2007 HONDA ELEMENT Owners Manual

Tap the brake or clutch pedal
lightly with your f oot. The
CRUISE CONTROL indicator on
the instrument panel goes out.
When the vehicle slows to the
desired speed, press the SET/
DECEL button.
Resting your f oot on the brake or
clutch pedal causes cruise control to
cancel.
You can increase the set cruising
speed in any of these ways:
Push on the accelerator pedal.
Accelerate to the desired cruising
speed, then press the SET/
DECEL button. Press and hold the RES/ACCEL
button. When you reach the
desired cruising speed, release the
button.
You can decrease the set cruising
speed in any of these ways: Press and hold the SET/DECEL
button. Release the button when
you reach the desired speed. To increase your speed in very
small amounts, tap the RES/
ACCEL button. Each time you do
this, the vehicle will speed up
about 1 mph (1.6 km/h).
When climbing a steep hill, the
automatic transmission may
downshif t to hold the set speed.
To slow down in very small
amounts, tap the SET/DECEL
button. Each time you do this, the
vehicle will slow down about 1
mph (1.6 km/h).
Even with cruise control turned on,
you can still use the accelerator
pedal to speed up f or passing. Af ter
completing the pass, take your foot
of f the accelerator pedal. The vehicle
will return to the set cruising speed.
Changing the Set Speed
Cruise Control
134

You can cancel cruise control in any
of these ways:Tap the brake or clutch pedal.
Push the CANCEL button on the
steering wheel.
Pushthecruisecontrolmaster
button. When you push the CANCEL button,
or tap the brake or clutch pedal, the
system will remembers the
previously set cruising speed. To
return to that speed, accelerate to
above25mph(40km/h)thenpress
and release the RES/ACCEL button.
The CRUISE CONTROL indicator
will come on. The vehicle will
accelerate to the same cruising
speed as bef ore.
Pressing the cruise control master
button turns the system off and
erases the previous cruising speed.
Cruise Control
Cancelling Cruise Control
Resuming the Set Speed
Features
135
RES/ACCEL BUTTON
SET/DECEL BUTTONCANCEL
BUTTON

Bef ore you begin driving your
vehicle, you should know what
gasoline to use and how to check the
levels of important f luids. You also
need to know how to properly store
luggage or packages. The
inf ormation in this section will help
you. If you plan to add any
accessories to your vehicle, please
read the information in this section
first..............................
Break-in Period .138
.................
Fuel Recommendation .138
.........
Service Station Procedures .139
....................................
Ref ueling .139
Opening and Closing the
.......................................
Hood .140
...................................
Oil Check .141
.............
Engine Coolant Check .141
...............................
Fuel Economy .142
...
Accessories and Modif ications .143
.............................
Carrying Cargo .145
Bef ore Driving
Bef ore Driving
137

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).
During this period:Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid
acceleration.
Do not change the oil until the
scheduled maintenance time.
Avoidhardbrakingforthefirst
200 miles (300 km).
Do not tow a trailer.
You should also f ollow these
recommendations with an
overhauled or exchanged engine, or
when the brakes are replaced. Your vehicle is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 87 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy metallic rapping
noise that can lead to engine damage.
You may hear a knocking noise from
the engine if you drive the vehicle at
low engine speed (below about 1,000
rpm) in a higher gear. To stop this,
raise the engine speed by shif ting to
a lower gear.
We recommend quality 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.
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 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 % ethanol by
volume and up to 15 % MTBE by
volume. Do not use gasoline
containing methanol.
On vehicles with manual transmission
Break-in Period, Fuel Recommendation
Break-in Period
Fuel Recommendation
138

Close the fuel fill door.
Screw
the fuel fill cap back on
until it clicks at least once. If you
do not properly tighten the cap,
the malfunction indicator lamp
maycomeon(seepage ).You
will also see a ‘‘CHECK FUEL
CAP’’ message on the inf ormation
display. even though the tank is not f ull,
there may be a problem with your
vehicle’s f uel vapour recovery
system. The system helps keep
f uel vapours f rom going into the
atmosphere. Try f illing at another
pump. If this does not f ix the
problem, consult your dealer. Stop f illing the tank af ter the f uel
nozzle automatically clicks of f . Do
not try to ‘‘top of f ’’ the tank. Leave
some room f or the f uel to expand
with temperature changes.
Remove the f uel f ill cap slowly.
You may hear a hissing sound as
pressure inside the tank escapes.
Place the cap in the holder on the
fuel fill door. Park with the driver’s side closest
to the service station pump.
Outside of the vehicle, open the
f uel f ill door by pulling its notched
edge.
For f urther important f uel-related
inf ormation, please ref er to your
.
If you notice any undesirable
operating symptoms, try another
service station or switch to another
brand of gasoline.
1.
2.
3.4.
5.
6.
232
If the f uel nozzle keeps clicking of f
Ref ueling
Quick Start Guide
Fuel Recommendation, Service Station Procedures
Bef ore Driving
139
Stop the engine, and keep
heat, sparks, and flame away.
Handle fuel only outdoors.
Wipe up spills immediately.
Gasoline is highly flammable
and explosive. You can be
burned or seriously injured
when handling fuel.

Pull the support rod out of its clip
and insert the end into the hole in
the hood.
If the hood latch handle moves
stif f ly, or if you can open the hood
without lifting the handle, the
mechanism should be cleaned and
lubricated.
Park the vehicle, and set the
parking brake. Pull the hood
release handle located under the
lower lef t corner of the dashboard.
The hood will pop up slightly.
Put your f ingers under the f ront
edge of the hood near the center.
The hood latch handle is above
the ‘‘H’’ logo. Push this handle up
to release it. Lift up the hood. Lif t it up slightly to remove the
support rod f rom the hole. Put the
support rod back into its holding clip.
Lower the hood to about a f oot
(30cm)abovethefender,thenletit
drop. Make sure it is securely
latched.
1.
2.
3.
To Close the Hood:
Opening and Closing the Hood
Service Station Procedures
140
LATCH
HOOD RELEASE HANDLE
SUPPORT ROD
CLIP

Wait a few minutes after turning the
engine off before 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. 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 for
info rmation on adding the proper
coolan t.
Refer to
on page for information
about checking other items on your
vehicle.
If
it is near or below the lower mark,
see on page .
1.
2.
3. 4.
189 192
184
Oil Check
Engine Coolant Check
A dding
Engine Coolant
Owner’s Maintenance
Checks
A dding Engine Oil
Service Station Procedures
Bef ore Driving
141
DIPSTICK
UPPER MARKLOWER MARK RESERVE TANK
MAX
MIN