I posted this in another thread by mistake. I've deleted that post.

The past week or so I've been hearing a "squeak" noise while driving my HHR for 10 minutes or longer. At least it was loud enough at that point to be heard while driving at low speeds. It seemed to be related to when I turned the steering wheel just left of center while driving. I thought maybe the brake pads were making noise. I also [rarely] heard the noise while the HHR was not moving, so that eliminates the brake pads. It happened again this morning. I pulled the HHR into my garage to investigate the noise.

Much to my surprise, I was able to replicate the noise within 30-seconds of trying to find it. When I slightly moved the steering wheel left/right [slowly], the noise could be heard. I used my automotive stethoscope and located the noise in the power steering assist motor. This steering assist motor is the one that came with the refurbished steering column I installed several months ago. When I first purchased this HHR [few months before replacing the steering column], I installed a new ACDelco steering assist motor since I was unsure of the history of the steering system and I had just replaced one in a friend's HHR that had failed. When I swapped out the steering column, I removed that "new" motor and kept it as a spare.

I removed the steering assist motor from the refurbished steering column and installed the "new" [spare] motor. The squeak is gone. That should not happen with a refurbished steering column [Cardone], but I'm glad I was able to locate the noise and fix it so easily. I'll take small victories like that any time I work on a car!

 

Are you aware of the lifetime extended warranty on the motor?
And the updated part number?

 

Yes, but the time and effort to get a not so local Chevy dealership to replace it will cost more of my time than it's worth.

 

Hard to believe there are no GM dealerships near Sacramento. Doesn't need to be Chevrolet.

 

I live in the greater Sacramento area [lower foothills]. As I said before, the cost of the part is less than the multiple hours I would need to spend to get a "free" part installed.