2003 HONDA ELEMENT Complaints

WINDSHIELD LEAKED WATER, DEALERSHIP REFUSED TO FIX. WINDSHIELD CRACKED AND WAS CITED BY POLICE OFFICER FOR NOT FIXING, DEALERSHIP REFUSED TO FIX. UPON REPLACEMENT THE REPAIR GUYS JUST LAUGHED AND SAID THAT THAT GLASS WAS SEATED IMPROPERLY AND ASKED WHO HAD REPLACED IT. I RESPONDED THAT IT WAS THE ORIGINAL, THEY TOLD ME NOT TO BUY ANY MORE HONDAS. KEY WOULD NO LONGER WORK IN THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR. REPLACED SOMETHING AT DEALERSHIP FOR $800 AS WELL AS THE DRIVER SIDE WINDOW AS IT STOPPED MOVING DUE TO THE MOTOR DYING AT AROUND 60,000 MILES. NOW THE KEYS DON'T WORK IN THE PASSENGER SIDE OF VEHICLE NOR DOES THE WINDOW. IN ANOTHER INCIDENT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP AFTER FULLY DEPRESSING THE BRAKE WHEN TRAVELING ABOUT 5-10 MPH AND DRIFTING INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE CAUSING MODERATE DAMAGE. HONDA HAS NOT RESPONDED TO ANY INQUIRES MADE BY CONSUMER. NOR HAS DEALERSHIP. I STILL OWE 10,000 DOLLARS ON THIS CAR, HAVE SPENT OVER 3000 IN REPAIRS AND AT THIS POINT WANT TO DRIVE IT INTO A TREE AT A HIGH SPEED. *KB

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HONDA ELEMENT. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING 20 MPH DURING INCLEMENT WEATHER WHEN THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. THE CONTACT APPLIED THE BRAKES BUT THE BRAKES DID NOT STOP THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO A TREE AND FLIPPED THE VEHICLE. NO ONE WAS INJURED DURING THE CRASH. THE CONTACT CALLED THE MANUFACTURER TO MAKE THEM AWARE OF THE CRASH. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 156,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 HONDA ELEMENT. THE CONTACT STARTED THE IGNITION AND THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS FAILED TO FUNCTION WHEN THEY WERE ENGAGED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THE WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THERE WAS A RECALL RELATED TO THE SIMILAR DEFECT PERTAINING TO THE 2003 HONDA ACCORD AND THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER WAS 08V169000 (VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER:MOTOR). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE MALFUNCTION. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 140,000.

WE INITIALLY HAD PROBLEMS OPENING THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR WITH THE KEY AND FOR A LONG TIME HAD TO OPEN THE CAR FROM THE PASSENGER SIDE AND REACH OVER TO UNLOCK THE DRIVER'S DOOR. THIS CONTINUED TO GET WORSE WHEN WE WERE UNABLE TO UNLOCK THE CAR FROM THE PASSENGER'S SIDE DOOR ALSO AND SO HAD TO START LEAVING THE CAR UNLOCKED FROM FEAR OF NOT BEING ABLE TO GET BACK IN. WE HAD TO PAY TO GET WIRELESS ENTRY INSTALLED IN THE CAR SINCE THIS SEEMS TO BE A HABITUAL PROBLEM WITH THE ELEMENT AND WE WOULD JUST END UP IN THE SAME SITUATION AGAIN DOWN THE ROAD IF WE HAD CHOSEN TO GET THE CAR RE KEYED. SO FAR WE ARE STILL ABLE TO USE THE ORIGINAL KEY FOR THE IGNITION BUT HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH ONE OF THE KEYS WORKING AND NOW ONLY HAVE ONE.

WHILE DRIVING ON I-5 GOING THROUGH GRANTS PASS IN OREGON UPHILL, MY 2003 HONDA ELEMENT SUDDENLY DECELERATED FROM 65MPH TO BARELY 35 MPH. CAR HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP FOR TWO DAYS, THERE WERE NO CODES INDICATING AN ISSUE WITH THE TRANSMISSION. THE MECHANIC RECOMMENDED IT BE SEEN BY A ENGINE MECHANIC. CAR IS STILL EXPERIENCING THE ISSUE AFTER A TRANSMISSION FLUSH, NEW SPARK PLUGS, FUEL SYSTEM CLEANING. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE, THE CAR ONLY HAS 82500 MILES ON AND HAS NEVER BEEN PLACED IN STORAGE. *TR

THE DOOR LOCKS ON THE HONDA ELEMENT ARE FAULTY. SO FAULTY IN FACT THAT A YEAR AFTER THE ELEMENTS WERE ADVERTISED, A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN (06-068) WAS ISSUED FOR "DOOR LOCK CYLINDER BINDS". THIS TSB APPLIED TO 2003-2004 CIVICS, 2002-2003 CR-V, 2003 ELEMENTS. THE TSB INCLUDES THE AFFECTED VIN NUMBERS. ONCE THE DOOR CYLINDER STOPS WORKING YOU CANNOT GAIN ENTRY INTO THE VEHICLE THROUGH THE AFFECTED DOOR. FOR ME IT WAS THE DRIVERS DOOR AND I WAS FORCED TO ENTER THE VEHICLE VIA THE PASSENGER DOOR. THE HONDA SITE STATED THAT YOU SHOULD CONTACT THE DEALER AND ASK FOR RE NUMERATION AS THIS WAS A KNOWN FAILURE. THE HONDA DEALER LOCAL TO ME STATED THAT SINCE IT WASN'T A RECALL THEY WOULDN'T "GIVE ME A BREAK" ON THE COST TO FIX THE PROBLEM. HONDA SHOULD BE MADE ACCOUNTABLE SINCE THEY KNEW THIS WAS A PROBLEM. THE SAFETY ISSUE HERE LIES IN THE FACT THAT YOU CAN'T ENTER YOUR VEHICLE QUICKLY IN A DANGEROUS SITUATION. CLIMBING OVER SEATS IS CERTAINLY NOT A SAFE THING TO DO EITHER.

THE DRIVERS SIDE AND PASSENGER SIDE DOOR LOCKS WILL FREEZE UP AND NOT ALLOW THE KEYS TO BE REMOVED. THIS KEEPS THE CAR FROM BEING ABLE TO BE LOCKED. HONDA WILL NOT HONOR A WARRANTY OR RECALL ON THIS ITEM THEY CHARGE $250.00 PER DOOR TO FIX THE PROBLEM. THIS HAPPENED TO BOTH THE DRIVERS SIDE AND PASSENGERS SIDE DOORS, AND IS A VERY COMMON COMPLAINT AMONG HONDA ELEMENT OWNERS. *TR

TUMBLERS IN IGNITION BECOMES MAL ALIGNED, KEY WILL NOT INSERT OR TURN, ENGINE WILL NOT START. THIS IS NOT PART OF THE CURRENT ACTIVE RECALL ON THE IGNITION SYSTEM. I HAVE REPLACED THE IGNITION LOCK CYLINDER TWICE IN 3 YEARS. IT IS A COMMON OCCURRENCE, ASK ANY ONE WHO DRIVES A 2003 ELEMENT, THEY'VE REPLACED THIS PART TOO. HONDA ONLY WARRANTIES THE PART FOR ONE YEAR. *TR

THE PASSENGER HEAD REST FOAM HAS DETERIORATED. YOU CAN NOW FEEL THE METAL FRAME STICKING OUT AGAINST THE BACK OF THE SKULL. IN A COLLISION, INSTEAD OF THE HEADREST PROTECTING THE HEAD AND NECK, IT SEEMS AS THIS DEFECT IN THE HEADREST COULD POTENTIALLY CAUSE A FATAL INJURY. *TT

DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR LOCK STARTED TO "STICK", KEY WOULD NOT UNLOCK DOOR FROM TIME TO TIME, UNTIL IT WOULD NO LONGER UNLOCK AT ALL. I'VE HAD TO OPEN THE LOCK FROM THE PASSENGER SIDE AND CRAWL OVER THE SEATS TO UNLOCK THE VEHICLE. I HAVE VERY LIMITED FUNDS AT THE MOMENT AND CAN'T AFFORD THE REPAIRS, WHICH WERE ESTIMATED AT OVER $300.00 BY A LOCAL SHOP. MY FEAR IS THAT THE PASSENGER LOCK WILL EVENTUALLY FAIL AND I'LL HAVE TO CRAWL IN THROUGH THE BACK AS HAS BEEN REPORTED BY OTHER 2003 HONDA ELEMENT OWNERS. I ONLY HAVE 56,000 ORIGINAL MILES ON MY ELEMENT, THE LOCK STARTED FAILING AT 52,000 MILES. HAS THERE BEEN A RECALL ON THIS THAT I'M UNAWARE OF? *TT