They are designed that way. They get blue/HID color because the lens is tinted. to make up for the loss in light from the tinting they run the filament brighter which makes for more luminosity at the cost of longevity.
So while they are a legitimate headlamp improvement, they are a costly one as you will need to replace your bulbs more frequently.

As for Hella, I highly reccomend them and use them. They manufacture OEM parts and have true HID kits (i.e. not an HID ballast and bulb but a full turn-key assembly). For winters in canada and massachussetts I had hella projector fogs and driving lights (not HID) and holy crap they were awesome. That was 6 years ago and I haven't replaced any bulbs yet and they still work great.

Also they make the LED strips like in the audi's and you can put them on your HHR (I'm trying to figure out where that would require the least cutting).

Seth

 

Wow an hour!! takes me about 15 minutes its not that hard.

 

I don't think they charge less than an hour labor. That's why you won't have fractions under one hour IMO.

 

Make sure to get the little rubber ring off when you take the old bulb out. There is a groove where the bulb meets the connector base that the rubber ring sits in. It forms a seal against the bulb connector and the headlight assembly to keep water and dirt out.

 

Goose, does your 2007 have DRLs that use the headlight? The way the DRL system works, it causes a faster burnout of bulbs (especially aftermarkets like the Silverstars). I believe this is why GM switched the DRLs back to the turn signal/parking lights on the 2008+ models.

 

Only one's I've seen use the parking lights was the 06 model.

 

I'm a bit confused...

I have never had to change out a headlight before, and from what I hear, its a big PITA on this car (sounds easier on my 87 IROC).

My passenger side low-beam doesn't work, so I'm compensating by using my fog-lights.

I would like to replace the stock bulbs with something better (always move up to a better part while your in anyways), but the Silverstars don't sound like they last too long.

couple that with some DRL pulsing thing, and I don't know what to get? it almost sounds like this has changed from year to year... so yeah, I'm a bit confused...

I had a 2006 2LT... what do i get to replace the stock with that will last longer than 6 months?

thanks guys...

Sunbound

 

While I haven't used only Hella replacement bulbs,I have used Hella lights in my previous cars.I had some European code lamps in my '79 Malibu and in my '84 Z-28.I got much better illumination on the low beams with a sharper cut off and wider spread and the high beams were WOW!-much brighter,longer distance and bigger spread.I wish they'd make some HHR specific lights(sigh).

 

Is there a special way to pull out the two 'push in' connectors or do you just use force? I've been pulling pretty hard and it looks like it's going to break. I'm willing to use more force if that's all it takes, but I wanted to confirm if there's a "correct" way to do it.

 

I just replaced a fog light bulb a couple weekends ago. The plugs or connectors or whaterver were a bit of a pain but I used a set of needle nose pliers on the shaft and wiggled and pulled (with a fair amount of force) and sooner or later they came out.