I find it not bad. I have driven worse but also better. The shift is relatively smooth. Once in a while it is a little stiff to get into first. The throw is a bit long for my liking but all in all its a pretty good tranny.

 

going to jack my own thread here and ask another question. what are some reported/guesstimated 0-60 with this engine/trans combo.

 

I also have the 2.4 / 5-speed combo. I find the shifter very rubbery and "unsporting". Of course I come from a 96 Z28 with the wonderful Tremec T-56 w/ B&M shifter (god that was a sweet tranny), and a '71 'Vette with a (non-original) Tremec TKO 5-speed. Compared to those the HHR shifter is unimpressive to say the least.

I also had an occasional problem getting into 1st gear when the car was stopped, but that has gotten much better with some miles on it.

I'm interested in getting a better shifter and was looking at the TWM. Anyone here have that shifter? What worries me is that they say it's 2" lower and the stock knob is already fairly far down.

 

I have the TWM.....look at my post above and follow the 2 links.....They have alot of good info.....regards

 

I have the getrag n no problems cept when its below 45. Very hard to shift til fluids warm up. Just shifter cable problems but thats from my driving habbits

 

Ok, I bought my 2006 HHR new with the 2.4liter motor and manual transmission....196,000 miles and still have the original clutch....shifts as smooth as when it was new......have a cold air intake on the engine...the thing hauls...and 26miles to the gal.....just sharin'

 

Our 07, is a five-speed truck, with just a little over 100,000 miles.

The basic design of the Getrag five-speed manual has been around for ages. My '88 Beretta GT had the same basic transmission. Of course, the design has been updated and strengthened over the years, so it's a sound design.

The shifter is ok for a stock, cable operated unit but, admittedly, that's not saying much if, like an earlier poster, your benchmark was the shifter on a T56. No doubt, an HHR SS shifter or maybe the one out of a Cobalt SS would be better.

I have found that changing from the stock GM transaxle lubricant to Red Line MTL (a synthetic GL4 gear lube) improved shift feel noticeably.

Also, regardless of what GM says, the trans lube ought to be changed once in a while. I've done it twice in the six years we've owned the truck.

 

no issues and great shifting

 

It's been a year and a half since I checked in here and since then, I needed to change my gear lube about 8 months ago. After talking with Lake Speed Jr. who works for Joe Gibbs Racing's lubricant brand, "Driven", I decided to try a switch from the Red Line MTL I was using to Driven STF. The name stands for "Standard Transmission Fluid" and, after running the stuff for 10,000 miles darn if I haven't finally found a gear lube for manuals needing a low vis oil that is as good as the ester-based Red Line. Additionally, the STF formulation uses a different base stock which resulted from some new technology developed by the chemical side of Chevron call mPAO.

So far, STF has offered the improved shift feel I had with the premium synthetic gear lube I was using before. Based on that, I'm going to switch the other manual trans I have that uses a low vis. lube to from Red Line to Driven STF and see how it works in a TREMEC T5.