Doctuh

My car is in the shop to get multiple repairs and upgrades installed. Among the upgrades is a lower billet grille. The dealer says that the plastic shield in the above TSB costs $25, is a special order part, and would take a week or more to get. However, they claim that it gives no additional benefit beyond the lower billet grille itself. What is real here?

Also getting done today is: replacing air filter and replacing a front side marker light bulb. I asked the service writer to have the technician show me how to do these as he worked on my car, so I could do it myself next time. Instead, they completed both without me aid said they'd TELL me all about it when I picked up the car. I have read thorough explanations about each of these on here - what I needed was a hands-on demonstration. I told the service writer they need not bother TELLING me about this, and that the matter was closed. Where can I go if I want to someone actually to SHOW me next time?

Additional work at this visit is getting a squeak fixed in the back (misaligned rear hatch), a rattle in the dashboard (foreign material like air fresheners dropped behind the dash by former owner), and fixing the rear windshield washer (secured a loose hose on the washer fluid tank). They also are installing all my aftermarket stuff: dual-tone horns, lower billet grille, short shifter, LED tail lights, and rear sway bar.

EDIT - I forgot to mention that they also fixed one of the rear seats where the leather upholstery wasn't attached to the plastic seat back which serves as a fold-down floor. Service writer said that someone took it apart and put it back together wrong. They assembled it properly.

BTW, they are charging me $625 out-the-door for all of this. They said that it will take 13 hours of labor, but they are keeping the price down to earn my continued business.

Comments, anyone?

Snoopy

Good for you, Doctuh......

The total of the labor charges sound reasonable, if all the service does total 13 hours. You would be paying apx. $50/hr. By any chance did you notice the labor rate that is usually posted in the service area? That would help you make a judgment call on the cost! But all of your service and mods considered.....not to bad of a price.

The self maintenance is probably easier to learn from a demonstration, as you indicated. Maybe get together with other HHR owners in your area (I'm sure I saw others listed from your area). Oh, and the air filter isn't a tough job, once you do it. If you have an Owners Manual, a procedure, with pictures, is described. This forum also has an online Owners Manual in the "sticky" section. Plus the link provided by the previous poster has a pretty good demonstration.

Oh, the condenser protection you mentioned.....yeah, IMO it is kind of useless (based on its design) when you have a lower grille. But with a billet, something has a better chance to penetrate the openings and damage the condenser. You could ADD some screening which would provide additional protection.


Good Luck....

Doctuh

This dealer's standard shop labor rate is $85 per hour. When I first went there to have keys cut and programmed, the service manager said he'd do any work on my car for only $65 an hour. Some of the service writers weren't informed about that, so I had to get labor charges corrected on some work they subsequently did on the car, replacing a damaged mirror assembly and broken remote control mirror switch. The service department is actually discounting further than that $65 an hour for the current job. I'm pleasantly surprised.

I already read the owner's manual and all the pictures on here regarding the two maintenance issues. I tried to change the air filter myself, and got as far as getting everything but one hose off. That's why I specifically asked to see how they did it.

jay loukakis

for the amount you spent at that dealer you could have taken a vacation and driven to California and had all that done from hhr owners here for the cost of a beer.

HipHotRod

Get leveling springs installed -Rear sway bar installed - Vinyl headlamp eyebrows - Vinyl side marker wrap -and the Official SoCal Improper Rear Wiper Delete. All while you wait and I dont drink - That's how we roll.

On the hatch issue - I have them too and found a fix. On each side of the hatch opening, there are two black plastic striker plates. They have a single torx bolt sized T27 and have incremental adjustment settings. Loosen the bolts on each side to where you can move the strikers all the way toward the rear of the car (outward). Then carefully close the hatch - open and see where the strikers are positioned. I moved them back one click each and closed the hatch again more forcefully. Then I tightened the bolts back and drove it. HUGE difference but it took 346326 try's to get it perfect. I was amazed on how misaligned the hatch was. Scratch one of the list.

Doctuh

I got the car back from the dealer, with everything fixed and all mods installed. It is SO QUIET now, since both rattles are fixed. The handling seems better, even in routine driving. Could the TTR rear sway bar be responsible for the new feeling that the car is glued to the road? The IPCW red LED tail lights are pretty, and I drove behind my HHR in another vehicle and noted that the lights are very bright. The Fiamm dual horns are much louder than the single stock horn. The shifts from the TWM short shifter were short and crisp, with only minor problems until a SUDDEN TOTAL FAILURE detailed on another thread. I have decided that I don't need the plastic shield mentioned above in addition to my lower billet grille. Now all I want a drivable vehicle!

Edit - The short shifter was fixed the next day at no additional cost. I then drove it 450 miles without incident, and I really like the shortened shifts and small, heavy shift knob from TWM. My hand isn't running into the upholstery any more when I shift into 2nd gear!

sleeper

Doctuh-

Do keep in mind to periodically check the Sway Bar bolts for tightness. (proper Torque 45 ft lbs.)
They can work loose a bit after twisting etc.

The Sway bar is a Big help, but you would be surprised at what also adding Cobalt SS rear springs to 'level it' will do..

PS: I have used Red LocTite on my TTR rear bar bolts & it has never loosened to date.. FYI..

Doctuh

I have to get the HHR up a steep driveway. Therefore, I can't "level" the car, since what this really means is LOWER it. My S2000, and girlfriend's Z4, have to be parked on the street at her house. The HHR is the only vehicle we have that can go up that driveway now, and I don't want to risk it!

solman98

I though this was a free item to those that requested it? Agreed, with the billet lower grill, not needed though.

Air filter is a pain, but maybe 30min work. SIde marker light is very simple, remove the 3 fasteners in the front of the wheel well and reach in, untwist the socket and remove. It is indeed that simple, 10 min maybe....

THose items all together would take 2 hrs to do. Each is extremely simple to do.



Personally, IMO you overpaid by a long shot. If they are keeping the price down to keep your business, I'd hate to see what they would charge otherwise.

I'm guessing you were out of warranty on the other stuff?

Doctuh

Correct, all I have now is the power train warranty. Its bumper-to-bumper warranty expired due to mileage during previous ownership. I bought my HHR used in January with 57K miles on it.

I believe that the dealer charged lots of time to install the aftermarket items due to lack of experience with them. They charged very little for the repairs and maintenance items done at the same visit. In retrospect, an aftermarket specialty shop probably would have been less expensive for the modifications. Overall, I am probably done adding aftermarket items, so this will be a one-time issue. Service and repair, where this dealer consistently keeps costs down, will continue for as long as I own it. This is the shop willing to do the sunroof repair for $278, which is much lower than I've seen at any other dealer.

The plastic shield is a technical service bulletin (TSB), not to be confused with a recall. A TSB documents a frequent problem and its solution, but has nothing to do with who will pay for it.