Pretty amazing little cars - I use my salvage title 2007 2.4 as a daily driver - will turn 183,000 tomorrow - I use Mobil 1 15,000 mile synthetic and change exactly at 15,000miles - I wanted to see how well this oil would work long term and this is the test bed. It uses no oil between changes. I service the auto trans about every 50k - it shifts perfect - AC cold. Drives exactly like did when I bought 9 1/2 years ago at 30k. Does not leak anything. Still has original water pump. I have changed front brakes at least 4 times. Rear brakes never changed. I just changed shocks and struts recently. I have changed the front lower control arms / sway bushings and front axle bearings. Axles have never been touched. Front end bushings simply don't last but cheap and easy to change. It has had some odd problems , drove me nuts with temp gauge dropping to zero , shut off AC and turned on ck engine light. Took a while to figure out. Darned thermostat had a bad seal and bypassed so much coolant that the car was too slow to reach operating temp and the ECM read that as a problem and set the code and shut off the AC. It was a mind bender but thats all it was. Changed a turn signal switch , few light bulbs and that absolute garbage exhaust flex joint at the engine. Just changed the cat. 3 sets of tires. A couple windshields as we have a lot of junk gravel trucks in So CA , flying rocks are very common and I never see CHP ticketing these guys. Frustrating. No squeaks , No rattles , Engine quiet. I say a pretty good car. I just bought a diamond 2006 2.4 LT with 50k and a caved in RR door. It has been repaired perfectly and will be covered and parked until 183k car rolls over and dies. I am also building a damaged 2008 SS for a toy. These cars are dirt cheap used , I have other more expensive cars but I love my beaters , you could leave the keys in one and $100 in the front seat and nobody would take it. If you could care less about image as I do then these work well

 

I bought my 2010 as a throw in with the motorhome I purchased and figured to use it as a toad only when going on camping trips. This was last March and since have put about 6k miles on it. I'm surprised how much I like the car with all the room having the back seats down and the ease of parking. Plus not bad gas mileage either. My wife refuses to drive it and prefers her big Suburban. Sure it doesn't have the acceleration or handling of my Vette but then again I'm not afraid to park it anywhere. Oh, and it turned 112K miles today on my way into work. Great little car.

 

Toughie just crossed 161k.
Has some work to be done but they are wants not needs

 

As a motor-home tow the HHR provides a nice option to explore area after setting up base camp. One of the reasons I find my manual tranny attractive.
I named mine Woody mobile because my dog loves the platform in back with seats down especially with windows open..
Mileage at near 30mpg with heavy right foot gets me to some out of the way places to play golf with decent fuel economy.
My wife can't drive standard. The suburban is a safe ride standing tall.
No 'vette for me (yet)
Bought mine at auction on-line picture only at 113k two years ago. It's got some issues, some needs and some wants but loved just the same, I guess it's a family member!
I like the truckette and it's function and the niche following of enthusiasts which includes members of this site.

 

 

225000km on the body of my daily. Just got a zfr6758 for it. New LHU engine at 182k, sold original. FE5’s and yyz’s, ttr rear sway bar, replaced all the brakes at 210k, ottp mounts, full bolt ons, 3.82lsd swapped, gmpp clutch. Putting ipcw silver tails on it because I got some custom retros for the other car. Should make about 400whp on 91. Super fun daily

 

The BlackSwan, 120,000 miles , new timing chain!

 

My newly purchased 2007 HHR LT has 206k miles. I don't have much history on it other than what I know at the moment. Both lower control arms and ball joints need to be replaced, air intake hose, heat blend door actuator, right door speaker and more than likely a clogged A.C. drain. I had the power steering assist module replaced last week by the dealership because it was still under warranty. 🙌

 

The control arms are cheap as a preassembled pair as most owners will agree - a couple hours changes them. I really like these little cars but they have their share of issues which if repaired at the dealer are expensive. You did the right thing joining these guys. They are all nice and very helpful. If you read the Forum carefully you will be able to keep your car up and running fairly cheap. Good luck..

 

2008 LT2 bought new in Dec.'08. 283,000 miles. 2.4 liter Engine and trans issues to date:
Intake and Exhaust actuator solenoids (in the past year).
Thermostat and Temp sensor.
Transmission solenoids and pressor sensor.(all replaced at the same time).
Still driven 500 miles a week commuting. Burns no oil and gets 30 mpg.