Honda Element
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C-Cat
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Look up "Element Van Life" on Youtube to see what can be done with a Honda Element. Also check out the Element eCamper Pop-Top... not cheap, but an amazing addition for even more space...
Thanks! Those conversion are amazing. There's a lot of room to play with.
I had to buy this car, sight-unseen, and knew only that it had 190,000 miles on it. The owner built it up a bit - forgot to mention a few things but it does drive. Not smooth- sounds and feels like a food truck I imagine would. Still, it's. Honda and they kept the oil changes recorded and I am diligent about those, as well. I think it should be fine. I'll drive it a while before investing in it too much such as a roof rack and adding a platform bed. For now, I'll use the camping equipment I have. I sure hope this car does well mechanically. I think it's a good one for conversion.
I had to buy this car, sight-unseen, and knew only that it had 190,000 miles on it. The owner built it up a bit - forgot to mention a few things but it does drive. Not smooth- sounds and feels like a food truck I imagine would. Still, it's. Honda and they kept the oil changes recorded and I am diligent about those, as well. I think it should be fine. I'll drive it a while before investing in it too much such as a roof rack and adding a platform bed. For now, I'll use the camping equipment I have. I sure hope this car does well mechanically. I think it's a good one for conversion.
C-Cat
Well-known member
190k miles is pretty high, but it might go to 300k if you treat it right... did you have it checked by a mechanic?
LivGolden said:
I have one, a 2006. I am the second owner. I bought it very low miles back in 2008. The price reduction was significant because the previous owner's dog had scratched the dash and door panels and put a small tear in the back seat. It did not care since I was going to use it for a cargo and camper van and I have friends with dogs who ride along on errands and sometimes on road trips. I am just getting ready to switch to full time traveling in it versus part time camping car. But as I am taking along a lightweight travel trailer I don't need as extensive of functions as you might be wanting. Yes it can take a platform bed and you can sit upright on the bed if you design it for the right height. There are many designs around for them, it has been done often.
First thing you need to know to protect your investment and a potential improvement you might want to make down the road or even right away. The alternator is undersized even among most 4 cylinder cars. Don't over strain it trying to charge a big house battery, you will wear it out. Save up and invest in a higher powered alternator for it, a fairly expensive upgrade for parts and labor. Plan on having a solar panel if you need to keep a house battery topped up and maybe a small generator. Both of those items are less expensive than putting in an aftermarket larger alternator if you can't DIY install one yourself. I had my original alterator go bad because I did not pay attention to the pull date on my battery, having a weak battery put too much strain on my undersized alternator. So do pay attention to your battery health, alternator repair was expensive! I wish I had know then about changing out to a more powerful alternator as the labor cost would not have changed. If you should need to replace your alternator and you want a full time camper with a house battery then don't put an OEM undersized back in to replace it. Instead get a higher powered alternator made specifically for your year and model. These are not off the shelf stock, you need to have one built up for it. That adds an extra week's or so time to obtain it. I do have a saved link to a source for direct fit, high powered Honda Element Alternators. I have not yet purchased one form this company so I can't comment on the quality of product from this source or their customer service. http://www.qualitypowerauto.com/item_263/Honda-Element.htm
There is a youtube channel from a man who has been living full time in his Element. Element Van Life
Just remember that over the years he has completely changed how he has finished out the interior, how his solar installation is done, what roof rack hold downs he uses etc. He started out as a newbie not knowing how to do everything so he had issues with his early installations so focus on his current setups instead and don't do what he did first in those earlier years for his solar roof panel setup because that was indeed a major fail.
Do join the Honda Element Owners Club Forum, there are lots of camper bed platform threads on it. https://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/ They are also very helpful for information for repairs and other upgrades.
Pinterest also has quite a collection of images of Element Camper conversions as does youtube.
Do replace all of your dome light bulbs with LEDs. The original incandescent bulbs will drain your battery if accidently left on overnight. That is a bad thing to have happen. Do put in alternative LED lighting with its own replaceable battery for your house lights.
There is something magical about the roof hatch in my 2006 Honda Element, when open, even in strong rainy wind going down the highway or while sitting parked water never gets in and makes a puddle in the interior. Another thing about that roof hatch. The Honda Element was designed by a dog owning mountain biker. He wanted to be able to stand up in the car to change into his biking shorts so he made the roof hatch easy to remove and put back in place. You might keep that use under consideration in your interior design plans. That removable roof section is why another company was able to design a roof top bedroom tent for it. They are still making those roof top tents for the Elements as they have now become a "cult" camping car for sports minded young people. But they are expensive units. Here is the link to that company.
https://www.ursaminorvehicles.com/
So now you know that your Honda Element design was influenced by the design team who were young and into things such as mountain biking. Guys who liked to go to more remote areas and camp in it. That is why it does not have carpet, that is why there was an OEM window curtain set for it and why there was an SUV tent for the back of it. That is why there is a rear 12v socket near the rear hatch. The reason the back seats fold up against the sides is so it could carry mountain bike and that is why there was an OEM floor fitting for supporting the front fork of bikes. I know this because that design team member used to work at a bike store in Seattle. The store owner who hired him to work on the bikes told me all about it when he saw my Element.
Other drawbacks. You can't open the back hatch from the inside. The Honda Element Owners Club Forum has some fixes for that issue and the Ursa Minor Company will install their own professionally designed and installed version. They don't list it as an item on their website so you will have to contact them for the cost. They are located in Oregon so that means a trip to their facility to have it done. See the link in the above paragraph for contact information.
The front seats are not all that comfortable for long hours of driving, you can adjust the lumbar support and that helps somewhat but you might need an additional support cushion too. Not a bad idea as the fabric on the Element seats develops worn spots a little too easily.
Not much if any resale value to the rear seats as many people are taking them out. But if you can't sell them then do retain the fabric covering for patching up the worn areas on front seats. That will cost less than new seat covers. Always good to have matching fabric. The rear seats are quite heavy, the fastest way to lighten the load in the car if you are going to have a bed is to get rid of them and install a lightweight custom sleeping platform. Don't worry about resale value going down by not keeping the rear seats, the biggest resale market is for them is for their use as camper cars.
A very important safety related issue for your Element. The windshield post on each side creates big blind spots that make it hard to see people standing at or just entering crosswalks. Scan carefully several times for pedestrians before moving into any intersection especially in a town or even on the highway. When in areas where there might be jaywalkers or when driving through campgrounds where there are lots of walkers stay very alert for pedestrians, don't just do that sight seeing thing with you eye focused on the pretty surroundings. Over the last 10 years of owning a Honda Element I have had way too many startling moments when I suddenly discovered a pedestrian in my pathway because they had been hidden behind those overly fat support columns.
You can get a hitch for the Element, Uhaul will have the best price for them and the lowest installation cost, get the strongest rated one. I did my install with a friend, watched a video which showed a few tricks that make it easier to line up the bolt holes. Even if you don't haul a trailer you might want a hitch mounted cargo carrier for storage of various items. I purchased an Aluminum cargo carrier basket style from Harbor Freight. You can get cargo bags to put inside of them to keep things dry. Carriers are useful for bulky items such as small generator, storing a popup tent/screen room, some extra water. Or you could put on an aluminum box that has a hitch fitting, good for the garbage or dirty laundry, keeps it outside of the car. If you don't want a house battery inside the car it can go into a box on the hitch. So installing a hitch on our Element can be a useful upgrade full time living that gives you some increased function but you do have to remember to absolutely stay within the tongue weight ratings and the overall weight capacity ratings for the vehicle.
bullfrog said:
There was no camper conversion offered when they first came out other than a tent to hook to the rear. The roof top tent setup came later from another company. But it was designed for different configurations of the seats and some of them made it easy to camp in. My brain is slightly fuzzy on the number of possible configurations of the seats but it might have been 21. Unfortunately it did not include facing the front passenger seat to the rear which would be very handy for a camping car use.
It was designed by a young dog owner, mountain biker. No carpets, his plan was for it to be washed out with a hose. But Honda disagreed with that so they don't mention it. I can see why, water trapped between the flooring and the frame. A lot of concept cars are designed by very young persons in schools or newly graduated from schools such as the Art Center College in Pasedena, CA. There is a program in that college just for car design. It is very famous and supported by all the major car makers. The graduates of the program have no problem getting into great jobs.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/352535/inside-the-school-thats-designing-your-next-car-and-wearab
Thank you for taking the time to give this great advice.
I was in a bind when I bought the Element. I was actually in the hospital. A wreck put me ther - twice. The man who totaled my car had just toataled another wonmna's car a week or two before and he totaled both his trucks, in the process. He never got a scratch! I am thankful for that but each tine he tried ti say the wrecks were our faults. Not true and his insurance company has acknowledged this.
Still, the wait and the turmoil of hospitalization and rental cars and unexpected bills and still be underwater for my car which was practically new has caused an extreme financial burden I may not be able to hold upo under.
Due to all these circumstances, I had little choice bu to buy this Element from a couple at the local Methodist Church - sight-unseen...
That it runs was the selling point. I was in hospital and had no one to negotiate for me and so I bought it in between surgeries. I could not keep paying for Enterprise rentals while the insurance company for the man-at-fault dragged their heels. They were heartless. I hope the other woman who suffered from this man's negligence has faired better than I.
So the Element is good in that the roominess affords my Golden Retriever a comfortable and safe ride.
It is clearly not in the perfect condition the couple told me it was but it does drive...like a truck!.lol
As long as it is dependable and can get me through this, I am grateful to have it.
I will definitely have the oil changed as soon as I am mobile. One thing, though, the woman who sold it to me expressly stated that I must use Premium gas, at all times. But why...? It's so much more.
Like I said, I'm grateful to have it but I am apprehensive of taking it to AZ all the way from LA. My other car was barely broken in and had 100% coverage. This makes me a bit nervous about driving this Element more than a State away.
Bad timing.
Thanks for the advice.
I was in a bind when I bought the Element. I was actually in the hospital. A wreck put me ther - twice. The man who totaled my car had just toataled another wonmna's car a week or two before and he totaled both his trucks, in the process. He never got a scratch! I am thankful for that but each tine he tried ti say the wrecks were our faults. Not true and his insurance company has acknowledged this.
Still, the wait and the turmoil of hospitalization and rental cars and unexpected bills and still be underwater for my car which was practically new has caused an extreme financial burden I may not be able to hold upo under.
Due to all these circumstances, I had little choice bu to buy this Element from a couple at the local Methodist Church - sight-unseen...
That it runs was the selling point. I was in hospital and had no one to negotiate for me and so I bought it in between surgeries. I could not keep paying for Enterprise rentals while the insurance company for the man-at-fault dragged their heels. They were heartless. I hope the other woman who suffered from this man's negligence has faired better than I.
So the Element is good in that the roominess affords my Golden Retriever a comfortable and safe ride.
It is clearly not in the perfect condition the couple told me it was but it does drive...like a truck!.lol
As long as it is dependable and can get me through this, I am grateful to have it.
I will definitely have the oil changed as soon as I am mobile. One thing, though, the woman who sold it to me expressly stated that I must use Premium gas, at all times. But why...? It's so much more.
Like I said, I'm grateful to have it but I am apprehensive of taking it to AZ all the way from LA. My other car was barely broken in and had 100% coverage. This makes me a bit nervous about driving this Element more than a State away.
Bad timing.
Thanks for the advice.
