dr_fosg8

Well, my HHR went in for the steering column noise. I am going to have the service manager look at the rubber on the running boards while it is in as the rubber is warping and pulling away from the board. Hopefully all will be corrected the first time. I have my fingers crossed.

pitbull76

Good luck. I know the dealer in Aurora/Oswego stocks the steering column because they see it so often. Hopefully the one you're going to does too.

dr_fosg8

Nope no parts in stock, they had to order em up. Has to go back in next Thursday to install parts. An intermediate steering shaft and running board inserts.

pitbull76

Sure hope they got the right part. I know those intermediate shafts can make noise too, but mine had an annoying rattle over uneven surfaces, and it was the column.

dr_fosg8

You had to have the entire column replaced? Mine makes noise from under the dash over bumps in the road also. If the noise continues after the intermediate shaft replacement it will just have to go back in.

pitbull76

Yeah, they replaced the entire steering column. Mine made noise mostly in low-moderate speeds over rough roads, like gravel. At higher speeds it didn't make the noise. Just plain bumps in the road usually weren't enough to make much noise. I really heard it most when I was traveling over snowpacked/icy roads since they are fairly uneven. Like I said earlier, the dealer stocked the part and had seen it before multiple times. I believe there are different noises that the intermediate shaft makes, more of a clunk or something like that. As long as the dealer followed the TSB, they should have picked the right culprit.

dr_fosg8

I hope so, mine sounds just like what yours was doing. Thanks for the info, I will keep it in mind if the problem persists.

dr_fosg8

Went and picked up my hhr tonight. New pads for the running boards look good, but, there is always a but isn't there. I am still having the same rattling noise over the rough roads.

Can anyone that has had this problem corrected provide any info as to the part or parts numbers that were replaced? The part my dealer changed out was the "steering column intermediate shaft".

Thanks for any input.

Pitbull76...It definitly sounds like mine is having the same issue you had. Did it take a lot of B.S. to get your dealer to change the entire column?

pitbull76

Nope, no bs. I just told em what was going on and they fixed it. The dealer I used was Ron Westphal in Aurora/Oswego. They had seen the problem before and knew exactly what to replace. I did need to return to them afterwards because they did not align something properly and my turn signals wouldn't cancel, but that was quick to fix. I also know that ChevyMgr can send you the TSB related to this if you PM him, heck I have it as well and could forward it on. I didn't have to mention it to my dealer though; they figured it out on their own.

Your dealer should replace the column without issue if you take it back. If not, I know Westphal is a bit of a drive but they certainly could figure it out for you.

edit: The part number on my invoice is 15928613

ChevyMgr

I keep reading about these intermediate shaft replacements and I just don't get it. If the noise is in the column it IS the column on HHRs. We are a large dealership and I bet we have replaced less then 10 shafts on them. Now trucks and impalas the number would be in the 1000s.