By Ryan Hirons
Search for "Good cars for dog owners" today, and you're likely to see a bunch of SUVs, a couple of wagons, or maybe a few hatchbacks that happen to be handy for carrying a dog as a byproduct of their design.
What about a car built just for dog owners, though? With 42.6% of American households reportedly having at least one dog, there’s no shortage of potential buyers, yet it’s something you don’t see very often. Honda did try it once, though…
The Honda Dog Friendly Element
For the 2010 model year, you could walk into your Honda dealer and buy a Honda Dog Friendly Element. No, seriously, that was the official name of the model.
It came with a pretty extensive list of neat extras designed to make getting a pup in and out of the Element a super easy process, and keep them comfortable on the ride to the dog park, too. It even got some neat badges, so you could flex on everyone in the parking lot once you’re there.
What Made It ‘Dog-Friendly’?
To really ramp up the ‘Dog Friendly’ nature of the Element, this package brought a literal truckload of accessories aimed purely at improving your dog’s comfort and making them easier to transport. First, getting your pooch in the trunk was incredibly easy thanks to a stowable ramp designed to hook directly onto the lower element of the split-folding trunk door.
Once in the back, your dog had a bed designed to fit the trunk of the Element perfectly. It was housed in a mesh dog crate to keep a pet comfortably in place on the move. Tucked next to the bed was a spill-resistant water bowl, while an electric fan helped to keep your pup cool during the ride.
The dog-loving touches extended well beyond the trunk, too. Rubber floor mats with a dog-bone pattern were fitted throughout the cabin, along with special rear seat covers that matched the fabric used for the dog bed.
Rounding out the package were some neat extras, including an Element-branded leash and collar, dog tag, and a tote bag, just to show everyone on your walk whose Dog Friendly Element was parked over there. We do feel it was a missed opportunity for some neat dog toys, though, like maybe a squeaky toy in the shape of Honda's "H" emblem.
How Much Did It Cost, And What Are They Worth Now?
Although named the Dog Friendly Element, this wasn’t a standalone model in its own right, but rather a dealer-fit option package that could be added to any LX or EX model as an optional extra for the 2010 model year, or retro-fitted to any existing 2007 onwards if you already owned an Element. The package retailed at $995, on top of the $20,525 base price of the SUV. Pretty good value, we think. Although a rare option and incredibly hard to find for sale, these Dog Friendly models don’t appear to dramatically affect the values of used Honda Elements equipped with them today.
A used Element costs around $6,000 to $12,000, depending on the vehicle's age and condition. Expect the Dog Friendly package to add a few hundred dollars at most to that if it’s already fitted, or you could look to track some of the accessories down separately. We suspect that wouldn't be the easiest of tasks, though, especially if you want the full set, including the badges. Our attempts have been fruitless on the usual second-hand buying sites, so you may have to go through an Element owner's group for that one.
Why The Element?
Before the Dog Friendly package became available, the Honda Element was already a hit with dog owners. So much so that dogcars.com named it the ‘Dog Car of the Year’ in 2007, and who is to argue with that level of authority?
Contributing to that award was the easy-clean urethane floor, a 74.6 cubic feet cargo space with the rear seats removed, and its split-opening trunk, making it easy to get dogs in and out.
Sources: Honda
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This article originally appeared on CarBuzz and is republished here with permission.
