2003 HONDA ELEMENT key

All doors and the hatch lock when
youpushdownthelocktabonthe
driver’s door, or lock the driver’s
door from the outside with the key.
Only the driver’s door unlocks when
you use the key or the lock tab. To
unlock the f ront passenger’s door,
use the master door lock switch or
the lock tab on the f ront passenger’s
door.The Element has no center pillars
between front and rear seats, and
the rear doors pivot at the rear.
The rear door handle is located in
the rear door edge. The rear door
canbeopenedonlywhenthefront
door is open. Pull the handle to open
the rear door.
To close the doors when both f ront
and rear doors are open, close the
rear door first, then the front door.
The f ront door cannot be latched
without f irst closing the rear door.
Closing the rear door on the f ront
door will damage both doors.
Keys and Locks
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Rear Doors
88

CONT INUED
You can lock or unlock the hatch in
any of these ways:Useyourmasterkeytolockand
unlock the hatch.
Turnthekeyclockwisetolockthe
hatch, and counterclockwise to
unlock it. Lock the hatch by pushing down
the lock tab on the driver’s door
(see page ), or by using the
master key in the driver’s door
lock.
Lock or unlock the hatch with the
master door lock switch.
With the hatch unlocked, open it by
pulling the handle and lif ting up.
To close the hatch, lower it, then
press down on the back edge.
When both the hatch and tailgate are
open, the hatch cannot be latched
without f irst closing the tailgate.
87
Keys and Locks
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Hatch
89

See page for information on
cargo loading. Keep the hatch closed
at all times while driving to avoid
damaging the hatch, and to prevent
exhaust gas from getting into the
interior. Seeon page .
Youcanopenthetailgateonlywhen
the hatch is open. To open the
tailgate, slide the lock lever to the
lef t and swing down the tailgate. To
close the tailgate, lif t it up and push
it f irmly until it latches.
Bef ore closing the tailgate, make
sure the hatch is raised. Closing the
tailgate on the lowered hatch can
damage the hatch and the tailgate. See page for information on
cargo loading. Keep the tailgate and
the hatch closed at all times while
driving to avoid damaging them, and
to prevent exhaust gas f rom getting
into the interior. See
on page .
60 60
167
167
Keys and Locks
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Carbon Monoxide
Hazard Tailgate
Carbon
Monoxide Hazard
90

Open the glove box by pulling the
bottom of the handle. Close it with a
f irm push. Lock or unlock the glove
box with the master key. Glove Box
Keys and Locks
Inst rument s and Cont rols91
An open glove box can cause
serious injury to your passenger
inacrash,evenifthe
passenger is wearing the seat
belt.
Always keep the glove box
closed while driving.

If you leave any door open with the
keynotintheignitionswitch,the
ceiling light will go of f af ter three
minutes.
The ceiling light (with the switch in
the center position) comes on when
you remove the key f rom the ignition
switch. If you do not open a door, the
light f ades out in about 30 seconds.
The ceiling light has a three-position
switch. In the OFF position, the light
does not come on. In the center
position, the ceiling light comes on
when you open any door. Af ter all
doors are closed tightly, the light
f ades out in about 30 seconds. In the
ON position, the ceiling light stays
on continuously. The ceiling light (with the switch in
the center position) also comes on
when you unlock the door with the
key, the lock tab on the driver’s door,
or the master door lock switch. Turn on the spotlight by pushing the
lens. Push the lens again to turn it
of f . You can use the spotlights at all
times.
On EX models
Ceiling L ight Spotlights
Interior Lights
Inst rument s and Cont rols114
ON
OFF DOOR ACTIVATED

If the engine still does not start,
press the accelerator pedal all the
way down and hold it there while
starting in order to clear f looding.
As bef ore, keep the ignition key in
the START (III) position f or no
more than 15 seconds. Return to
step 5 if the engine does not start.
If it starts, lif t your f oot of f the
accelerator pedal so the engine
does not race.
If the engine does not start within
15 seconds, or starts but stalls
right away, repeat step 4 with the
accelerator pedal pressed half-way
down. If the engine starts, release
pressure on the accelerator pedal
so the engine does not race. Without touching the accelerator
pedal, turn the ignition key to the
START (III) position. If the engine
does not start right away, do not
hold the key in START (III) f or
more than 15 seconds at a time.
Pause f or at least 10 seconds
bef ore trying again.
Apply the parking brake.
In cold weather, turn of f all
electrical accessories to reduce
the drain on the battery.
Make sure the shif t lever is in
Park. Press on the brake pedal. Push the clutch pedal down all the
way. START (III) does not
f unction unless the clutch pedal is
pressed.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.6.
Manual Transmission:
Automatic Transmission:
Driving
Starting the Engine
174

An engine is harder to start in cold
weather. The thinner air f ound at
high altitude above 8,000 f eet
(2,400 meters) adds to the problem.
Use the f ollowing procedure:Turn of f all electrical accessories
to reduce the drain on the battery.
Push the accelerator pedal half-
way to the f loor and hold it there
while starting the engine. Do not
hold the ignition key in START
(III) f or more than 15 seconds.
When the engine starts, release
the accelerator pedal gradually as
the engine speeds up and smooths
out. If the engine fails to start in step 2,
push the accelerator pedal to the
f loor and hold it there while you
try to start the engine for no more
than 15 seconds. If the engine
does not start, return to step 2.
3.
2. 1. Starting in Cold Weather at High
A ltitude (A bove 8,000 f eet/
2,400 meters)
Starting the Engine
Driving175

µ
µ Use Neutral if you
need to restart a stalled engine, or if
it is necessary to stop brief ly with
the engine idling. Shif t to Park posi-
tion if you need to leave the vehicle
f or any reason. Press on the brake pe-
dal when you are moving the shif t
lever from Neutral to another gear.
If you have done all of the above and
still cannot move the lever out of
Park, see Shif t Lock Release on page
. Your vehicle has a reverse lockout so
you cannot accidentally shif t to
Reverse when the vehicle speed
exceeds 5 mph (8 km/h).
You must also press the release
button to shift into Park. To avoid
transmission damage, come to a
complete stop bef ore shif ting into
Park. The shif t lever must be in Park
bef ore you can remove the key f rom
the ignition switch. To shif t to Reverse
f rom Park, see the explanation under
Park. To shif t to Reverse f rom
Neutral, come to a complete stop and
then shift. Press the release button
bef ore shif ting into Reverse f rom
Neutral. If you cannot shif t to Reverse when
the vehicle is stopped, press the
brake pedal, and slowly shift to
Neutral. Then press the release
button, and shift to Reverse.
If there is a problem in the reverse
lockout system, or your vehicle’s
battery is disconnected or goes dead,
you cannot shif t to Reverse. (Ref er
to Shif t Lock Release on page ).
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Neutral (N)
Reverse (R)
Automatic Transmission
Driving180