tow HONDA ELEMENT 2004 1.G Owners Manual

If a seat belt does not seem to work
as it should, it may not protect the
occupant in a crash.Using a seat
belt that is not working properly can
result in serious injury or death.
Have your Honda dealer check the
belt as soon as possible.
See page f or additional
inf ormation about your seat belts
and how to take care of them. Adjust the steering wheel, if needed,
so that the wheel points toward your
chest, not toward your f ace. This
provides optimal protection f rom the
f ront airbag.
See page f or how to adjust the
steering wheel.After all occupants have adjusted
their seats and put on seat belts, it is
very important that they continue to
sit upright, well back in their seats,
with their feet on the floor, until the
vehicle is parked and the engine is
of f .
Sitting improperly can increase the
chance of injury during a crash. For
example, if an occupant slouches,
lies down, turns sideways, sits
forward, leans forward or sideways,
or puts one or both f eet up, the
chance of injury during a crash is
greatly increased.
19
64
No one should sit in a seat wit h aninoperat ive seat belt .
Adjust the Steering Wheel Maintain a Proper Sitting Position
6.
7.
Protecting A dults and Teens
Driver and Passenger Saf ety16
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MIST
OFF
INT Intermittent
LO Low
HI High
Windshield Washers Push the right lever up or down to
select a position.
The wipers run at high
speed until you release the lever.
The wipers are not activated.
The wipers operate every
f ew seconds.
The wipers run at low speed.
The wipers run at high speed.
Hold past ON to turn the window
wiper on and the window washer
to spray.
OFF
Rotate clockwise to turn the rear
window wiper ON.
Pull the
wiper control lever toward you and
hold it. The washers spray until
you release the lever. The wipers
run at low speed, then complete
one more sweep af ter you release
the lever.
Rotate counterclockwise to spray
the window washer only.
1.2.3.4.5.6.
1. 2. 3. 4.
Windshield Wiper
MIST
OFF INT LO HIRear Window Wiper and Washer
Windshield Washer
Wipers and Washers
Inst rument s and Cont rols61
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Make sure the rear window is clear
and you have good visibility bef ore
starting to drive.
Thedefoggerwiresontheinsideof
the rear window can be accidentally
damaged. When cleaning the glass,
always wipe side-to-side.
Make any steering wheel adjustment
bef ore you start driving.Push the lever under the lef t side
of the steering column all the way
down.Push the lever up to lock the
steering wheel in that position.
Make sure you have securely
locked the steering wheel in place
by trying to move it up and down.
Move the steering wheel so it
points to your chest, not toward
your f ace. Make sure you can see
the instrument panel gauges and
indicators.
1. 2. 3. 4.
See page f or important saf ety
inf ormation about how to properlyposition the steering wheel. 16
Steering Wheel A djustment
Rear Window Def ogger, Steering Wheel A djustment
Inst rument s and Cont rols64
Adjusting the steering wheel
position while driving may
cause you to lose control of the
vehicle and be seriously injured
inacrash.
Adjust the steering wheel only
when the vehicle is stopped.
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To create more cargo space, you can
fold up each rear seat to each side
wall separately.Lower the head restraint to its
lowest position.
Pull the seat-back adjustment
strap at the inside edge of the seat
cushion and push the seat-back
backward as f ar as it will go.Pull the release strap on the seat
support, and pivot the seat toward
the vehicle’s side wall.
1.
2.3.
CONT INUED
Folding the Rear Seats
Seats
Inst rument s and Cont rols77
SEAT-BACK ADJUSTMENT STRAPRELEASE STRAP
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A fastening strap is attached to the
inside of the seat cushion. While
pushing the seat up and toward
thesidewall,hookthefastening
straptothegrabrail.Fold down the seat support.Reverse this procedure to return the
rear seat to the upright position.
When not in use, store the fastening
strap hook in the f abric pocket on
the bottom of the seat cushion.
Make sure the seat is locked
securely.
4. 5.
Seats
Inst rument s and Cont rols78
GRAB RAIL
FASTENING STRAP SEAT SUPPORT
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To apply the parking brake, pull the
lever up f ully. To release it, pull up
slightly, push the button, and lower
the lever. The parking brake light on
the instrument panel should go out
when the parking brake is f ully
released (see page ).
To open a rear window, pull the lever
towards you, then push it out until it
locks. To close the rear window pull
the lever towards you, then push it
back. Make sure the window is f ully
closed and locked.
Toliftuptherearoftheskylightfor
ventilation, pull down the lever to
unlock the skylight, then push it up
until the skylight is locked in the tilt-
up position.
To close the skylight, pull down the
lever to unlock the skylight, then
push it back in place. Make sure the
skylight is f ully closed and locked.
54
CONT INUED
On 4WD models only
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Rear Windows, Parking Brake, Skylight
Parking Brake
Rear Windows Skylight
83
PARKING BRAKE LEVER
Driving the vehicle with the parking
brake applied can damage the rear
brakes and axles.
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Turn of f the engine, and set the
parkingbrake.Thenpulldownthe
lever, squeeze both sides of the pivot
while pushing up the red tab in the
lever, and pull the lever assembly
away from the ceiling.Push up the rear of the skylight.
Standing on the tailgate with the
hatch down, hold both sides of the
skylight and pull it toward you to
remove it f rom the vehicle roof .
To remove the skylight:
Skylight
Inst rument s and Cont rols84
Bef ore lif ting the skylight, make sure
the roof of the vehicle is dry. Rain or
remaining water af ter car-washing may
get into the f rame of the skylight. In
winter, remove the buildup of snow on
the roof .
If you try to tilt up the skylight in
below-f reezing temperatures, or when
it is covered with snow or ice, you can
damage it.
The maximum weight on the tailgate is
440 lbs (200 kg).
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Help assure your vehicle’s f uture
reliability and perf ormance by paying
extra attention to how you drive
during the f irst 600 miles (1,000 km).Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid
acceleration.
Do not change the oil until the
scheduled maintenance time.
Avoidhardbrakingforthefirst
200 miles (300 km).
During this period:
Your Honda is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 86 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy, metallic rapping
noise in the engine that can lead to
mechanical f ailure.
We recommend using gasoline
containing detergent additives that
help prevent f uel system and engine
deposits.
In addition, in order to maintain good
perf ormance, f uel economy, and
emissions control, we strongly
recommend, in areas where it is
available, the use of gasoline that
does NOT contain manganese-based
f uel additives such as MMT.
You should also f ollow these
recommendations with an
overhauled or exchanged engine, or
when the brakes are replaced. Do not tow a trailer.
Use of gasoline with these additives
may adversely af f ect perf ormance,
and cause the Malfunction Indicator
Lamp on your instrument panel to come on. If this happens, contact
your authorized Honda dealer f or
service.
Some gasoline today is blended with
oxygenates such as ethanol or
MTBE. Your vehicle is designed to
operate on oxygenated gasoline
containing up to 10 percent ethanol
by volume and up to 15 percent
MTBE by volume. Do not use
gasoline containing methanol.
If you notice any undesirable
operating symptoms, try another
service station or switch to another
brand of gasoline.
Premium f uel is recommended when
towing in certain conditions (see
page ).
For f urther important f uel-related
inf ormation, please ref er to your
.
139
Bef ore Driving
Break-in Period Gasoline Type
Quick Start Guide
Break-in Period, Gasoline T ype
110
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Wait a f ew minutes af ter turning the
engine of f bef ore you check the oil.Remove the dipstick (orange tab).
Wipe the dipstick with a clean
cloth or paper towel.
Insert it all the way back in its tube. Remove the dipstick again and
check the level. It should be
between the upper and lower
marks.
If it is near or below the lower mark,
see on page . Look at the coolant level in the
radiator reserve tank. Make sure it is
between the MAX and MIN lines. If
it is below the MIN line, see
on page f or
inf ormation on adding the proper
coolant.
Refer to on page f or inf ormation
on checking other items in your
Honda.
1. 2. 3.
157
151160
4.
Service Station Procedure
Bef ore Driving
Oil Check
A dding OilEngine Coolant Check
A dding
Engine Coolant
Owner’s Maintenance
Checks
113
DIPSTICK
UPPER MARKLOWER MARK RESERVE TANK
MAX
MIN
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·µ If your vehicle will be towing a
trailer, the load f rom your trailer
will be transf erred to your vehicle.
Consult this manual to determine
how this reduces the available
cargo and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
The total weight must not exceed
theGrossVehicleWeightRating
(GVWR). The load f or the f ront and
rear axles also must not exceed the
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR)
(see page ).
The maximum load f or your vehicle
is 675 lbs (308 kg). This f igure
includes the total weight of all
occupants, cargo, accessories, and
the tongue weight if you are towing a
trailer. Determine the combined weight
of accessories, luggage, and cargo
beingloadedinthevehicle.The
weight may not saf ely exceed the
available cargo and luggage load
capacity calculated in step 4 [75
lbs(34kg)inthisexample].
To determine the correct cargo and
luggage load limit: Locate the statement, ‘‘the
combined weight of occupants and
cargo should never exceed 675 lbs (308 kg)’’ on your vehicle’s placard
(on the driver’s doorjamb).
Determine the combined weight
of the driver and passengers that
will be riding in the vehicle. (Four
is seating capacity of your vehicle.)
Subtract the combined weight of
the driver and passengers f rom
675 lbs (308 kg).
The resulting f igure equals the
available amount of cargo and
luggage load capacity.
For example, if there will be f our 150
lbs (70 kg) occupants in your vehicle,
the amount of available cargo and
luggage load capacity is 75 lbs (34
kg).
4 150 lbs (70 kg) = 600 lbs (280
kg)
675 lbs (308 kg) 600 lbs (280 kg) =
75 lbs (34 kg)
1. 2. 3. 4.
5. 6.
135
Load Limit
Carrying Cargo
Bef ore Driving118
Overloading or improper
loading can affect handling and
stability and cause a crash in
which you can be hurt or killed.
Follow all load limits and other
loading guidelines in thismanual.
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