Service Brakes Problems of Honda Element - part 1

We just bought a used 2008 Honda Element and we thought the brake pedal needed to be pushed to the floor because of low brake fluid that the Honda service of baton rouge apparently did not fill, but it still was not working. We brought it in and our mechanic pulled up a safety recall for air in the vsa modulator, which is exactly what the brakes are doing. The Honda dealership says that the recall has already been done in 2016, so there's nothing they can do, except go in and charge us to do the same process again.

See all problems of the 2008 Honda Element 🔎.

A failed modulator. Service advisory a52 mushy brakes.

See all problems of the 2009 Honda Element 🔎.

Brakes keep grinding and squealing. Have repaired brakes and mechanism associated with it a total for four times. Rear passenger brake keeps going out. Grinding away part of the rotar and brake keeps sticking to disc.

See all problems of the 2004 Honda Element 🔎.

Brake pedal too soft. Changed fluid, still the same.

I was just driving my 2007 Honda Element to work in the north end of seattle, and all of the sudden my vehicle started jerking and the check engine light, vsa and steering light came on the "triangle with a lightning bolt in it" it started running rough. When I would step on the gas it would cause the car to jerk and the speedometer would idle up and down. It was very intense. I would lift off the gas patel and try to let it smoothin out. It definitely is a safety issue. I looked online and saw a recall on the 2007 and 2008 Honda Element, over 68,000 of them. I went to Honda of seattle and they told me there wasn't a recall, I then told him to look online and he tried to tell me that my car wasn't covered. He started to quote some numbers of what the diagnostic would cost and then they would go from there. I then told them to return my vehicle and brought it to my mechanic. The total cost to fix what Honda wouldn't even though it is a recall is $450. 00. This is unfair and Honda needs to make this right!.

See all problems of the 2007 Honda Element 🔎.

Tl-the contact owns a 2009 Honda Element. The contact stated while driving at unknown speeds and parking in a parking space the vehicle was placed in park and the emergency brake was applied however the vehicle accelerated and drove over a curb and crashed into a parked unoccupied vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The air bags did not deployed. There were no fire due to the crash. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer flow Honda 2600 peters creek pkwy, winston salem, nc 27127 (888) 902-4024. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 154,000. Ap.

No incident, soft brake pedal all the time.

Honda Element 2008 began experiencing soft pedal when applying brakes, 2 lights came on vsa and abs! . I continued to drive that particular day and when I tuned off engine and turned it back on lights disappeared for a smal amount of time. Brakes felt as though I would be unable to stop because of such play in them. I was driving on highway for approx 15 miles and also city driving for about 10 miles.

While the vehicle moving slowly, suddenly the abs, vsa (vehicle stability assist) and traction control lights all came on at the same time and stayed on. A Honda dealership later diagnosed the issue as a faulty vsa modulator, an expensive part which controls the abs and traction control systems. The fault our vehicle experienced prevents all these systems from functioning. I contacted other Honda Element owners and found several who had the exact same issue with 2007 and 2008 Elements - all three lights illuminated with no apparent cause and then dealer diagnosis turned up a faulty vsa modulator. In several cases, these people contacted Honda of America and Honda offered to pay for the vsa modulator replacement (even outside of warranty), presumably due to the safety issue of having this critical part fail that disables the abs and vehicle stability systems. I contacted Honda of America and they would not replace provide assistance in the replacement of the part on my vehicle. Before this incident, I had not experienced any issues with the vsa modulator and had very rarely been in a low-traction environment where either the vsa or abs systems would engage. Interestingly, a few months before this incident a Honda dealership performed a vsa modulator-related recall to remove air that could accumulate in the modulator (recall #10v098000); the dealership insisted that work and this failure were unrelated. This is a major safety issue for braking and vehicle stability on a sealed part with other open recalls against it. This part should last the life of the vehicle, and yet it is failing spontaneously without any external mechanism of failure. Honda should replace faulty vsa modulators at no charge.

The contact owns a 2008 Honda Element. While making left and right turns and depressing the brake pedal, the accelerator pedal and steering wheel locked up, which caused the vehicle to shake. The dealer could not replicate the failure or repair the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 70,000.

Recently became second owner of vehicle. Noticed it had a soft brake pedal. Recall performed by first owners dealer, but, the problem still exists.

Brake pedal is soft and goes to the floor when the engine is running. When the engine is off the pedal is hard and does not go to the floor.

Tl-the contact owns a 2010 Honda Element. The contact stated while driving at approximately 40 mph, when the brake pedal was depressed the brake pedal went down to the floor board. The failure recurred numerous times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the vsa module control unit needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 46,400. Ak.

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My cars brake pedal had been soft for some time yet no problem with the brakes or with the vsa. I started my car on Saturday morning (6/13/2015) and the vsa, abs and triangle exclamation light came on and would not go out. The vehicle was checked on the 30th of April 2010 and no change was made to the vsa since no problem was reported. I am disabled and do not use the vehicle that often. It is well maintained and in excellent running order. I took the car to my regular mechanic and he tested the car quickly and told me to take to the dealer for recall repair. It is doing exactly what service bulletin 10-017 was reporting. I called Honda of America on the 17th of June 2015 to speak with them and they told me to take it to the dealer. I have a case number from them.

Brake pedal losses pressure when press for a hard stop.

See all problems of the 2006 Honda Element 🔎.

My husband and I have both, independently, experienced our Honda Element revving its engine and surging forward when we apply the brakes. Please watch for the copy of a letter I am sending to NHTSA by usps certified #7011 2000 0001 6765 8433.

This issue has occurred multiple times over the course of a two month time frame. On cold mornings, within the first five minutes of driving the car, the car just shuts off, leaving me without brakes, steering, or acceleration. This would require me to take out the key and restart the engine. No error codes are being generated and the air/heat as well as radio continues to work. This has become quite a dangerous situation because the other vehicles are unaware I cannot move the car and the randomness of when this occurs. There is no pattern to it, although it will only happen within the first 5 minutes of driving the car and it will happen when in acceleration or deceleration. My dealership was unable to recreate this issue even after keeping it a couple days. I hope this issue can be figured out, fixed, and recalled so that I can feel safe again when driving my car.

See all problems of the 2005 Honda Element 🔎.

The contact owns a 2003 Honda Element. The contact stated that while the engine was running and as the brake was depressed, there was smoke seen coming from under the hood. As a result, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who inspected the vehicle and stated that they could not diagnosed the failure. The vehicle was then taken to a mechanic who inspected the vehicle and advised the contact that the smoke was coming from the brakes seizing when they were depressed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 109,000.

See all problems of the 2003 Honda Element 🔎.

Brakes "repaired" in '11 at dealer after '07 Element brake recall. No noticeable difference in brake softness, brakes are still soft and require a lot of muscle to stop the car. Scared, and refuse to drive '07 Element with my children in the car for fear of not being able to stop on time. Own a 2011 accord, after driving the '07 Element for a day or two, I am "slamming" on the brakes of the accord due to habit of having to "floor/mash" the brakes to stop at a stop sign. Thank goodness for good accord seat belts. :) please fix this issue. Many teenagers will be receiving this car as first time driving car. Very dangerous. Not safe with current corporate approved fix.

Windshield leaked water, dealership refused to fix. Windshield cracked and was cited by police officer for not fixing, dealership refused to fix. Upon replacement the repair guys just laughed and said that that glass was seated improperly and asked who had replaced it. I responded that it was the original, they told me not to buy any more Hondas. Key would no longer work in the driver side door. Replaced something at dealership for $800 as well as the driver side window as it stopped moving due to the motor dying at around 60,000 miles. Now the keys don't work in the passenger side of vehicle nor does the window. In another incident the vehicle failed to stop after fully depressing the brake when traveling about 5-10 mph and drifting into another vehicle causing moderate damage. Honda has not responded to any inquires made by consumer. Nor has dealership. I still owe 10,000 dollars on this car, have spent over 3000 in repairs and at this point want to drive it into a tree at a high speed.

I purchase a Honda Element 2010 from ray Honda on strasbourg on April, test drive it and the brake went down to floor I was told that they will make the necessary repair I drove away and the same problem persist I brought it back they sade to me that I have to leave we it, I toll them is dangerous and the brake has no stopping power and theres it nothing they could do.

I put on my brakes in the middle of rush hour traffic the day before thanksgiving. Made rubbing sound and then continued to rub all the way to my daughters. Minimal 2 hours in traffic in chicago at rush hour. Afraid to drive but no way to get off and nowhere to go. Took to midas on fri. Over $500. 00 now my back brakes are doing the same thing. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! now 52,0000. The dealer had told me at least another year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! very dangerous.

The contact owns a 2008 Honda Element. While having the oil changed by the authorized dealer, the contact was informed that the rear brakes had become worn. The contact noticed while driving that the brake pedal would extend to the floorboard when depressed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The current and failure mileages were 22,644.

My 2008 Honda Element had the recall work done in June 2010 re; soft brake pedal. Back to dealer on August 24 for recurring soft pedal issue. Diagnosis was air in brake system. System bled again. Brake pedal firm for now. Service manager could not offer an explanation other than maybe we did not get all the air out during the recall work. Honda has known about this safety defect in certain models since 2003. I have no confidence in the fix.

2008 Honda Element, 21,000 miles, needed new rear brake job for 600$. This was 2500 miles after it was taken to dealer for brake recall modification of some sort.

Previously filed a complaint (odi # 10321852) via email with NHTSA regarding the "soft brake pedal" issue with my 2008 Honda Element. A recall was issued in 2010, the work was performed in June 2010, a positive improvement. Brakes are slowly but surely returning to their previous soft pedal defect. I am having to pump the brake pedal one time to get a firm pedal. This defect on certain Honda models has been going on since 2003. Honda re- issued a service bulletin # 07-045 on March 5, 2009 regarding "brake pedal is low and feels soft" covering certain models from 2003-2008. Apparently there were previous service bulletins issued as early as 2007, the 07 in the above referenced service bulletin (07-045) indicates 2007 issue. I am a retired career police officer who spent over half of my 25 year career in the traffic division investigating traffic collisions including those involving fatalities. I consider this brake problem a serious safety defect, that could ultimately lead to serious injury or loss of life unless a permanent repair or total recall of the affected Honda vehicles is required by NHTSA. Honda has known about the problem for years and has not found a permanent repair. I have researched the internet and found many reports regarding this defect. . Read more...

The Honda Element has a recall for a soft, spongy brake pedal that has to be pushed to the floor to get the brakes to engage. There is a recall for this symptom, related to the vehicle stability assist module. The recall work was done, and the pedal feel improved, but after time, the issue returns. My brakes are soft and spongy and I get no brakes unless the pedal goes most of the way to the floor. It feels as if the car is not going to stop each time I brake.

2008 Honda Element has had very soft brake pedal from day one. Dealer replaced vsa modulator per TSB with no change in pedal feel. Dealer did a recall placing caps on plugs in abs unit and bled brakes with no change in pedal feel. Pedal will still go almost to the floor with very little pressure applied.

My 2005 Honda Element brake pedal feels soft. They have felt this way for the last year. Please have Honda include 2005 Elements in their recall.

Soft brake pedal on 2009 Honda Element lx awd. Brake pedal may go almost to the floor so that foot hits gas pedal when braking.

Soft, mushy brake pedal. When stopped at a stop light or stop sign, pedal slowly goes to the floor and must be pumped to maintain brake pressure.

Due to loose brake, it takes time to stop (at speed of 15 mph). I felt it could be dangerous if I were to be driving faster.

2008 Honda Element brake pedal travel is excessive and the brakes are at times soft.

Brakes are spongy on 2007 Honda Element. Brake pedal travel has increased, especially on hard braking. This has developed mostly in the last couple of months. No accidents, but a couple of close calls because the car does not stop as quickly as it should.

This vehicle was purchased new in 2007, since then we have had to replace the brakes every year. We had the vsa modulator recall repairs done in apirl 2010 and the soft brake, excessive brake wear continues. The brakes make noise, are soft, and have to be applied heavily to stop the vehicle. I have had repairs done by the dealer the first five years with no explanations to my complaints of excessive failure. We continue to have to have the brakes re-done every year. Each time shortly after having them re-done they begin to quickly degrade and do not stop the vehicle properly.