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Honda Element
4724 messages, Last post on Jul 06, 2012 at 6:27 PM
You are in the Honda Element Forum.- Your Hosts are Stever@Edmunds & kyfdx@Edmunds
What is this discussion about? Honda Element, Hatchback, SUV
#266 of 4724 Thigh support should've swung up by ropedart
May 09, 2002 (11:13 pm)
I knew Honda has done configurable seats in Japan. I don't understand why they didn't go thru with the Stepwagon chairs. Either they did not have time or they will offer it in 2004. The extra cost could have been covered by offering it as an option. Like the Stepwagon they could just have the front thigh support go up to form a seatback.As for the suicide doors, Yep, I would have liked sliding doors but it would have said VAN. 4 doors would have said me-too cute-ute. No, the Element is a fashion statement that says:
1. My car is bigger than your car. (Vibe/Matrix,Protege5,Focus,Civic,Impreza,Sentra,PT Cruiser,Neon,etc)
2. My face is prettier than your face.(Aztec)
3. My THING is different than your thing.
#267 of 4724 hung up on doors today.... by Stever@Edmunds HOST
May 09, 2002 (11:17 pm)
Plus it'll be interesting to see how the suicide doors fare in some of the "destructive" testing in Varmint's link above.Steve
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#268 of 4724 speculation.... by moonkat
May 10, 2002 (7:21 am)
While I'm speculating:I'd like the Element to have 48" wide rear opening to haul bldg materials flat on floor.
Seems reasonable:-} My Ody is about 76" wide with 48" opening, and 14" frame/int on each side ((76-48)/2=14"), and a lot of this depth is taken up by padding/storage nooks. The Element is about 70" wide which leaves about 11" for frame/chassis on each side.
This also supports the design of the small (about 14" to 18") tail-gate. This would allow 4'x8' sheets to fit within the dimensions of the lowered tail-gate. Wouldn't that be functional?!
Actually, I think Honda has to accommodate the 4'x8' dimension if it wants to break into the light truck market. This might be a start.
ropedart: You have again pointed out a major reason for vehicle selection in #3 above: "own thang", or what people want others to perceive as their thang.
Also, I do not discount possiblity of Honda adapting/modifying the face to face seating to the Element. I'm curious how they will accommodate the +-6" height difference between the front and rear seats. When I looked at the front seat views; it appeared that the seats could be slid all the way off their tracks rotated 180 degrees and reinstalled. Then all you'd need would be a seat height adjustment, or maybe there is a hidden elevated track/attachment under the front seats on which you'd mount the rearward facing seats???!!! Entirely doable.
#269 of 4724 by ateixeira
May 10, 2002 (7:56 am)
Funny but true, diploid. Problem is other cars would give you door dings.varmint: I noticed the seats being farther back, too. In fact that would make it harder to load an infant seat, because you'd have to reach in with it. Of course Honda is targeting younger folks.
I kind of doubt a sheet of plywood could slide it, but if I'm wrong, Honda could built a pickup (SUT style) out of this platform. The only car-based competition would be the Baja, and Subaru definitely left a few doors open with some notable misses (no H6, short wheelbase, no midgate).
-juice
#270 of 4724 Speculation, yet again... by varmint
May 10, 2002 (9:49 am)
It "looks" like the Element has a wider cargo area than the CR-V. The rear suspension seems to intrude less. Wonder if it's a different design. I dunno about 4x8 fitting back there, though. The Pilot can handle that dimension, so Honda might consider themselves covered. Also, I'd think we would have seen it mentioned in the press trash.#271 of 4724 by diploid
May 10, 2002 (2:42 pm)
Just read the preview from Edmunds. Didn't think it said anything new that we haven't dug up for ourselves. Glad to see at least other people like it, too.re: GM_lito - I admire the guy's tenacity. Just as long as he doesn't go into the typical "buy domestic" litany, I don't mind him.
#272 of 4724 by varmint
May 10, 2002 (4:18 pm)
Re GM_Lito... He is a pretty reasonable guy. He just keeps pointing the Aztek at every vehicle on the road and making direct comparisons. It gets old.#273 of 4724 varmint by rsholland
May 10, 2002 (5:20 pm)
The Pilot can handle 4x8s, but I doubt with the tailgate closed. I'd be very surprised if there is 8' of length there in the cargo area.Bob
#274 of 4724 by varmint
May 10, 2002 (7:53 pm)
Bob - You are correct. I misread that in the MT review from their latest issue. Someone corrected me over in the Pilot thread. Checking again, I found that C&D has better info. They list the "largest sheet of plywood" as 75.4 x 49.0 inches.#275 of 4724 by diploid
May 10, 2002 (8:41 pm)
I thought C&D's review of the Pilot was more thorough than the MT one, anyway. It's funny how they remarked that the Pilot was heavy at 4000+ pounds, and yet Honda is bragging that it's the lightest in its class.To POST a message, please
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