[QUOTE]Originally posted by tchang03
[B]Interesting how the same people that bought s2k will even think about element.

 

$15-20k can get you into an fzj80 ('93-'97) landcruiser. great offroad ability, strong towing capacity, and ZERO depreciation.

honda element:a face that only a mother could love, or maybe a dealer sitting on a ton of them

 

HEY MAN, LANDCRUISER will drink gas like it's going out of style.

element is super kewl. I love it

 

It's called a PILOT

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Ace10
[B]$15-20k can get you into an fzj80 ('93-'97) landcruiser.

 

element is gonna depreciate like a ROCK OFF A CLIFF, plus it's more costly to insure than a 10 yr old landcruiser. actual cost to own is going to be cheaper for the landcruiser than the element, no question about it! this thread is all about a second vehicle that's going to be driven maybe 5 to 7K miles per year... assuming a delta of 10mpg, that's only $750 to $1050 more for fuel. the depreciation on the element is going to be 2X or 3X that.

good luck negotiating anything more than a light snow flurry with the element. i had a '98 crv with the same super-light-duty awd system that was frighteningly slow to help, if it at all. sure it can go around a curve better than a TLC but that's why you have the s2000, right???

while i was driving around this past week(blizzard conditions), i must have seen two or three elements haplessly stuck! i think that the hybrid civic would have a better shot at negotiating snow covered roads.

 

Here is one Southern California opinion on the Element: It is a retro woody wagon. If you don't believe me, count the number of photos Honda has in its Element ads that show surfboards on the roof.

It's also a car for people who do not value cars, per se, but who value the lifestyle/freedoms that vehicles can bring them. (Automatically, everyone on this forum is disqualified--we all like cars.) Not caring about automobiles for their own sake is a strong majority view among most current 18-23 year olds in the US. That is the group Honda is aiming at with the Element. Understand that Accord owners are getting older every year. If Honda does not create vehicles appealing to youth, they will soon be in the situation Cadillac has been trying to get out of for 25 years: the average age of its buyers is 60! (That's really why they have head-up displays.)

My wife and I agonized over the decision a month ago whether to buy an Element or a CR-V (and we are both well over 23). We both preferred the so-ugly-it's-pretty look of the Element. However, having the sunroof at the back (for camping) and so much emphasis on the EX model on subwoofers and MP3 capabilities made the Element less interesting for us and we bought the CR-V. So far, I haven't been stuck in the snow once, here in Orange County. I'll let you know when it happens.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Ace10
[B]element is gonna depreciate like a ROCK OFF A CLIFF.

 

I like the Element as a complimentary vehicle to the S. I am 33 and I would like one in the future.

 

Can't tow an S on a Pilot, at least not very well, or very long. Towing capacity is 3,500 lbs. With a car trailer you'd either be right at or over that.