It's called "You pays your money, and you takes your chances" on most anything you buy. Some products[in this case a HHR], could have been bad parts, and a lot of them found thereself on one vehicle.
The things I see listed, are things the dealer should take care of[provided it's still in warranty], and be aware that some dealers are not up to snuff, and some are better than average[goes back to takes your chances].
So far[but only 3800 miles on her], I've had no trouble with my SS, other that a few squeeks and rattles[most of which I took care of]. Upon buying my SS, I went over, pretty much the whole car, making sure everything was tight[which is a little time consuming, but just might save you problems later], and everything look routed properly. The few squeeks and rattles, I took care of myself[after all, I'm used to driving Moma's Lexus 430, and it is real quiet].Out of a few hundred cars built on any given day, a few end up having problems, once they are on the road. It's just the way things are, and they have to be taken care of by the dealeship. Thats the sole purpose of a warranty.
Take it in to the dealer, get it fixed, and you won't have to stress so much.
Or you can get rid of it, and take your chances on another model car. You have choices here. Venting[*****ing] does'nt fix anything. My2cents "Moon"

 

Normally I would agree.....but my choice to not buy GM stems from more than just these issues.....they simply make it an easier choice. First of all, I don't care for Toyota or Honda and have always owned GM or Ford (other than my Vibe/Matrix). My father has worked for GM for many years (dealer) and here is the list of vehicles I have owned over the last 20yrs with associated problems

89 Cavalier- ran great...dead battery issue linked to aftermarket alarm
91 Honda CRX Si- awful
92 Lumina- smooth ride, eventually rusted out
93 Jeep YJ-garbage body re rust, but fun to drive
95 Chev Cavalier- good car...blown radiator----due to delivery job I had
00 Sonoma-nice little truck....good motor.....awful brakes (done at 18 months)
00 Sunfire GT- great car...still one of our favs
00 Ford Lightning- fun truck, lots of power...too much $$$for gas
01 Cev Corvette Z06-----Nuff said----amazing---but 2 kids took priority
02 Mustang GT- great car
04 Sunfire base- garbage can on wheels...but mechanically sound
07 Vibe-as described
08-HHR SS- unfortunately awful re problems....I have owned a Lightning, Mustang GT and Corvette, so not the first performance car I have had, happy with performance but expect way more in quality.

If my HHR SS had a resale value of 40% after 5 yrs (like a lot of other cars like a Mazdaspeed 3) instead of 26%, it may be worth it. But %14 of $25k is about $4k dollars.... a lot of cash just to be "loyal."......oh and by the way, my engine light just came on today too

 

Oh yeah and my one keyless remote doesn't work (spare) and the plastic clip broke off the rear seat headrest, when taking it off...looks like it was glued on with milk....now that I think of it.....I got an absolute POS

 

On the opposite side while Ive only purchased 3 NEW Gm products over the last 20 years with the 1st one being a 1989, which I still own and drive, Ive never had alot of problems with any of them. I have to exercize the thought that someday it MAY have a problem and I'll deal with it when/if it does. I can count all the times Ive been to the dealer on 1 hand, and 3 of them were recall items......if the worse I ever get is a small squeek or rattle, I doing great because some of you spend more time in the shop then driving...and then, theres some that no matter how the vehicle turns out will never be happy....
SO, as with everything, there are two sides....I won't judge anything on a one time shot..sometimes its just that particular model thats jinxed....I stuck with GM because I despise front wheel drive( refering foreign cars), even with the SS, love the car though, had to give in sometime because i;m not buying a lame car just for the rear axle, and I won't do a Ford...not when I can do the same mods for half the price......owned a Ford once,then I got a job..... haha....anyways...2 cents...enjoy!

 

I don't mean to pick nits, but you've referred to your HHR SS as "five years old" a couple times...that would make it a 2005 model, which is, of course, impossible. Can you shed some light on this?

 

What I see is someone who wants a perfect car in a very imperfect world.
I suspect no matter what you buy you have a 4 in 5 chance of not being happy.

 

I hardly call the issues I have had with the HHR minor and would not call myself a perfectionist. You are obviously satisfied with a product that should be more than what it is and what it is perceived to be. It is blind loyalty that have led to the demise of the big three....cause some people will only buy a Chevy, Chrysler or Ford just cause they are the Big Three. Unfortunately they were the big three and times are a changing. People expect what they pay for and don't just roll over and take it.....others do

If you look at my other vehicles....I don't complain about many of them at all??? Not sure where your off hand comment came from....maybe the truth hurts.

 

I invite you to drive my POS HR SS for a week. It's always something. My dads HHR while it doesn't break rattles like a MOFO. His Silverado rattles. I don't know which is worse to drive.

I love my 2000 Trans Am. It's not flawless and I honestly don't think the OP expects it to be but you do get sick of the problems.

My car spent at least 12 days in the shop last year. It stranded me once and almost a few other times.

My HHR was in the shop more in it's first 5 months than my wifes Prius has been in 5 months an 7K miles.

I was holding out for a Volt, but since mh HHR isn't worth crap I'm stuck with it. When it goes, it certainly will NOT be replaced with another GM. I have had enough GM crap to last me a lifetime. They had to buy my Saab back a few years ago.

Now I know you will at all cost defend GM and thats fine. I have done my friggin best to be loyal to GM, and gotten little back but 1 good car.

 

What I have referred to is the resale value of an HHR SS after 5 years is %26 the original purchase price. For example if you bought a new HHR SS for $25 thousand, 5 years later it is worth approx $6500. It is why they don't lease anymore. If you bought a new Civic Si for the same price the residual is near %40, so after 5 years the car is worth $10,000. So if you pay cash for a car and aren't making interest payments, imports are a better buy re: resale. The big three counter by offering discounts and 0% financing, otherwise they would go belly-up 4 sure. All dictated by the black/blue book at auction-based on awards/reviews and simple supply and demand (quality/etc).

 

I don't know how you can predict what the car will sell for years from now...perhaps you are instead referring to the residual value on a lease, which is, of course, something you agreed to when you signed said lease, so no sense complaining now.



Anyway, the way this goes, is it kinda just devolves from here...

Handful of folks are angry, and wanna make others agree that HHR and GM are evil. Many others disagree. Repeat ad nauseum.

There. I just wrote the rest of this thread, saving all of us a lot of time and angst. Am I cool, or what?

No, no, don't thank me. Donations are cheerfully accepted, and we send out way cool HHR parts to all who are generous enough to donate