Man w/a Panel
#1
Man w/a Panel
Took an Amtrak from Albany, NY to Chicago. Had a mechanic do a PPI, received a bunch of photos from the small-time selling dealer, and ran the VIN for wrecks, etc. Walked out of a cab and into a mess. The PO had business stickers on the sides, rear hatch, and roof. All were removed but the roof. HHR was painted to match the business vehicles - I thought the dark grey was factory - door sills and under the hood told a different story. The pulled stickers took small strips of paint with them, the driver's side bumper clip to the fender was broken so the panel gap is large. The carpets are heavily stained as are the seats, the steering wheel looks like it was owned by a gorilla wearing 60 grit gloves - and it was smoked in (I'm allergic). Great introduction to HHR land, eh? But it runs great, tranny is tight, all cylinders tested at 134 psi, the doors work, the stereo is nice, the cruise is functional, and it brought me home w/o any issues. So it's a keeper! And I will be on this forum a lot - asking dumb questions while bringing this neglected box of bolts back to presentable life. With member help of course. Looking for a set of 4 rally wheels (red of course) with mini moon caps - wife sells vintage clothing so this vehicle has a purpose and has to look the part.
#4
Old Blue - those wheels look great! I found them on the Wheel Vintiques site. $100 each plus a bit more with caps. However their pricing profiles are confusing. $100 for raw wheels, and the same $ for primed or finished in silver. $50 more to paint red. I want to apply my own red and was hoping for a cost break if they were raw (no primer, no finish). They won't budge and it's not logical to me. Where did you acquire yours?
#6
Hey Old Blue - so you have an extra set of 4 w/caps you are interested in selling? Would shipping be an option for you?
FYI - I'm not in Ithaca - moved. My current/new address is Richmondville, NY. If someone can make that change after "Location" that would be cool.
FYI - I'm not in Ithaca - moved. My current/new address is Richmondville, NY. If someone can make that change after "Location" that would be cool.
#9
Here are a few updates bringing the "Project" to life. Used an effective general cleaner and a steam wand to clean up the front seats, armrests, and the new (used) rear seat. Put a plastic wire wheel in a cordless (dipped in the same cleaner ) drill which removed all the marks and stains in the cargo area. Also brought home a spare that fits in the rear well in place of the apparent one-night-stand compressor. Pulled the nasty steering wheel and installed a new (used) one. Installed a new (used) rear-view mirror, new spark plugs, new motor and cabin filter (never saw anything as dirty!) - the interior recycle air button would light up then immediately go out due to that nasty filter. Now the recycle button stays on and the defroster rocks! Still looking for an appropriate wheel upgrade, a nice set of running boards, and two functional fog lights. Hubcap (used) came in today to replace one having a hole in it. Also found on the Summit Racing eBay site the Wheel Vintiques HHR ralleye wheels they sell w/free shipping saving $47 per wheel which makes the caps and rings affordable. Also missing the rear wiper motor & blade - just a rubber plug where the motor shaft should penetrate the sheet metal. If it rises above 20 degrees I will pull off the rear hatch interior panel and see what's missing. Bought Cloyes kits for the timing chain and balance shaft, new torque yield bolts for the camshaft, looking now for a water pump and all required gaskets. Will be taking a day off to install all this stuff. Bought what I think is a stealthy fix for the "wooly" intake duct and will custom fit a rear bumper protector made for a another marque. Post results when these 2 parts are installed.
Last edited by housewiz; 02-17-2018 at 09:40 PM.
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