Faults:

Not much has gone wrong with the car except for brake / tire / scheduled maintenance, and a faulty LED light relay switch for the fan speed knob (knob works fine, but 200$ to fix the relay - I'll live without it).

General Comments:

We bought this repo in 2008 with 3000 miles on the odometer... This is the best car I've ever owned!!

Peppy engine as long as you get a stick, AWD is very good in snow, and the body stayed in great shape with no signs of rust. Windshield is VERY prone to pitting / breaking due to its angle (had to repair (but not replace) mine twice).

After 120 000 miles and scheduled maintenance, this thing purrs like the day we bought it, and still averages 20 MPG (reliability was more important to me than fuel economy). Such an underestimated SUV in my books.

We can fit about 70% of what used to fit in our old Grand Caravan... And that's saying a LOT!!

If you can get past its looks (which I personally LOVE) and the fact that it's a utility-first vehicle (think of how a Jeep TJ rides), you'll LOVE the Element.

I dread the day I'll have to get rid of it, but I'm certain it still has at least another 100 000 miles to go before that damned day arrives :)

P.S. Get one with the arm rests... You'll thank me for it later.

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with the car.

General Comments:

I bought my Element new after being rear-ended by a semi-truck in my 1998 Civic CX hatchback (which was unfortunately totaled) that had 160K+ miles, and was still running strong and regularly getting 38-41mpg.

The Element has been a wonderful replacement, and my favorite Honda I've owned so far. Can't say enough good things about this vehicle.

My only complaint has been the gas mileage, but this is the price one pays for going from a compact vehicle to an SUV.

Gas mileage aside, so long as I live in a state where snow can be expected for anywhere from 4-6 months out of the year, the Element will be my #1 choice of vehicle.

My only real complaint isn't about the car, but the dealer-required maintenance. The dealership offered free oil changes for the life of the vehicle -- but only if you followed their maintenance schedule. At 30K miles, the dealership wanted to perform a $500 (!!) service. I called around to different mechanics and talked to a friend who is a Toyota mechanic, and he said aside form an oil change and a differential fluids change, everything else could wait for the 60K service. The dealership's $500 service ended up costing me $110. Pissed me right off.

Some squeaky rear break issues, but nothing was wrong, and each time the brakes just needed to be cleaned.