2009 Honda Element

small SUV / 4-door SUV

2009 Honda Element 4-door SUV
2008 Honda Element shown

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2003-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2003 Honda Element EX 4-door 4wd

The Honda Element was introduced in the 2003 model year.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the frontal offset crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well.

Intrusion into the driver's space was minimal, and all leg and foot injury measures were low.

Smeared greasepaint indicates where the dummy's knees and shins hit the steering column and knee bolster.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CEF0304
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 4
Left (cm) 6
Center (cm) 7
Right (cm) 5
Brake pedal (cm) 6
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) 0
Right (cm) 1
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) 5
Rearward (cm) -3
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 1

Driver injury measures

Test ID CEF0304
Head
HIC-15 167
Peak gs at hard contact 31
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.7
Extension bending moment (Nm) 23
Maximum Nij 0.33
Chest maximum compression (mm) 32
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 2.8
Femur force - right (kN) 1.2
Knee displacement - left (mm) 0
Knee displacement - right (mm) 0
Maximum tibia index - left 0.56
Maximum tibia index - right 0.42
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 1.3
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 2.9
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 65
Right 62

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2007-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2008 Honda Element LX 4-door 4wd with standard front and rear head curtain airbags and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Honda Element was introduced in the 2003 model year. Beginning with 2007 models, the Element was equipped with standard side curtain airbags to protect the heads of front and rear occupants, and the optional front-seat mounted torso airbags offered in earlier models became standard.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CES0734
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) -10.0
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Driver injury measures

Test ID CES0734
Head HIC-15 218
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.1
Compression (kN) 0.1
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 34
Lateral force (kN) 2.1
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 38
Average deflection (mm) 31
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 4.20
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.88
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 1.8
Acetabulum force (kN) 2.6
Combined force (kN) 4.3
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.4
L-M moment (Nm) 96
A-P moment (Nm) 21

Passenger injury measures

Test ID CES0734
Head HIC-15 491
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.0
Compression (kN) 1.2
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 26
Lateral force (kN) 1.1
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 20
Average deflection (mm) 15
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 3.05
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.20
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 0.6
Acetabulum force (kN) 3.5
Combined force (kN) 3.8
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.1
L-M moment (Nm) 132
A-P moment (Nm) 17

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2003-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2008 Honda Element LX 4-door 2wd

(Curb weight taken from 2008 Honda Element LX 4-door 4wd)

Overall evaluation
Curb weight 3,633 lbs
Peak force 15,642 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio 4.31

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Manual cloth seats

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type Manual cloth seats
Geometry
Backset (mm) 46
Distance below top of head (mm) 48
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g) 13.7
Head contact time (ms) 50
Force rating 1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 8
Max neck tension (N) 740

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.