Great utilitarian vehicle at a good price.

My friend and I both bought new cars last year. We both do a lot of mountain bike riding and snow-boarding, but I also needed a work rig for hauling around tools and big dirty parts. He got an Xterra and I payed several thousand less for an Element (EX MT 4WD). My friend always makes fun of my Element for the way it looks and for not being a real off road vehicle. Oddly, every time we do something together, it always makes more sense to take my car.
When we go riding, we always take the element because we can just fold the seats up and stand the bikes up in the back with a rope tying them to the side. In his car we would have to lie the bikes on their sides which could cause damage to the bikes. Although the element isn't an off-roader, it does just fine on the rough forest service roads we use to get to the trail heads, and we don't need to worry about getting mud from the bike tires on the floors and upholstery. When we go snow-boarding, the wet equipment on the way home doesn't pose a threat to the interior, and with the Real Time 4WD, I've never driven anything that does better in the snow. For longer trips, the Element always gets much better gas milage than the Xterra. In fact, since I got my Element, I don't think I have ever even ridden in his Xterra. My friend can laugh at my car all he wants, but he'll be doing it with his Xterra sitting in the garage on the weekends, and getting 17 MPG while he drives to work during the week.
For work, the suicide doors make loading and unloading easier than in any other car I have used. If need be, 4 people can ride in the Element with all the leg-room they could possibly want. As an added bonus, I can take my dogs with me all the time. They can easily step in through the side doors, there is nothing in back for them to destroy, and fur doesn't have anything to stick too, so I can just sweep it up.
This car has been perfect for me, but I can see how a family could get annoyed at always having to unbuckle their seat belts, and open the front doors every time passengers need to get in or out of the back. I test drove the automatic Element, and power was lacking a little bit, but it's fine with the stick-shift. The Element Isn't for everyone, but for my needs, there's nothing better.