I stopped at McDonald's en-route to work. I switched off the car and went inside. I returned to find that my key no longer worked. I was forced to walk a mile to work in heavy rain.

The car has been totally disabled and the repair appears to be in the neighborhood of $800.00. There was a recall on the 2003 and 2004 Honda Element. i am certain that this is the same issue and should be repaired at no cost to the the owners.

I had to have the vehicle towed. The tow truck operator had to drag my vehicle because the steering wheel and front wheels are locked. My rear tire appears to be damaged as a result. My front tires are damaged from dragging. Dragging the vehicle was the only option to get it pulled onto the tow truck.

We started having problems about 2 weeks before a significant problem occurred. My husband's key simply stopped working whenever he tried to start the Element. So, he used my key instead. This was during Christmas holidays and we were away. It was really cold outside (-30C + wind chill). I noticed I had a hard time getting the Element started one morning as we were about to leave our hotel. But I did manage to start it. I thought it was just due to the temperature outside. Thankfully we managed to get back home that day, as planned.

Later that evening my husband went out to grab some groceries. The car wouldn't start ... at all. He called a friend of his who is a mechanic, and they got it started eventually, but they drove it right to the dealership. There it stayed for a week, while we had to rent another car. $900 later, we had a new ignition cylinder. Despite the fact that there had been a recall for the 2005 Element, for the very same problem, we are out in the cold and poorer $900. Since then, we have had repeated problems with the seemingly infamous "flashing D" (dealer can't figure it out - I'm sure they will once our powertrain warranty is done) and now we need a new starter as well.

I must note that this is my 3rd Honda, the only one I've bought brand new off the lot, and the MOST I've spent in maintenance. (Previously owned a 1990 Accord EX and a 2000 Civic SE)