Honda Element reliability by year
20 recall campaigns and 575 owner complaints across 7 model years. Best year to buy: 2009. Year to avoid: 2008.
Worst model years to avoid → — the single year to avoid for every model line we track, ranked side by side.
Years to avoid — and why 7 flagged on the NHTSA record
At-a-glance: every year color-coded
Each cell shows the last two digits of the model year and its 0–10 reliability score from NHTSA data. Click any year to see the full record. ★ best year · ✕ year to avoid.
Year-by-year reliability 7 model years · newest first
Per-year recall counts add up to 77, more than the 20 campaigns above, because a single NHTSA campaign often covers several model years and is counted once in each.
Common trouble spots across the Element aggregated across 7 model years
Common questions
What's the best year to buy a Honda Element?
Based on NHTSA complaint volume and severity weighting, the 2009 Honda Element scores 3.8/10 — the strongest in the 2005–2011 range. 30 complaints on file, 9 active recalls. Reliability scores reflect the federal complaint record, not subjective owner reviews.
Which Honda Element year should I avoid?
The 2008 Honda Element scores 2.8/10 — the weakest in the lineup. 111 owner complaints with NHTSA, 13 active recalls. That doesn't mean every 2008 is a problem — it means failure rates run higher than peer model years on the same platform.
Which years of the Honda Element should I avoid?
On the NHTSA complaint and recall record, the model years to be most careful with are 2008 (avoid — the brakes — brakes: 30 complaints, classified severe); 2011 (high-risk ownership — reliability score 3.4/10 — below the segment average); 2010 (high-risk ownership — reliability score 3.0/10 — below the segment average); 2009 (high-risk ownership — reliability score 3.8/10 — below the segment average); 2007 (high-risk ownership — reliability score 3.0/10 — below the segment average); 2006 (high-risk ownership — reliability score 3.4/10 — below the segment average). This is our read of the federal data, not a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection of the specific vehicle.
How many years of the Honda Element are tracked?
7 model years (2005 through 2011) with NHTSA records on file. Total across the lineup: 20 distinct recall campaigns and 575 owner complaints. Those campaigns land on 77 model-year entries in total, because one campaign often covers several years at once — which is why per-year recall counts add up to more than the campaign count.
What's the most-reported problem on the Honda Element?
airbags is the most-reported category — 187 complaints across 7 model years. Average shop repair runs about $1,100.