knelson1969

I found after giving the HHR to my wife and driving my wifes Smart car that is now mine. it has the same problem. I have done some research and found a product that works for the Smart and would also work for the HHR but I am not sure anyone including my wife would want these on their HHR, however it does save on fuel and gives better handling.
They are not for every one, but check them out they are really cheap and if you don't like them they come off with out damaging the paint at least I have been told that.

http://airtab.com/en/

here is what they look like on my smart They can be painted to match your car.

http://s1216.photobucket.com/albums/...%20Generators/

IMO once they are painted to match your HHR they might look pretty cool? I don't know
as I haven't seen one with them on yet. In fact my Smart is the first one I seen with them on in person I don't think they look to bad considering my ride is a Smart LOL.
the benefit that I get out of them make it well worth the 2.85 each that I spent on them.
the fuel savings alone would have made me buy them but I got them to give the Smart
better stability on the Turnpike for when the HHR SS's blows past Me. LOL
the other benefit is it helps keep your Vehicle hatch and rear cleaner when applied per the instructions.

IgottaWoody

They would look good on the back underside like moon was looking to do.......

LawDog88

I have a Shadow Edition HHR and it has a spoiler on the back, however its not the SS spoiler, but is attached all the way across the top of the back hatch sitting just above the rear window "mister". I will have to agree with the other dudes here and say that yes, it attracts dirt like a magnet, but, it's also just a fact that you just have to eat the OCD urge to keep it looking showroom clean for more than 5 minutes.

hyperv6

Car wagons have been like this for 100 years. It is a aerodynamic way of life. It is just something that when you buy a vehicle like this you need to deal with or not buy a black one.

They put a wiper on the rear window of this kind of body style for a reason.

knelson1969

I noticed that you claim this is something that we have to live with,
I disagree if you don't mind the look of the air tabs or other Vortex Generators, while they help with our aerodynamic issue at hand as a pleasant side effect you will enjoy slightly better fuel economy and better highway stability in high crosswind situations.
That is if once again you don't mind they way the air tabs or other Vortex Generators look on your rig. As far as my Smart car I could now remove my rear wiper if I wanted to. as the rear of my car is no longer getting any dirtier than the rest of the car.

hyperv6

Yes and if you put a magnet on your fuel line you will get 100 MPG too!

Vortex generators have been around for years. THey have been used to limited effect on race cars so I will say there are places where they do work.

The issue you face is the aero effect puts dirt on the back in speed less than 15 MPG. My car can have leaf debris just going up my street a low speed. You Vortec deals need more speed to have any effect.


The problem you also face is the air from under the car. THis is where most of the dirt comes from. In the past many old wagon's in the 60's used a mud flap that was the width of the car. This kept the air from under the car down and kept some but not all the dirt off.

My point is if you votex tabs worked as you think they do they would be on every suv and car out there.

Think of it this way. If GM was looking to gain more Miles on the Volt would they have spent hours on wind tunnel time on the trailing edge of the rear bumper of the car when all they has to do is install these tabs?

The bottom line is if these things worked as well as they are claimed they would be on every vehicle in some way. The MFG would have found a way to design them in to they look like they belonged and at this point are willing do anything to pick up the MPG they can.

So I will have to disagree this would solve the issue at hand. In other words we will have to agree to disagree.

Might note the Aero tricks on the Volt like the sharp edge on the bumper at the rear. It is counter to the Vortex tab and picks up 7 mile more range on the battery.

The last major racer to use these tabs was back in the 70's that I recall. They never really did last too long. They found other ways to cut drag that is now being used on most modern cars.

I will not say they will not work at all but their effects are limited and you will still get dirt on a HHR. Note for the real effect on trucks and campers they even show them lined not just on the roof but around the entire back. Top and sides.

knelson1969

yes you are right about the speed issue I hear them starting to make noise at about 30mph
I plan on adding some more to my Smart mainly because of the handling and I don't care what it looks like (its a Smart car) I will say that If I didn't give my HHR to my wife I don't think I would not want these on my HHR either as they just wouldn't look right, but if I had put these on my hhr I would think they would help along with the other ideas keeping the car waxed etc.
The HHR is such a nice looking ride I cant help but to want to keep it looking its best.

hyperv6

The question you must ask yourselve is this. If they are so good why is only a place on the web making the claims and selling them.

If the results were so great every Semi would have them and hybrid car.

There is a lot of snake oil products that use things that work but not always in ways that they always work.

Buy and choose carefully. It may save you some money.

These tabs do work but how they are used, where they are used, conditions they are used and the type of vehicle they are used on make a difference.

When a auto MFG is spending a billion dollars to make a electric car and these are not on it it should send up a red flag.

Sorry for being a skeptic but I have seen many a failed product over the years and a lot of money wasted.

IgottaWoody

No car manufacturer would mont these things on any car that they expected to sell to the general public....unlesss they werre redesigned to NOT look ugly...would YOU buy a new car that had these plastered all over it? Lets face it, people are more concerned on how the car looks then anything else..in general(not including the performance models of course, we buy them for power).And no trucker i know would ever have these stuck all over his $100k pride and joy.He would be compared to those people that have a zillion ornaments stuck everywhere...anothe example..spoilers are proven to work..why are THESE not on every vehicle and truck? Answer=$$$$$$. And I doubt very much each and every model was run thru a wind chamber....maybe a puter program, which is based on calculated guesses ( well it did this on this car so...and we know ait travels like blah blah)
Dealer cars are so full of compromises its a wonder they can make any claims!

knelson1969

I agree these or any Vortex generators are not for everyone.
You can say what you want about these or any Vortex Generators, however from where I am standing it would seem that you haven't tried them. So your opinion is just that.
My point is based on fact not opinion " these generators properly installed and others like them will make your vehicle less dirty." the side effect of having these generators on your ride may or may not be something that you can live with, slightly better fuel economy,better handling at highway speeds, the only negative side effect I can think of is the looks of these Vortex generators.
I have a whopping 40 bucks in my Generators and I will need a total of 40 more dollars worth to finish of my car that a total of 80 bucks. if the only improvement made is better handling and a cleaner car I consider it money well spent.
I am not selling these I have no vested interest in them, in fact don't buy them as I am sure the price would go up if everyone jumped on board.
I just know that any problem can be solved or at least made better with minor changes.
I would appreciate it if you didn't just assume everyone is gullible and falls for anything. I happen to be a ASE certified mechanic with over 25 years experience. So thanks for the insult way to go.

I don't believe in mechanic in a can or snake oil. However once in a while there comes a product that makes sense and its cheap.Try them then post your findings until then your opinion is just a lot of hot air.
But thanks for looking out for my life savings of 80 bucks.