Reliability & cost of ownership
Honda Element Reliability & Common Problems
How reliable is the Honda Element? Compare every model year side by side — NHTSA recalls, owner complaints, and crash-test stars — then open the year you're shopping for a full reliability and repair-cost forecast.
Honda Element problems by model year
100 recall entries and 1279 owner complaints on file across 9 model years, sourced from the federal NHTSA database.
| Year | Recalls | Complaints | NCAP stars | Full report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 Element | 11 | 11 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2010 Element | 11 | 30 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2009 Element | 9 | 30 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2008 Element | 13 | 111 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2007 Element | 12 | 112 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2006 Element | 11 | 122 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2005 Element | 10 | 159 | No NCAP test | Full reliability report → |
| 2004 Element | 11 | 281 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2003 Element | 12 | 423 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
Most-complained-about components
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA against the Honda Element, grouped by the component each complaint names — the fastest read on where this model gives trouble.
- visibility374 complaints
- air bags321 complaints
- suspension115 complaints
- electrical system111 complaints
- structure91 complaints
- service brakes89 complaints
- seats56 complaints
- hydraulic50 complaints