Pedal was stuck to floor, clutch engaged. Thought it was master or slave cylinder malfunction. Turns out it was a crappy GM design. The master is not held in with time proven studs. No no. Cheap twist/turn into locking (or not) tabs. In my case it was 'not'. After getting access (PITA electrical gear), and poor access nonetheless, I found the master pushed into the engine bay. I tried for hours to get it re-attached to the firewall, but the upper tab would not hold after a few clutch disengagements. So, I ended up fabricating a hold down bracket for the upper edge of the master. I was able to get the lower tab to snug up well beforehand. Hope this helps someone else with the same problem.

Mike H. 2006 HHR LT, 2.4

 

Your's is the first one I've heard of with this problem.
I wouldn't go so far as saying a crappy design since this looks like a very rare failure.
You may have other issues with the master cylinder/clutch/pedal etc. If it's binding or harder to push than normal, it could be putting too much stress on the "tabs" which caused the failure.

 

I've seen several posts with the clutch on the floor issue. However, it was always dealer-repaired (sometimes several trips/failures) and no explanation of the cause or fix.

 

I was refering to your saying the "tabs" were the problem.
Yes, I've seen a couple other threads about the clutch on the floor issue. What I was stating was, never heard of the "tabs" being the problem.
I've been a member of this forum for several years. Believe me. I've read a lot of the threads here.
A couple owners posting the clutch pedal on the floor problem. And GM made how many 100k's of the HHR's? Yes, I would call that a rare problem.

 

I just hopped on this thread last night as my HHR encountered a problem similar to yours as described - clutch pedal stuck to floor.

I'm no gearhead, so I called a tow truck. While I waited, I crawled under the steering wheel to take a look and found that the pedal was fully depressed and a black, cylindrical piece of plastic was lodged under a metal plate, preventing the pedal from releasing. I was able to wiggle it free and the pedal came up - a little. Sat back in car to check it out and same thing happened -- clutch all the way to floor and got stuck again.

Fast forward to today as (Chevy dealer) service technician tells me he's never seen anything like it and the car needs to go to the body shop.... (WHAT?)

Here's what apparently happened, similar to your case above. Not only did mine come detached from the firewall, it pushed through and my firewall cracked around the opening, meaning that they can't simply reattach it -- the firewall will need repaired before they can even check the operation of my clutch, etc.

Thoughts? Ever heard of this happening anywhere? How screwed am I?

 

Depends on your warranty status, and/or the dealerships goodwill policy.

For the record, it is Saab engineering not GM at fault.

 

Had this happen to mine. The master cylinder was bad. Its not hard to replace.
The hardest part is getting the fuse box out. There is one metal clip holding in the pressure line and one you squeeze both sides and the fluid line from the tank comes off.
quarter turn clockwise and its released from the firewall. The clip from the pedal pops off with a little pry from a screwdriver. Dont even have to take the pesky spring off!

I think they start leaking internally and fluid builds up on backside preventing release,
Like a hydraulic lock.

I got mine from rock auto for 28$ Im out of warranty....

 

Not to argue with you Firemangeorge because I'm new here and this may be the first time "On this Forum" that this has been posted. But I've been dealing with this on my wife's HHR for the last 2 years. I cant afford to take it to the "stealer" to have them fix it so I've had to rig a fix myself. During my research into this, it seems to be a common problem. The Colbolt has this same issue.

 

Oh here we go again - yes it has happened - twice now that we have heard of.

If one wants to start on about a "common problem", it's best to bring along the research and facts to back it up.

Closing this thread.

 

There is a kit that seems to be available now, look at the end of this thread.
https://www.chevyhhr.net/forums/ss-s...t-53899/page2/