2010 HHR gear shift button stuck in park
 

Hi y'all, We purchased a 2010 HHR LT used, several years ago. We are meticulous about keeping it clean, but the previous owners were not. Like so many others, my gear shift assembly was stuck in park, with the button permanently depressed. When you push the brake, I heard the click everyone talks about, but button still stays depressed. No amount of pressing brakes, releasing the solenoid lever manually, using WD40, etc. has helped. I was parked on level ground, and in warm weather. After taking the whole assembly out of the car, the pin will move and allow me to shift positions, but the button remains depressed. I have been unable to completely remove the boot out of the way. The ring under the shifter rotates somewhat, but will not drop to reveal the set screw, so I also can't even remove the knob. At this point I am trying to find add'l detailed info on removing the boot and the knob. Also haven't been able to locate accurate part numbers for the knob, or the entire gear shift assembly for my specific 2010 model. My husband is very mechanically inclined, but is at the point of tearing his hair out! We can't afford to take it to a dealer. If anyone is able to share tutorials for my specific year and part numbers and possible resources for purchasing even the entire assembly, we would be very grateful. Thanks in advance.

There is an extended warranty for the shift, contact your GM dealership.
The chrome piece on the shifter turns and then has to be pushed down while in neutral to expose the set screw. Please remember to set the parking brake and I suggest placing something on the front and rear of a front tire to avoid rolling.
Dorman offers a pin replacement kit, but I suggest that you contact GM.

https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/how-...tomatic-15234/

Also available at all auto parts stores.

I have no idea why it says does not fit 2009-2011; it does say it fits 2006-2008. The innards are the same as far as I know.

It always amazes me how many people don't use GoOgle or eBay or Amazon to find parts and youtube for tuts.

I don't think the special warranty covers this case, but try anyway.

OldBlue, Thank you
 

Thank you, but we have the entire shift control assembly on our kitchen counter. My husband said that what you are describing is apparently an older knob style. Mine is elongated black with only a small chrome element on the front, and has a leather boot. We will lower the pin and move shifter to neutral, to see if we can drop the boot as you suggest. Thank you.

Also, see: https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/prob...-repair-40183/

My 2011 was the same as your, just push harder than you want to.


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...bfb65be855.png

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...ad0ba583bc.png

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...059317cfe6.png

Please check your PM


and I found you a used shifter, here

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SHIFTER-HHR...assembly&rt=nc

and here

https://www.ebay.com/itm/HHR-2011-Tr...assembly&rt=nc

Thank you everyone!
 

Great news!!! We contacted our local dealer and were told there is no extended warranty for our particular VIN. We did learn the correct part number is now 20871084. It includes items 3-10 on the schematic for $173. I found it at http://www.crateenginedepot.com/mobile/Cobalt-Hhr-With-Mn5-Automatic-Shifter-Asm-20871084-P51256.aspx for $129. This link will show the schematic for the exact model we have.

We finally got the boot and handle removed after 2 days of trying, by using a kitchen jar gripper to rotate and drop the plastic ring that had been holding the boot in place, thus exposing the set screw. We took the entire assembly to the dealer to ensure the part we wanted to order was correct. While there we took apart the knob and discovered a small white nylon shaft inside the head of the knob had become dislodged, causing the button to stick, and shifter to not move. Once that nylon piece was repositioned and securely in place, the button worked perfectly and the shifter moved freely in/out of park!! This appears to have been the entire problem and we didn't end up having to spend a dime, only time and frustration. We'll be reinstalling in the car and testing later today. I hope this info will be useful to others with this same problem. Thanks again to everyone for your suggestions. Have a great day!

Problem solved! Awesome news.

Isn't that what I said in in post #3?

I'm not sure why your Dealer said your 2010 was not covered. I have not looked at the Special extended warranty to see what it says but I had the shifter on one of my 2011's that was past the 36 month bumper to bumper warranty replaced at no charge.
I did not bug them as I did not know there was such an extended warranty existed at the time. They just did the replacement and that was it.

Now that you have fixed it and bought some time, you should find the actual warranty information some place on this site and pursue the truth in case your dealer is just handling your issue incorrectly. It's possible your problem will show up again.

Silverfox