2006 Honda Element problems
Owners have filed 154 complaints about the 2006 Honda Element with NHTSA. Air bags account for 35.7% of them — far more than any other system, ahead of visibility at 7.8%.
Complaints154
Crashes26
Fires1
Injuries17
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Air bags 35.7% · 55
Visibility 7.8% · 12
Structure 7.1% · 11
Electrical system 7.1% · 11
Suspension 6.5% · 10
Seats 5.8% · 9
Exterior lighting 3.9% · 6
Unknown or other 3.9% · 6
Severity
Of those complaints, 26 describe a crash, 1 describe a fire and 17 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 6 model years of the Honda Element in this data, 2006 draws comparatively few complaints; 2003 is the outlier year.
Filings are rising — 15 in the last three years against 13 in the three before. For a vehicle this age that usually points to a wear-related failure owners are hitting now.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 69,786 miles.
In owners' own words
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Element. While driving 65 mph, the vehicle was involved in a crash. The air bags failed to deploy. The dealer was unable to determine the cause of failure and advised the contact to call the manufacturer and nhtsa. The contact sustained an injury to her collar bone. A police report was filed. The engine size and # of cylinders were unknown. Updated 08/16/07. Air bags · reported at 9,139 miles
I drove the rear-right wheel over an angled curb at exactly 5mph in a parking lot. Dash cam gps confirms the speed. This triggered the passenger's side airbag to deploy. There is no visible damage to the tire or vehicle. Luckily there was no passenger at the time. I do not believe the airbag should be triggered for such a minor event as running over an angled parking curb at very low speed. Air bags · reported at 126,200 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Element. The contact received a recall letter for nhtsa campaign number: 14v351000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The vin was unavailable. The contact had not experienced a failure. Air bags
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…