I am a life-long Volkswagen guy, both in my private and professional life. However, I added a Honda Element to our “fleet” this past fall, for getting two people, two fat bikes (inside) and our dog transported to the trails in the winter wasn’t easy in our Volkswagen Atlas. It wasn’t even the tight space, but the worry of the studded tires damaging the interior. With the Element, I have no such worries.
I always had a soft spot for the Element, but being a Honda, I just could not pull the trigger for almost two decades. After last winter, I started casually keeping an eye on the available Elements in our area. In September I found a really nice 2005 Element (awd, auto) with approx 250,000km from an original owner and pulled the trigger without hesitation. I removed the rear seats and cut a horse stall mat to the shape of the rear cargo area, mounted a couple of fork mounts for our fat bikes, and presto - we have our winter cycling adventure vehicle!
Friends and neighbours were a bit puzzled by this oddball addition to the “fleet”, but as I’ve got older, I find I no longer really care what others think. Also, it makes for a nice driveway friend to the other quirky vehicle, our '87 Westfalia camper. To fulfill our other basic needs, we also have '16 Touareg TDI (undisputed road trip king) and an '87 911 Targa.