Cross Country in a Honda Element: A Refutation. #BlogPost

Okay, so earlier this year an article popped up talking about the evils of driving a Honda Element cross country ( through a few states) I believe it was around 1,500 or more miles that this person drove. and aside from much coffee drinking this person experienced the….less than the exciting side of own a vehicle with 250k+ miles on the Odo. Now the purpose of this blog is NOT to say that this CTzen is wrong, they experienced what they did and that was very real— I just want to argue why driving cross Country in a Honda Element can be a great experience and why, you should try it too.
This Blog will also contain advice on long distance travelling in general. This is not my first Journey as I have plenty of experience with long moves and travelling long distance. so if you would like more general travelling advice I will be glad to blog more about travelling tips and tricks!

An Advisory!

As Always, this is NOT a proclamation to run out of your house and purchase the nearest Honda Element, ALL cars a susceptible to having issues. This being said use proper judgement when purchasing ANY vehicle and make sure said vehicle has a clean title, and that the previous Owner(s) have taken care of said vehicle.

First thing First!

You know you have a long journey a head of you, the real question is: will your car have the strength to make it ( in my case 2,543 miles or 4,050 km). So you will want to take your Element into a Certified mechanic tell them whats up, that you have a super long journey a head and you want to know if your Element can make, so make sure EVERYTHING is in order. This could cost more money than you want but it is preferable to being stranded on the side of the road who know where ( unless you are cool like me and have AAA :P )
Mechanics are just human and it is likely they might skip over something so Just before you leave on the trip give everything a look over yourself and make sure everything is in order. This is good because two pairs of eyes is better than one and one of you might spot something the other did not.
( *if you have Mechanic friends even better, just someone you trust really)
Now I have already reviewed the Honda Element so i will not get too much into that but if you would like to read that: https://www.carthrottle.com/post/wg5xdre/

Transportation: Load that Element up!

SO this is where I get to the meat of the blog and go into the better specifics of Elementing across the country. This will not just be me glorifying and or deifying the Element. This Blog will go over both pros and cons of said travelling.
The great thing about the Element is its cargo Volume it has PLENTY 70” deep, 44-5” tall, and 45” wide. You will want to make the most of this space and put your Tetris skills to good use here. The images above can give you a good idea how I got it to work. Keep in mind the laws where you live. I know in most American States you only to Two lines of sight to the back and Had both side view mirrors ( the rear view mirror kept an eye on his highness Sir Nigel (the gato) …if you do not have a pet that is cool too…
also, keep in mind what you are packing and how much it all weighs… for example you do not want to be hauling your year’s supply of Lead bricks across the country when the Element was just not made for that.
So… it is great when it comes to space but you will want to keep in mind fuel costs. the Element fuel mileage is around 22 city and 26 Highway with a 15 gallons (57 litres), but keep in mind you are fully loaded, so results may vary. nonetheless be ready to pay for the extra fuel. I believe I did well
Pro’s: great space!
Con’s: not an Ecomony Car, be ready to pay for the fuel!

MAP YOUR JOURNEY!

This is quite simple. Map your route and plan your stops,
—If you will be staying at a hotel do NOT book the stay until you know you will make it to your planned goal for the day.
—Do NOT travel more than what your body is capable of handling. if it is possible, have a co-pilot with you that know how to drive, and switch every three to four hours
—Do NOT get frustrated with stop and go traffic in the middle of the mountains (and nowhere) and drive off the side of the road to go around some A-hole that thinks it is okay to leave 5-7 car lengths in front of them under such ridiculous conditions.
—Keep track of that fuel gauge! there may be huge 100 mile pockets where there will be NO fuel stations. SO make sure you are aware of these areas and fill up accordingly.
Remember; Take breaks, keep your cool!
As for pro’s and con’s this is a bit more complex, it really depends on how far you are drivng and the conditions you will face. keep all of these in mind, if the weather does not permit do NOT push it, and as I said before if at all possible have a co-pilot to share. This all varies as to what you yourself can handle.

Day One!

Day one was the shortest, mainly because we did not leave until 18:00 (original plan was 14:00) so we had 4-5 hours to push ourselves. when I Started the Odo, was reading around 209k ( estimates only as I forgot to write all this down…. I know huge crime but what are you going to do? :P

Did anything Go Wrong?
No, but like I said this was only 4-5 hours of driving in the evening so heat wise there was no extra stress. However, as this was through West Virginia (for the last time) there were plenty of mountains to get through that did prove mildly tasking for a Honda element with over 200k on the Odo. The oil had been changed recently and was still fresh and good for the trip.
Bigger question: Did I have to open the bonnet? Yes…. but I technically did every “end of day” stop to make sure there weren’t any new issues. I DID have to top off the brake fluid as that was low, for some reason…it probably would have been okay but you can rarely be too safe.
As for everything else, the Element handled fine and climbed just as well. I did not notice any unusual noises or sounds coming from the engine or body of the Element.

Day Two!

SIX STATES! this was the long day. The morning before we left I made sure everything was in order ( this was when I added the brake fluid) and we soldiered on. Aside from being one long—- day this was pretty much a repeat of day one ( except for the fact the brake fluid was okay for the rest of the trip.) I should also add that I added some fuel additives to help boost octane and clean fuel injectors. LIke I said the WV mountains were proving to be a sliver of kryptonite. the Additives whether placebo or not proved to be the trick as the element was able to pace itself through the rest of the mountains and great plains.
Advice: when driving through mountains with a load you do not want to be pushing you Element too hard nor do you want to be hot rodding your way through, keep her at 60-maybe 70 mph and you should be good! ( might I add once you hit the plains ( long stretches of open straight road you can open her up more and go faster, BUT keep in mind the extra weight means extra stop time. it does not need to be a race. ) We were able to make it to Kansas before sundown…that was super cool and stayed the night at my grandparent’s house somewhere in the middle of Nowhere, Kansas.
Did anything go wrong?: Nope, I did not have to open the bonnet during any of the breaks, the Element ran beautifully.

Day Three!

At this point, the only thing stressful was the trip itself. Keep in mind long trips like these WILL be taxing on you mentally. which is why I say it is great to have a co-pilot to switch between to keep that stress lower. it also did not help the gato did not like his career, it was at this point we gave in and let him travel outside of his carrier. if you look at one of the pics you can see him…that is essentially how he travelled the rest of the trip. ( Tangent: if you will be travelling with pets keep this in mind and find ways good for both you and your pet. Sir Nigel behaved and stayed inside the Element when we switched drivers and such, which was great but pets generally do not travel well and can be prone to running, which is why you might prefer they stay caged, just make sure they stay fed, hydrated and cool on those hot days)
As I mentioned Day three went pretty smoothly, there were a handful of storms but we skimmed through the most of them and drove in between the rest.
—-There were more (even larger) mountains in this portion and this was once again not an easy game for the Element, but the Element still handled it like a beast. the only victim here was my left leg/foot from the hour long stop and go traffic through a portion of the mountains…that was sore for a few days…
due to the Traffic issue, we were unable to make the planned stopping point and we lost money on a reservation we made on a hotel in Grand Junction Co. ( it was super late and we just could not push any further) and had to stop two hours away from said destination. It was about midnight before we found a Hotel, but we finally did and at the End of Day three, everything was Mechanically sound with the Honda Element
— Advice: if you know you will be driving through a lot of mountains, make sure you have a manual…I have always found it more beneficial to the driving experience and having better control of how much power you will need than I did with automatics. Don’t be at the mercy of the machine! you TELL the machine!if you have time before the trip to learn then do so, but do not do so and leave not 100% comfortable with driving stick….and keep in mind the Con’s: you could run into stop and go traffic in stupid places like in the middle of the mountains. if you end up using Automatic that is okay too!

DAY FOUR!!! The final Stretch

At this point, you will just want to the journey to be completed, and it was thus for us. I know this will sound boring but once again the Element stayed mechanically sound. No issues other than for its thirst for fuel, and at this point my thirst for Caffeine, but this blog post is not about my caffeine addiction. This portion of the journey was by Far my favourite. I really wish I can show you all the pictures and all of the vistas ( and awesome car spots :P ) but alas most of them are on my Wife’s phone and/ or I was driving and could not get the picture of the cool vehicles that crossed our paths. But I must say there was no greater feeling than finally arriving at the final destination, at our new home. (when we finished the Odo read about 212,400…so definitely an oil change in the future! I also want to add that through a lot of the very hot days, and 12 hours worth of driving three days in a row no less( not including the first days 4-5 hours) the engine remained cool and not once overheated or got too hot. (stayed close to the middle on the cool side) and that is one of the prouder achievements!

Yes, the Element is not some 0-60 king with a (laughable?) slow zero to sixty it is no head turner, nor will it be hauling more than 1,500 lbs, but that does not mean it is less of a vehicle. remember a vehicle is not just to take you from points A to B, it is the point. part of a journey is the journey itself, see the world and the AMAZING vistas. Remember that Route 66 spirit and don’t get too caught up in how fast you can get there and enjoy yourself!
2,500 some miles later and the Element has regained lost honour as it has proven once again that it is indeed capable of long journeys and taking you to new places…so if you are going on a journey and you need a vehicle that can take you there keep the Honda Element in mind…. you might just be surprised how well it fairs!

note: like I stated previously, any vehicle is capable of producing issues, it comes with being a product of the assembly line, some things get missed, but I have known several people who still own/ previously owned a Honda Element and they love(d) it and in fact those that no longer owned it did not sell for negative reasons nor for anything against the Element, (larger family, etc) The Element when used properly can prove to be a Swiss Army knife for basic needs, basic transportation , rough and off beaten roads (nothing super crazy though), and moving furniture. I like to look at the Element as the little engine that could. It isn’t the big bad locomotives that no one doubts whether they will make it. but the one surprises you with its big heart and endurance.