We have loved our Honda Element since we bought it back in 2003. Since we are planning on a camping trip at the end of the month, we wanted to bring our Element with us. Today I decided to bring some new life into it.

I went online to see what people have done to make their Hondas more outdoorsy and versatile than they already are. To my surprise, they all did exactly as I would.

So I got started.

Taking out the back seats opens up a huge cargo area. Approximately 4 feet high by 5 feet wide and 5 feet long. Shaped almost like a box as well. Not a lot of wasted space either.

Putting our camping gear in filled the lower half of our Element. I didn’t really like the idea of stacking our stuff though. So out came the wood, saw and screws.

I already had an 8 foot 2×4 sitting around and a piece of plywood. I measured out the plywood for when the driver and passenger seats are leaning back. Then I folded those seats forward, cut another piece of the plywood at about 1.5 feet long. Screwed this board to the five foot board with an old piano hinge so I could fold it over when driving.

It also just so happened that I had five solid wood slats from an old double bed futon frame. Those fit perfectly across as a brace without any cutting.

We had an old 2 inch cheer mat gathering cobwebs. So I cut it to fit on top of the plywood. It looks as if it was made for the car- with the blue matching our interior. I cut another piece of foam for the fold out part. Once laid out, my 6’8″ body fit from end to end comfortably.

All of it is easy to remove as well. Which makes it a great option to camperize only when we need it.

I’m excited about the future camping trip. Our car is ready! My next couple of goals include getting some solar panels to charge our stuff. I’m also planning on building a slide out shelf to be able to use as a work station/counter.

If you have any tips or ideas for our Element, let me know. I’d love to try them out.