When the vehicle is turned off- engine and all accessories are off; there isca whirling at appears to come from the stereo area. It makes the noise whether the CD is in or not/ejected or not. Noise occurs with key in "off" position and other positions. Opening door and pulling out key stops noise, but re-inserting key with door shut causes noise to start again in about a minute or so. The engine and accessories work fine except the stereo which is a POS (my 2nd HHR- 2007; 1st one 2006). This has occurred on 2 different vehicles. Is this a cooling fan for the stereo (it gets hot; CDs pop out quite warm; but seems normal for all car audio systems)? I'm stumped and I have electrical and mechanical background in service/repair. I do not want my battery being drained by this issue. This car sucks so bad that I would love to send it over a cliff!

Audio system is crap. Speakers deteriorate, system self selects inputs, channels cut-out arbitrarily!

Who built this POS!!

Crappy exhaust pipe flex design!
Crappy radiator protection!
Crappy windshield wipers which "auto" select.
Crappy visors that won't stay up!
Crappy front suspension!
Crappy car; I can't even go over 100mph without it dying!
Crappy dealership!
Crappy Manufacturer!
Crappy warranty!
Crappy dealer service!
Crappy body panel alignment causing self-damage!
Crappy window controls position!
Crappy headlight lenses!
Crappy rear compartment overhead light control!
Crappy radiator mounting!
Crappy dash compartment design; lid won't open; Geez!

What a POS!!!!!

No wonder GM decided to stop producing this "wonderfully" "engineered" fecal sample.

 

You should have bought a Lada in the 80’s or perhaps a Lamborghini Contach, they were a prize! Or perhaps just sell your HHR and buy something else , after all you did have the 2006, so you had experience with the HHR
the noise you describe could be the HVAC fan, try turning the fan switch to the off position and let us know.

 

The whirring is the CD player booting from the RAP that keeps the radio on until the driver door is closed after the key is removed..

All of your other complaints are "personal" problems. Go pay thousand of dollars more for a "perfect car". They have problems, too.

 

Prius owner detected

 

Well hopefully this was a one time rant.

 

You can tell someone is new to car audio when they cry this much about some ghost whine. Imagine this guy as a customer. Yikes. I wonder what else they drive...

 

I see only 2 questions asked.
1. Who built it? - Chevrolet
2. Is this a cooling fan for the stereo? - No

It doesn't exhibit this behavior with the key out. If you're concerned about battery drain, don't leave the key in

 

I thought it was the warp drive slowing and cooling down. Those dilithium crystals can get pretty warm!

 

SOUNDS LIKE A LIKE GRINDER! YEAH! I GET TO HAVE NEUTRAL ALL GEARS; VERY EASY TO PUSH NOW! NO PROBLEM HEARING IT OVER A STEREO WITH ONLY ONE PARTIALLY FUNCTIONING SPEAKER.

ANOTHER DEAD HHR!

JUST MAKING OTHERS AWARE WHO MAY NOT HAVE OWNED ONE OF THESE OBJECTS THAT THERE ARE A MULTITUDE OF PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH AT LEAST 2006 AND 2007 UNITS. AVOID AT ALL COSTS .

AUTO TRANNY DEAD <120K MILES

THANK YOU CHEVY FOR ALL THE WONDERFUL MEMORIES OF HAVING CARS TOWED AND BEING ABLE TO VIEW THEIR HUSKS UPON BEING TRASHED. '07 ON ITS WAY TO THE CRUSHER!

WONDERFUL FOR ALL YOU FOLKS THAT HAVE NOT SUFFERED THE MULTITUDE OF PROBLEMS AND CATASTROPHIC BREAKDOWNS AS I HAVE.
BACK TO DRIVING MY RELIABLE TRUCK TO WORK AGAIN WITHOUT MYSTERY NOISES; BUT WITH FUNCTIONING POWER SIDE MIRRORS, FUNCTIONING STEREO, PROTECTED AND ADEQUATELY MOUNTED RADIATOR, FUNCTIONING VISORS, FUNCTIONING TRANNY, AND MORE!!

AUTOMOBILE RELIABILITY SHOULD IMPROVE WITH BETTER TECHNOLOGY, DESIGN, AND QUALITY CONTROL. SOMETHING LEFT OUT OF AT LEAST 2 HHRs FROM PRE-'08 PRODUCTION.

ENJOY YOUR "...s"; HOPE OTHER '06/'07 OWNERS HAVE NOT SUFFERED THE PROBLEMS.

I SAW ON A PREVIOUS THREAD HOW FOLKS MAKE SUPPOSITIONS AND "JOKE" (if you could call them that) COMMENTS.
APPARENTLY YOU THINK THE PROBLEMS I HAVE WITH THESE IS PERSONAL. IT IS NOT! EVERYONE WHO HAS BEEN IN OR DRIVEN (WHEN THE "...s" DID MOVE) MY CARS HAVE NOTED THE EXACT SAME CONCERNS WITHOUT ME HAVING TO SAY ANYTHING: "Hey, why does your stereo not work?, Hey, why does my visor keep falling down?, Hey, why is your hood tearing up the body?, Hey, why are your headlights clouded?, Hey, why cannot I not adjust your side mirrors?, Hey, what's that noise?, and more...

SORRY THAT THIS SITE DOES NOT TAKE PROBLEMS OF ANOTHER OWNER SERIOUSLY AND THAT CANNOT ACCEPT ANY NEGATIVE FACTUAL FEEDBACK ABOUT THESE CARS.

BY THE WAY, FOR ALL OF THE FOOLISH COMMENTS I SAW, I WILL SAY THAT MY 1967 JAGUAR S-TYPE IS STILL ON THE ROAD WITHOUT ENGINE OR TRANNY REBUILDS, AND HAS ITS ORIGINAL FUNCTIONING STEREO, CLEAR HEADLIGHTS, STABLE VISORS, ADJUSTABLE MIRRORS, AND MORE. COMPLETELY MAINTAINED IN ALL ASPECTS BY MYSELF FOR NEARLY 30 YEARS. TAKING IT OUT FOR A DRIVE TO THE MARKET TODAY AND IT HAS MORE MILES ON IT THAN EITHER OF THE "....s" . I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT IT RECEIVES FAR MORE NOTICE THAN ANY "...S" EVER COULD. YES, JAGUARS HAD PROBLEMS WHEN TAKEN OVER BY THE "GM" LIKE ENTITY OF BRITISH LEYLAND; BUT MY JAG IS A REAL ONE BEFORE THAT HAPPENED WHEN THEIR CARS WERE MADE WELL BY A MUCH SMALLER COMPANY. IT WILL ALSO BLOW AWAY ANY "..." SINCE MY "...s" COULD NOT BREAK 100MPH OR IMMEDIATELY WENT INTO "LIMP HOME MODE", AND THE JAG EASILY CRUISES AT 120MPH.

SINCE I WILL NOT BE GETTING ANOTHER "..." OF ANY YEAR AFTER RECENT (2 DAYS AGO) DEATH OF THIS WORK OF "......." . YOU WILL NOT NEED TO DEAL WITH ANY MORE FACTUAL COMMENTS FROM ME. ALL HAPPENED; ALL HAVE BEEN WITNESSED. SORRY NO ONE WANTS TO BELIEVE IT; NOR WANTS THE OWNER TO BE ANGRY AND FRUSTRATED AT THE WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.
I KNOW NO VEHICLE IS PERFECT, BUT I HAVE NEVER HAD AS MANY PROBLEMS, MAJOR OR MINOR, AS HAS BEEN EXPERIENCED WITH THESE "..... " GIVEN THEIR ABOVE AND BEYOND PROPER MAINTENACE; THAT "OIL LIFE" IS A JOKE FOLKS! DO NOT WAIT. I COULD GO INTO LUBRICANT IMPURITIES AND WHAT NOT, BUT FOR THE LAYMAN, IF YOIR OIL IS AT ALL DISCOLORED THAN IT NEEDS TO BE CHANGED, BUT YOU ONLY NEED TO CHANGE THE FILTER EVERY OTHER CHANGE DUE TO CLEANILESS.

IF MY COMMENTS ARE DEEMED "RANTS" BY THIS COMMUNITY, THEN I CAN ONLY HOPE A POTENTIAL BUYER SEES MY POSTS BEFORE POTENTIALLY PURCHADING ONE. I KNOW IF I WAS MADE AWARE OF THE NUMEROUS PROBLEMS PRIOR TO OBTAINING THESE "...." I WOULD NEVER HAD GOTTEN ONE.
PEOPLE HERE HAVE MADE ASSUMPTIONS AS TO WHY I HAD ANOTHER "..." AFTER SO MANY PROBLEMS WITH THE FIRST. WELL, I'LL LET THE PEANUT GALLERY RUMINATE ON THAT SINCE I AM SURE THERE WILL BE MANY IMMATURE COMMENTS AND A FACTUAL AND PRACTICAL EXPLANTION WOULD NOT SUFFICE.


WARMING UP THE JAG!

ENJOY YOUR "NEW YEAR" FROM AN
ENGINEER WITH DEGREES IN MECHANICAL, DESIGN, AND ELECTRICAL IN CASE YOU QUESTION MY KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE.

 

Your automatic transmission might just need the fluid transfer pipe replaced. It might just be the shift solenoids. But you enjoy your truck or Jaguar, and have a great New Year’s celebration.
sorry you decided to rant and rave instead of being civil and asking a few questions.
Please let this be your last HHR . I know you will.