I was disappointed that my wife's new HHR didn't have the UUI radio upgrade, but I had to jump in March to stack all my discounts, including the $1k aging stock (which the car I found had). I just figured she would learn to use her iPod more if it was better integrated.

My dealer wanted $350 + $95 installation to do a radio swap - NOT!

Anyways, I found an interesting post in the Solstice forum, where an owner purchased a Saturn Sky UUI radio, did some faceplate surgery, and even relocated the USB to the glovebox. Since the radios are going for $200 on eBay, I considered doing this myself (and I like a challenge). Alas, I have confirmed that a different manufacture produces the Sky/Solstice radio compared to the HHR (one is Panasonic, one is Delphi). I'm not about to spend $200 and then hope that circuit boards plug in correctly!

I'll just wait until more UUI radios are available in the aftermarket (owner upgrades, salvage, etc), and then pay the dealer for programming.

Anybody else have other suggestions?

 

that's about it, or go aftermarket. I too want a USB port, but they are scarce and cost a good amount still. I want it to stay stock, so I guess I wait.

 

I think that if you include the programming charge, you would be better off getting an aftermarket head unit.
They can be found under $100 with a usb jack.