There are 3 owner-reported visibility & wipers complaints for the 2010 Honda Elementin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
I had arrived home on 7/17/2025 and was sitting in my parked vehicle under my carport talking on the phone when I heard a very loud bang. I was disoriented and worried that my safety may be at risk, so I asked the person I was speaking to if they would stay on the line with me until I made it inside. I stepped out of the vehicle and was walking around the back of it when I noticed the rear quarter panel window on the passenger side was completely shattered. There was glass on the outside and inside of my vehicle, and nothing around my vehicle that would have caused it (i.e. rocks, sticks, people outside, etc.). I called the Honda Service Line to report the problem after reading that others had experienced similar, but I was told there was no recall for this issue currently. I reported this to my insurance and they scheduled a repair, but the vehicle has not yet been inspected as of today, 7/18/2025. It is available for inspection upon request. There were no warning lamps, messages, or any other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.
I WAS MOWING MY LAWN WHEN THE LAWN-MOWER KICKED UP A SMALL (LESS THAN 1.5 CM DIAMETER) PEBBLE AND THREW IT INTO THE REAR WINDOW. THE ENTIRE WINDOW SHATTERED, THE SIDES FELL OUT, THE MIDDLE CRACKED ALL THE WAY ACROSS. YOU COULD SEE A SMALL WHITE AREA(SIZE OF A DIME) WHERE THE IMPACT WAS, IT WAS NOWHERE NEAR WHERE THE GLASS FELL OUT. THEN ABOUT 1 HOUR LATER THE ENTIRE WINDOW FELL OUT. NORMAL GLASS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO WITHSTAND, PERHAPS CHIP OR CRACK, BUT NOT BLOW OUT THE ENTIRE WINDOW. THIS WAS DEFECTIVE GLASS. ALSO, THIS IS A 2011 HONDA ELEMENT, NOT A 2010, BUT THAT WAS THE ONLY OPTION ON THE SITE. *TR
2/27/10 PURCHASED NEW HONDA ELEMENT, DELIVERED WITH WINDSHIELD CHIPS, DEALER SUBCONTRACTED. NEW WINDSHIELD INSTALL & GAVE GUARANTEE OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION. TOOK DELIVERY 3/8/10, NOTED EXCESSIVE DASH/WINDSHIELD RATTLE. CALLED DEALER NEXT DAY-WAS ASKED TO 'MONITOR THROUGH SUMMER MOS. AS RATTLE WOULD 'SETTLE'. IT ONLY GOT WORSE. CONTACTED DEALER SEVERAL TIMES OVER SUMMER & WAS ASSURED IF PROBLEM PERSISTED THEY WOULD 'STAND BEHIND IT UNTIL IT WAS DONE RIGHT'. RETURNED. TO DEALER FOR 'REPAIR' 3 TIMES 11/15/10, 12/7/10, 12/29/10 (CAR WAS REPAIRED THREE SEPARATE TIMES DURING THIS VISIT (KEPT AT DEALERSHIP 12/29-1/10/11). BROKEN WINDSHIELD CLIPS FOUND/REPLACED ON 11/15/10 & 12/29/10 VISIT, RE-PADDED DASH ON 12/7/10 VISIT. RATTLE STILL PERSISTENT. CONTACTED HONDA CORP. CUSTOMER SERVICE & WAS TOLD ALL ELEMENTS HAVE DASH/WINDSHIELD RATTLES IN COLD WEATHER...HONDA CONSIDERS THIS 'NORMAL'...DEALERSHIP NOW STATING THEY HAVE 'DONE ALL THEY CAN'. CAR HAD LESS THAN 3500 MI. AT LAST SERVICE DATE. PROBLEM HAS NEVER BEEN CORRECTED AND DEALER STATES THEY ARE UNSURE IF PROBLEM IS IN THE DASH, WINDSHIELD OR BOTH AREAS. HONDA CUSTOMER SERVICE STATES ONLY OPTION AVAILABLE IS TO TAKE IT TO ANOTHER DEALERSHIP AND 'KEEP TRYING' TO SEE IF ANOTHER DEALER IS WILLING TO TRY TO FIX THE PROBLEM. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026