Why One Of The Worst-Looking Hondas Is Actually A Pretty Good Car

It's hard to hate on Hondas. They are pretty reliable and offer good value, and generally, Honda makes quite handsome looking cars. There was one car though, which everyone agrees is one of the worst looking Hondas ever, but it was actually a masterpiece of engineering.

The Honda Element is hated by many, mainly due to its looks. What Honda came up with was purely brilliant design, at least in terms of practicality and functionality. It has one of the most thoughtfully laid out cabins of any car, even today, and it carried the same ethos Honda is known for — reliability and good value for money.

The Element was launched back in 2003. It was based on the CR-V, but had a very distinct square shape. It was essentially a box on wheels, and it featured a 2.4-liter K24 inline four-cylinder engine. You could either get an automatic or a manual, and AWD was an option as well. There are very few cars which come close to the amount of practicality the Element offers. 

There's also the name, Honda Element, which Honda says was named after the four elements — earth, air, fire, and water. Someone in Honda's naming department was definitely inspired by Avatar, or was really into the elements of the earth.

The Honda Element had some very clever packaging. There is no B-pillar, and the rear doors are rear-hinged. This liberates a lot of space to just get in and out of the car. At the rear, the tailgate also a clamshell piece which splits in two. We are fans of split tailgates, as they allows for a more practical opening and ease of loading heavy items, and not to mention, you can also sit on it.

There is a flat floor in the back, and the floor itself is also wipeable, so you can easily wipe it down if needed. All the seats, once folded, lay flat like a bed, and the second row also slides and can be stowed away to the sides, creating that aforementioned flat floor. For those who wanted even more space, the rear seats can be removed entirely.

It was especially a hit with dog owners due to its practicality, and Honda even made some accessories for dog owners as part of the Dog Friendly package. The Element won the Dog Car of the Year award in 2007, and rightfully so.

The Honda Element was sadly discontinued in 2011. It never got an update, and really only had one generation with a few updates in between. People were more drawn towards models which seemed more rugged visually, rather than the actual practical SUV that was the Element. People have realized that the Element was a great car, and it does hold its value quite well in the used market depending on its age and mileage, with Classic estimating the average value at around $15,000.