Hey all! Thanks so much for the informative responses!

I'm actually a Volkswagen guy. I've owned air cooled VW's my entire lifetime, and my most recent toy was a '92 Jetta (Mk2) that I sunk thousands into suspension wise. Had the best of everything, KW coilovers, big brakes, fat swaybars, every other chassis stiffener you can think of, sticky tires. I'd carve the canyons hard in this thing, hit the autox track regularly.

Driving a 5spd on my daily commute from UC to Santa Clara is insane. Maybe I'm getting older now, but I have less and less desire to drive a 5spd on the daily. I'm happy to hear that you auto guys are making the most out of this package, because I was seriously considering the 5spd merely because I didn't want to lose the 260hp and 260ftlb. I do want something rather comfortable to drive.

We'll see if the '08 has the performance package. That may be the deal breaker. As far as Brembo's alone go, I'll easily swap them in. Big brakes on any car I own is a must, and appears quite easily swapped in on these HHR's.

Keep the opinions coming!

 

And, thank you guys for the warm welcome!

@george, the Brembo's are probably the first mod I will perform on this HHR. I'm a fan of stopping power..you like 'em?

@badassbowtie, wow 13's? That's awesome! What's top speed on an automatic HHR SS?

 

Well to be honest I wanted a red SS with a manual trans but ended up with a black Auto and be honest it was totally for the best. He auto is fun a heck and great in traffic, yes black shows dirt easily but nothing a little dusting off wont fix every day or 2. A polished black SS looks beatiful in the sun especially with the polished wheels. I've gotten a lot of compliments. Auto black for sure

 

It is up to you as to what you want.

My Auto with the GM Tune is great and durable.

The Manual while fun to drive will have long term needs as the clutch will wear and can need replaced the shifters get rubbery after a while in FWD cars since they are cable operated. Also you can sell a Auto to anyone when so few people can drive a stick today.

There is no right or wrong answer anyone here can give you. Only you can choose wisely.

 

Like the one guy said the limited slip option on the manual is pretty sweet. The reason I originally chose the one I have was the limited slip and the fact it already had the gm stage 1 upgrade. Like mentioned I can't run it too hard until I upgrade my clutch. Not looking forward to that.

 

Love the Brembos. But, I can't compare them to the regular one's cuz I ordered mine with the Perf. Pkg. So, that's the only brakes I've had.
Plus, they sure look good.

Attachment 14912

 

I have a 5 speed with brembos and would recommend 5 spd any chance I get. I love the way I feel connected with the car and its just plane fun. Understandable that it could suck with your commute. I don't usually have to commute too far so its nice. Also, 2008's didnt come with brembos. They did have the LSD that is absolutely amazing imo. check the options sticker in the glove box for G85 - thats there if it has the LSD

 

I have a timeslip in my house somewheres of me running a 9.06 1/8th mile. Thats with a trifecta tune, soft street tires, and I/C piping. other guys on the forum are running on ethanol tunes and putting down some serious power with the auto tranny, and almost nothing for mods. *2005hhrauto* is in the mid 12's with ethanol tune, and has only a handful of mods.

as for the top speed, I have only had mine up to 130, but it had plenty left. I would guess and say 145...could be more

 

To add to what has already been said like was mentioned 2008 came without brimbos I am considering an upgrade onine . Normally the stock ones are more than enough unless your running hard on a track however I was a little north of 140 and needed to shut down quick and it took me a while of standing on the brakes. Really scared my passenger I do not have a direct comparrison between brakes but seems brimbo would stop better

Another difference between 2008 and 2009 ss is the turbo gauge and center console. I prefer the looks of 2008 which has turbo gauge on a puller pod and I love having my dash storage compartment. 2009 and later ss replaced center storage with an information center which gives more info than just boost.

The manual as mentioned does make u feel more connected to your car. I bought an after market shifter which I have not installed yet that should give a more solid crisp feel to shifting.

 

Some 09's still had the boost on the pillar. I find the auto pulls with both tires, and have heard from many more theirs do too.

I had the std brakes, switched to brembos........there is a lot of difference, they all should have had them.