I have a 2005 Honda Element, undercarriage and suspension components have severe rust. I tried to get an inspection from Virginia and it failed immediately due to the rust. The mechanic lowered the vehicle as quickly as he could because of it falling off the lift. ultimately he told it is unsafe to drive. After doing some research I found out that Honda Canada has done a recall on Honda elements from 2003-2010 due to this common issue and here is what they wrote. Issue: On certain vehicles, the rear frame could rust. In extreme cases, this could result in a rear trailing arm separating from the vehicle. This recall applies to vehicles originally sold or currently registered in areas of heavy road salt usage (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland & Labrador). Safety Risk: A rear trailing arm that separates could cause a loss of control and increase the risk of a crash. Corrective Actions: Honda will notify owners by mail. Owners will be instructed to take their vehicle to a dealer for an inspection of the rear trailing arm front mount bolts. If the vehicle passes the inspection, the dealer will apply corrosion protection and install support braces. Honda will offer to repurchase vehicles that do not pass the inspection. In the event the repurchase is declined by an owner, a secondary inspection and body shop repair method may be possible.

- Virginia Beach, VA, USA

The car will stall when in motion and turning the steering wheel to make a turn. The car will stall at a stop sign, the car will stall and brake, fuel and brake lights wil come on but battery is fine and lights stay on. This is been an ongoing problem Honda will not honor the recall for the 2005 stalling auto transimission they have replaced the aic, the throttle, the cruise control, O2 sensor. The problem is going over a year since 2014 now worse.

- Behtel, CT, USA

This issue has occurred multiple times over the course of a two month time frame. On cold mornings, within the first five minutes of driving the car, the car just shuts off, leaving me without brakes, steering, or acceleration. This would require me to take out the key and restart the engine. No error codes are being generated and the air/heat as well as radio continues to work. This has become quite a dangerous situation because the other vehicles are unaware I cannot move the car and the randomness of when this occurs. There is no pattern to it, although it will only happen within the first 5 minutes of driving the car and it will happen when in acceleration or deceleration. My dealership was unable to recreate this issue even after keeping it a couple days. I hope this issue can be figured out, fixed, and recalled so that I can feel safe again when driving my car.

- Mechanicsburg, PA, USA

The SRS light came on. I've determined the cause for the light is a defective clock-spring. This is a safety defect and should be covered by Honda.

- Nicholls, GA, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Honda Element. The contact was driving 35 mph when the vehicle started to jerk violently from side to side. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 48,000.

- San Antonio , TX, USA

Steering and/or vsa system I bought a new Honda Element February 12th, 2005. Between then and near the end of 2006, I experienced a total loss of steering on at least 8 occasions. The car would continue in the direction that it was headed. There was no steering at all. The occurrences only lasted for seconds but felt like minutes. This occurred most often in the early mornings (6-7am) and between 15 and 20 minutes after leaving home. There was another problem with the steering during the same period of time. In specific situations, it was hard to control and felt as though the real time four wheel drive would kick-in. This happened mostly behind semi-trucks. After the last occurrence over three years ago when the loss of steering control headed me in the direction of the median and oncoming traffic, I became so fearful of driving the vehicle that I parked it in my garage. After taking in the Element on 8 occasions and not having been satisfied with the service department of roebuck Honda, I began to explore solutions with other local Honda dealerships and with american Honda motor company. The dealerships' service centers could not duplicate the steering failure. I have been to dealerships' over 11 times with this problem with no solution. American Honda would not take actions to resolve the problem. I have found other reports on steering issues with the Element. Friends and relatives have suggested that I trade the car in, but I cannot in clear conscience do this. I could not live with myself knowing I had put an unsafe vehicle in someone else's hands. However, I can not afford this. Please contact me at [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Lincoln, AL, USA