Possibly a first time HHR'er
04-03-2012, 07:33 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: 04-03-2012
Location: Northeast GA
Posts: 5
Possibly a first time HHR'er
Hi guys-
I've been searching for a vehicle to replace my Camry as a daily driver. While searching, I have came across a 2007 HHR LS . It has 123K miles and the owner is the original owner. The only accidents it has been in has been in parking lots from other vehicle backing into the owner and she hit a dog once. She has had the damages repaired.
It has some dings on it from her little boy and the back of the seats are scratched with shoe marks from her children as well. It needs all new tires, and there is a clicking noise in the engine. I'm by far not a mechanic and do not know if the clicking is normal on these vehicles (I couldn't hear it while test driving, but could when parked). It also seems as though it may have a slight pull to the left while driving. I do not know if this is being reflected from the bad tires.
I am fairly certain that the struts/sway bar/etc... have not been replaced. I say this because she has let the condition of the tires get so bad, and she had so little gas in the tank that while test driving it, the "Low Fuel" light came on (She knew I was wanting to meet with her to view the vehicle). The only thing she could tell me that she knows for certain that has been replaced was the radiator when she hit the dog.
This is the retail price from two online sources:
Edmunds Private Party"Average" retail - $4,320
KBB Private Party "Good" retail - $6,047
The owner is asking for the payoff price of $5200 but she would accept $5000. Does this seem like a decent price to you owners? Is it high and I should run, or low and should snatch it?
Thanks!
I've been searching for a vehicle to replace my Camry as a daily driver. While searching, I have came across a 2007 HHR LS . It has 123K miles and the owner is the original owner. The only accidents it has been in has been in parking lots from other vehicle backing into the owner and she hit a dog once. She has had the damages repaired.
It has some dings on it from her little boy and the back of the seats are scratched with shoe marks from her children as well. It needs all new tires, and there is a clicking noise in the engine. I'm by far not a mechanic and do not know if the clicking is normal on these vehicles (I couldn't hear it while test driving, but could when parked). It also seems as though it may have a slight pull to the left while driving. I do not know if this is being reflected from the bad tires.
I am fairly certain that the struts/sway bar/etc... have not been replaced. I say this because she has let the condition of the tires get so bad, and she had so little gas in the tank that while test driving it, the "Low Fuel" light came on (She knew I was wanting to meet with her to view the vehicle). The only thing she could tell me that she knows for certain that has been replaced was the radiator when she hit the dog.
This is the retail price from two online sources:
Edmunds Private Party"Average" retail - $4,320
KBB Private Party "Good" retail - $6,047
The owner is asking for the payoff price of $5200 but she would accept $5000. Does this seem like a decent price to you owners? Is it high and I should run, or low and should snatch it?
Thanks!
04-03-2012, 07:41 PM
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: 02-19-2010
Location: Buffalo ny
Posts: 1,529
Hi guys-
I've been searching for a vehicle to replace my Camry as a daily driver. While searching, I have came across a 2007 HHR LS . It has 123K miles and the owner is the original owner. The only accidents it has been in has been in parking lots from other vehicle backing into the owner and she hit a dog once. She has had the damages repaired.
It has some dings on it from her little boy and the back of the seats are scratched with shoe marks from her children as well. It needs all new tires, and there is a clicking noise in the engine. I'm by far not a mechanic and do not know if the clicking is normal on these vehicles (I couldn't hear it while test driving, but could when parked). It also seems as though it may have a slight pull to the left while driving. I do not know if this is being reflected from the bad tires.
I am fairly certain that the struts/sway bar/etc... have not been replaced. I say this because she has let the condition of the tires get so bad, and she had so little gas in the tank that while test driving it, the "Low Fuel" light came on (She knew I was wanting to meet with her to view the vehicle). The only thing she could tell me that she knows for certain that has been replaced was the radiator when she hit the dog.
This is the retail price from two online sources:
Edmunds Private Party"Average" retail - $4,320
KBB Private Party "Good" retail - $6,047
The owner is asking for the payoff price of $5200 but she would accept $5000. Does this seem like a decent price to you owners? Is it high and I should run, or low and should snatch it?
Thanks!
I've been searching for a vehicle to replace my Camry as a daily driver. While searching, I have came across a 2007 HHR LS . It has 123K miles and the owner is the original owner. The only accidents it has been in has been in parking lots from other vehicle backing into the owner and she hit a dog once. She has had the damages repaired.
It has some dings on it from her little boy and the back of the seats are scratched with shoe marks from her children as well. It needs all new tires, and there is a clicking noise in the engine. I'm by far not a mechanic and do not know if the clicking is normal on these vehicles (I couldn't hear it while test driving, but could when parked). It also seems as though it may have a slight pull to the left while driving. I do not know if this is being reflected from the bad tires.
I am fairly certain that the struts/sway bar/etc... have not been replaced. I say this because she has let the condition of the tires get so bad, and she had so little gas in the tank that while test driving it, the "Low Fuel" light came on (She knew I was wanting to meet with her to view the vehicle). The only thing she could tell me that she knows for certain that has been replaced was the radiator when she hit the dog.
This is the retail price from two online sources:
Edmunds Private Party"Average" retail - $4,320
KBB Private Party "Good" retail - $6,047
The owner is asking for the payoff price of $5200 but she would accept $5000. Does this seem like a decent price to you owners? Is it high and I should run, or low and should snatch it?
Thanks!
04-03-2012, 07:49 PM
#4
Thread Starter
Join Date: 04-03-2012
Location: Northeast GA
Posts: 5
04-03-2012, 07:51 PM
#5
Senior Member
Join Date: 02-19-2010
Location: Buffalo ny
Posts: 1,529
04-03-2012, 11:23 PM
#6
Deceased
Join Date: 06-30-2010
Location: Kannapolis NC
Posts: 25,739
to the forum RangerXanatos!Ask the owner if you can see the service records and see how often she changed the oil, that tick may be the injectors cycling, or it may the be the engine asking for a much needed oil change.
The 2.2L L61 engine in that model year is "Multi-Port Fuel Injected" instead of the "Direct Injection" system used on the turbocharged SS models, so its pretty quiet at idle compared to an SS, the DI engines do tick like a wind-up clock.
If she'll allow you, take it to a mechanic you trust and get it up on a lift to asses the condition of the suspension components, and make sure to pull the wheels and check the condition of the brake components. Also check the exhaust, especially the "flex pipe" from the manifold to rest of the system, they are a bugger to replace and expensive too.
A good set of tires, as has been pointed out, will set you back around $500...even though the HHR isn't that big, it has big feet. The standard tire size for the LS is 215/55/16 for your reference.
Good luck, run a CarFax if you already haven't and keep us posted. Remember if this one doesn't check out, there are plenty more out there.
04-04-2012, 11:07 AM
#10
Thread Starter
Join Date: 04-03-2012
Location: Northeast GA
Posts: 5
She said her husband takes care of the oil changes at a local repair shop. The last oil change was done either late February or early March. She had the sticker on the window stating the oil change was good for another two months, but only about another 1000 miles. One of the first things she said was that she does have to get oil changes very often and always before the 3 months were up since she drives so much.