The contact owns a 2005 Honda Element. The contact stated that while at a complete stop, the vehicle began to tilt sideways while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle became inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled off to the shoulder of the roadway. Upon inspection of the vehicle, the contact discovered that the rear driver’s side control arm had separated from the frame of the vehicle, causing the rear wheel to tuck in underneath the wheel hub. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it remained undiagnosed. The dealer was contacted and stated that based on the pictures, the entire suspension needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 124,000.
Honda Element ball joint problems
18 of the 1,284 owner complaints about the Honda Element describe ball joint or control arm failure, most of them for the 2004 model year.
- owner complaints
- 18
- worst model year
- 2004
- typical mileage
- 102,000
By model year
- 20092
- 20082
- 20072
- 20061
- 20052
- 20045
- 20034
Often reported together
What owners say
my control arm mount and frame of my element is rusted out, it is an ongoing problem with the honda element as i am seeing a lot of people online with similar issues. if this fails, it could put people at risk, i also see other elements on the road with a camber'd out back tire on the driver side. i believe these wheels would fall into the car causing an accident. there are no warning lights that pop on, this is hard to get a look at until you get under the vehicle. they have done recalls on this exact problem in canada already, we need it here as well in the usa. the crv has also had the same issues and was given a recall in usa. i am very concerned with the amount of these cars on the road that many do not know the danger they are in.
in 2023 while driving my 2003 Honda Element the control arm ripped out of the frame I had it fixed to the tune of $1800. Fast forward to this week when servicing my Element I found a major rust spot on the other trailing arm bracket. After more research there is a recall in Canada to fix this but not in US. how can this be? It is a major flaw and concern that at high speeds the arm can rip out. Honda has a fix, but it is not offered in the US. please help!
While driving the left rear wheel went sideway... looking underneath the Unibody had corroded to the point the left control arm separated from the car making it undrivable.... was told to not drive the car as it is not safe...
I'm am told the component that failed is the "lower control arm." The vehicle is available for inspection. At the onset of this problem was a loss of control of my steering. At first I felt a play in the steering wheel when I made a small adjustment in my turn and felt the car move more than what it would normally do. I thought it was the waves in the road due to frost heaves. Then within about 3/4s of a mile the left "lower control arm" separated from where it was being held and fell to the ground. I heard a dragging noise in the back left area of my vehicle and was fortunate to be in front of a parking lot and was able to immediately pull in out of traffic. The car was towed to our auto repair shop where I was told it was unfixable. I also called the Honda dealership and explained the issue, and was confirmed that the car is unfixable, and was told that presently the part causing this issue is being recalled in Canada, but not yet in the USA. I wanted you to know that this happened here in the USA as well. I did not receive any warnings that there was an issue until it happened.
The left rear control arm pulled out of the subframe and floor panel and hit the pavement facing forward, the direction in which the car was moving. The left rear tire pulled out and away from the vehicle, and the car lurched downward. There were sparks. I was pulling away from a gas pump at a service station. I stopped the car immediately and had it towed to a mechanic. There was no warning. There were no unusual sounds or movements prior to the incident. Approximately 100 miles before the incident, a licensed mechanic did a safety inspection and test drove the vehicle prior to doing maintenance on other parts of the car. Two different mechanics inspected the vehicle and determined it was unsafe to repair it. The control arm broke off due to excessive rust and corrosion, which was not visible during the safety inspection, because the area was visually blocked by a strut.
Drivers side rear control arm mount is almost none distant from rust. The subframe is almost gone and there is tons of rust on the drivers side frame as well. I have seen this with a lot of people laments. Canada even had a recall on this exact problem.
Inspection of the underbody revealed complete rusting away of the frame mount point for the passenger side lower control arm. The mounting has not failed yet, but the metal surrounding the bolt point is no longer providing any structure. I would not ordinarily have thought inform the federal safety agency of this failure, but Internet searching has turned up many other owners of Elements experiencing this same failure and Honda has issued a recall in Canada for Elements for this problem. CR-Vs in the US that use the same chassis have had a recall for the same problem. Why has the recall not been extended to US Elements that are exposed to road salt? I have not yet contacted Honda regarding this issue.
Brought vehicle (2007 Honda Element) to have new brakes and tires put on vehicle. Discovered rusted through rear frame. Declined to finish work of vehicle upgrades due to being unsafe to further drive vehicle. Mechanic said he didn't feel comfortable working on vehicle in the condition. Suggested taking to body shop to attempt replacing but would cost more than vehicle was worth. Suggested taking to dealer and seeing if they would offer recall since one was issued in Canada a couple years ago. He wouldn't recommend driving vehicle due to potential break and loss of control of vehicle rear control arms.
The contact owns a 2004 Honda Element. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced intermittent vibrations. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the rear control arm mounting joint. The contact was informed that the joint was almost completely rusted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 182,000.
Related recalls
Suspension: rear
- What is wrong
- Honda is recalling 241 my 2008 element vehicles. The front bushing bracket of the left trailing arm of the rear suspension may have been improperly welded and could separate from the trailing arm.
- Risk
- A separated bushing bracket could cause the suspension to release the lower portion of the wheel hub, causing a loss of control and damage to the brake system which could lead to a crash.
- Remedy
- Owners will be contacted by phone and advised to stop driving their vehicles until they have taken their vehicle to a dealer for inspection. Dealers will inspect the left rear trailing arm and, if necessary, replace it free of charge. The recall began on july 25, 2008. Owners may contact honda at 1‑800‑999‑1009.
Recall number 08V349000 · Recall details
Questions about the Honda Element ball joint
Which Honda Element years have ball joint or control arm failure problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2004 (5 complaints), 2003 (4 complaints) and 2005 (2 complaints).
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