hhrcrafty

I had close to 85,000 on mine when I traded it. There was really nothing wrong with it other than needing brakes, shocks, struts, and possibly new front bearings. That was all accumulated over the course of a couple years driving the hell out of it for my job. Since my job pays for my mileage and essentially my car payment, I decided to just trade over to something I've wanted for a while.

I spent $100 once in four years on a new windshield wiper switch. That part was probably made in Japan or China and had a bad spot on the intermittent function. Other than that, the car ran like a top since I bought it. It was an early build and probably could have had a number of problems, but I was also mindful of how I drove it. Taking time to brake instead of slamming the pads at every light. No jackrabbit starts, no on-ramp chicanery. I just drove it like an economy car and used the cargo space to move a few times.

On my '06 Mustang, there are no auto-headlights, although for some reason the car does know when to turn the cluster backlight on, no external jack for an MP3 player (that came in '07), no oil life monitoring system, and no RDS or satellite data on the radio, yet it can display track names for MP3 CD's. This car stickered for TWICE what I paid for my HHR the same year. The interior is every bit as plasticky as the HHR and the leather seats aren't even heated!

Laco

Good and bad ones in all makes. So far so good with my 07 HHR. In almost 20K of driving and towing it behind our motor home, more if you count the towing miles, it has only been to the deaer for one recall, and several oil changes. I have to say, so far I'm impressed. I can only hope that continues.

DreamHHR

He's not talking about the G6; he's driving the G5 (Pontiac's equivalent to the Chevy Cobalt). I don't think it's being sold in the US. As such, his suspension is essentially the same as the HHR's.

My experience is similar: the only problems I have with mine is the constant flow of parts being replaced on the front end. You name it; it was replaced (rotors, end links, bushing, both struts, one wheel bearing, control arm bushing; I'm lucky that my steering column is still original). In fact, Chevy should use me to field test their suspension setup: they would beef it up and avoid a lot of warranty claims & potential problems with customers.

Overall, I'm pleased with the car because everything else has been rock solid; I do prefer suspension issues over engine/transmission problems.

Yves

pyro panel

ive been a car guy for (all my life)drove lots,built lots,purchased and sold over 150 to date for my company..yet to see any car without issues..we all live in different areas,different driving conditions and we dont all drive the same..for the $$$$,the HHR has been great..i use mine as my sales car..many many miles,when i lowered mine i did replace a few front end items..no big deal..they do wear out!!nuthin lasts forever..its called maintenance..do it all the time stop bein so cheap..one good pot hole will do in any front end,ive got big rigs that snap parts on city streets and those parts are bullitproof...reading some of these posts make me laugh..its a 20 000$ car..u think ur gunna get bullitproof parts for that kind of $$$???dont think so..my trucks run 100 000$ and im still fixin em all thetime..its called MURPHY LAW..STUFF GOES WRONG. maybe jose or manwell had a bad day,lost his wrench used a pair of vise grips,maybe yours was made the friday before cinco demyo..who knows..all i can say is that my 07 panel LT has been a great vehicle (my dad got one too)both have been great..minor issues..to be xpected..you want a reliable mode of transport??get sum roller skates and a big red wagon..(if u dont mind the wind noise)lol

DreamHHR

Considering that I've been living at the same place for 20 years (same road, same commute), and that I've been driving 8 different cars (all below 20K btw) over the years totalling close to 1000000 km in roughly the same conditions, I think that I'm qualified to make a comparative judgement over my somewhat limited sampling.

Before the HHR, I never had to change a front suspension part other than because of normal wear; shocks - yes, after 7-8 years, rotors - yes, usually between 3 & 4 years, alignment - sure, every 2-3 years. I'm concluding that my HHR has a very fragile front suspension compared to all of the other cars that I've owned, and these were not stellar in term of reliability/reputation. Based on the number of complaints, it seems that I'm not alone either.... my Ion has the same issues btw. Design flaw if you ask me. The rest of the car is solid though.

'87 Dodge (Mitsubishi) Colt
'92 Jeep Cherokee
'98 Saturn SL1
'00 Saturn SL1
'03 Malibu
'04 Hyundai Elantra
'07 Saturn Ion
'07 HHR

Yves

dbfruth

As a former owner of a 07 2LT I think the quality is lacking. I traded mine at about 42K miles. I had been to the dealer too many times. I had numerous problems including a defogger with a bad line from the factory, Headliner that had a support piece separate and caused a rattle, Shifter interlock problem, bad fuel injector, warped rotors (several times) bad wheel bearing Twice on the same wheel, bad oil seal on the transmission, numerous rattles some of which I was never able to locate. I know there are problems that I am forgetting at the moment as well.

I wanted to like the car, I loved the looks and the utility and it looked like brand new when I traded it. But having been to the dealer service department 2 dozen times since it was brand new I decided it had to go. I didn't want to make payments on a car that constantly had to go in for service. I traded for a 2009 Ford Fusion and have owned that car for 8 months and have yet to have a problem. I took a beating on the trade in but in hindsight it was worth it to get out from under that car.

pyro panel

yes i agree on the payments on junk..ive had my share and in no way am i trying to bash anyone or there choice of car..all im sayin is that there are so many variables in assembly for instance i have 6 new 08 international trucks..3 were assembled early in the year the others later dates..all same engines/trans/axle/suspention packages..well the 3 early ones are great..no major problems..the other 3 ..1 has needed full top end rebuild..2 has trans issues and the other just hates really hot summer days and runs like a dog..when looking at part/batch numbers the problems ususlly start there..ive come to the conclusion that buying a car is like winning the lotto..your lucky or your not..we always say musta been built on a friday or before a holiday..im sure your local sports favorite has had its share of rejects..no need to give up on the whole team..buy NORTH AMERICAN..your unemployed friends will thank you....

hyperv6

We have G5's and we build them right here. I mis read and thought it was a G6 since hardly anyone bought the G5 here.

I have a buddy with a G5 and has yet to be back to the dealer in over two years.

I do note most problems posted seem to be on 06 and some 07. I know the 08 and 09 all do not have as many miles but even the higher mileage ones have less complaints.

ChevyMgr

With the overall quality of ALL cars now days, I think this quote sums it all up. This thread has served it's purpose and now it's time to say good bye.