843de

Well you certainly could take tire weight into consideration, there can be a three to five pound variation between the same size in different brands(yes I actually checked the weight specs on some tires, I'm weird OK).

But there is always some trade-off to be considered, given the choice between a 27lb touring tire and a 22lb bottom range all season tire, I'd eat the additional unsprung weight and go for the better tire.

jkwministry

Thank you for your explanation here and above so which one is the better the 27lb or the 22lb P.S. Not weird if so so I I'm in the same camp --as this makes more sense in the equation of a softer ride and of course my buying decision. BIG Thank You

843de

Well that's where the question gets sticky, you should buy the best tire your budget allows and set aside the minor weight differences between them, 3-5 lbs doesn't make any appreciable difference in the real world.

For the best ride quality you need good tires with nice compliant sidewalls, as an adjunct to that, you can go with alloy wheels to drop some unsprung weight. I would never sacrifice tire quality for a small weight difference, when talking about unsprung weight the tires are usually a small variable at best. The big difference you can feel in the seat of your pants is when you lose 15-25lbs per corner with lighter wheels.

Silverfox

One other tidbitt.....

FWIW .... The HHR seats are fairly firm.

Add up all the issues here on this thread and you have the answer to ... Why

I will tell you this.

I bought a new 2000 Olds Sillouette Mini Van.
Same as the Chevy Venture chassis.
It came with 16" factory chrome wheels.
The Van rode smooooth on nice roads but when you came across anything harsh or a driveway with a higher lip at the entrance, it Hit Like A brick !!!!!
It was so annoying/irratating that I took it to the dealer and complained.
Why should a brand new Olds ride this way ???
They checked out everything they could think of and came up with a BLANK.
So I asked to drive another one on the lot.
It was exactly the same.
Long and short was I only kept the vehicle for a year and a half and Looked at the Chevy Version in 2002.
Low and behold when I did a test drive it was incredibly smooth in comparison so I custom ordered a new 2002 Chevy Venture Van.
When we got down to the tire & wheel order options there was and Aluminum wheel 15" option so I ordered it that way.
That was the whole difference in those vehicles...just the 16" V/S the 15" tires.
Lesson learned......I went on to order another new one in 2005 with the same wheel and tire option.

Greybeard999

Before we go to far away from the original post, and redesign the automobile.... it seems he test drove an LS or 1LT and liked the ride..... and then bought a 2LT and found it to be to "Sporty".... I think the idea is to just get it back to a 1LT type of ride.

JavaMann

Which would mean (probably?) 16" wheels, and the FE1 shocks/struts, right?

bfegypt13

Yeah, that sounds about right...heck, shouldn't be too hard to find someone with a LS/1LT who'd like to upgrade to the FE3.

Greybeard999

There ya go!

843de

Yeah this did go out into the bounds of the theoretical and probably got too much into the science behind ride quality. Maybe jkwministry did buy the wrong HHR, but short of trading it back in on an LS or 1LT, there is just some brainstorming going on to provide him with some alternatives and explanations as to the whys and wherefores.

I'll still stick with going back to the alternate 16" size or even going back another step to 15" wheels and tires as the most expedient way of giving a 2LT a more complaint ride. How much could be gained by changing the shocks/struts/springs out so he can go with an FE1 suspension setup is hard to tell, he might end up going too far and having a ride that's too soft and mushy.

jkwministry

To all the above and especially to 843de I have gained a wealth of knowledge, and feel that where I once was lost and perplexed I now have several practical options, -to solving the HARSH ride issue. Again, BIG thank you!