The interior is exceptionally roomy and can be reconfigured in a variety of ways, though the front seats are not particularly comfortable. Other quibbles include the clamshell doors, which offer unfettered access to the spacious rear seat unless the Element is crammed into a tight parking lot, and a high level of interior noise when underway. On the plus side, interior materials are top-notch, and the control layout is a model of ergonomic simplicity. Tips for Honda: paint all that gray exterior plastic the same color as the body, install comfortable front seats (or at least a driver’s seat height adjuster), and try to lower the price. Either that, or wait until used Honda Elements are valued low enough to hit your target demographic.