During a resent snow I discovered this car had no traction,never had a front
wheel drive that would'nt go in the snow.
Has anyone had simular experence.

 

I'm up here north of Chicago and we just had 14 inches in 12 hours last week... this thing is doing just fine and even better than some suv's with larger tires.

It's no 4-wheel drive, but it is pretty decent for being a front-wheel drive vehicle with a car chassis.

 

Welcome, we all know what the problem is. It is the Firestone tires that came on the car. Others have changed them and then it is a world of difference. https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/tires-wheels-49/michelin-pilots-installed-12840/ https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/show...ighlight=tires

 

It's an OK car for the snow. The Traction control is what gets me, it is to sensitive or I just have a heavy foot.

 

See Post #8 at:

https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/general-hhr-4/hhrs-snow-12729/

 

what does the traction control do? give us an example . I have never driven a vehicle with traction and stability control. I have read some car magazines (reviewing various vehicles) really criticizing it as being super intrusive in some cars to the point it sounds like the car has been dulled down in certain areas.

 

StabiliTrak Electronic Stability Control System
StabiliTrak — a new standard feature on all 2LT models — helps improve vehicle stability, particularly during emergency maneuvers. Here's how StabiliTrak works:

* The StabiliTrak control module compares your steering input with the vehicle's actual response and then, if necessary, makes small, individual brake applications to enhance control and keep you on track.
* StabiliTrak automatically intervenes when it senses loss of lateral traction (sideslip), understeer (plowing) or oversteer (fishtailing).
* In these situations, the system applies brake pressure and, if necessary, adjusts engine torque to help the driver get the vehicle back on track.


Traction Control
To enhance traction and help keep you going, this feature uses the ABS sensors to automatically detect and act to reduce wheel slip. It's standard on all 2LT models, but is included and only available with ABS and the automatic transmission on all LS and 1LT models.

 

I live in Wisconsin and had the same problem, the first couple snows up here I got nowhere. I did a little research and got myself a set of Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires and I have to say the difference was miraculous. The tires are fandamtastic! I am able to get up hills and through snow and ice with no problems. What causes me the most problem is the snow that gets impacted everywhere around the wheels. It's next to impossible to get it cleaned out unless you have access to a heated garage.
Kevin

 

In the last big snowstorm, the stock Firestones were not up to the task and I had to work from home. They have since been replaced with BFGoodrich Traction T/As. Time will tell if these do much better in snow, but if TireRack surveys are at all accurate these should do a LOT better than the Firestones.

 

The traction control on the HHR cuts the cylinders to cut the power, not the brakes like in some cars. It does use the sensors to sense the difference in speed from back to fronts wheels, but after that it cuts the engine output.