Lee3333

An interesting note to all of us who have the dreaded T/C code pop up on our cars. A lot of people have been blaming it on upgrading the intake, whether it be due to oil contaminating the sensor, different location of the MAF sensor, or just messing with our delicate computer system. Well.....A friend of mine with a bone stock 06 HHR just developed this same problem. Right now he throws the code when ever he accelerates hard.

There goes the theory that we brought on ourselves by any modifications.

Greybeard999

It's part of the "limp mode" on these cars, it can be brought on by anything that sets a CEL..... Stock or modified.

Lee3333

Agreed. But the dealers refuse to even look at our cars since we altered them. And there are plenty of know-it-alls here that also say it is our own fault for messing with the brilliant designs of the GM engineers.

whopper

that is not true - not all dealers will refuse like you say. Most dealers if approached in a congenial way will work with the customer to get to the root of the problem. They want to make money for sure, but they also want to have a satisfied customer - and running up a costly $$$ charge for the customer isn't necessarily the way to build that satisfaction level.

One of the basics of troubleshooting is to undo any recent changes to see if that was a cause, or related to the problem being looked at. the same for changes to your computer system - right? So any posts along that line suggesting the K&N filter/intake system/suspensions mods be backed out make sense. And it only makes sense that the dealer make the same suggestion if you want them to work on the vehicle - narrowing down the cause of the problem before they actually lay hands on it saves you money.

Lee3333

Maybe they do in Canada, but not here. I know the staff and am very friendly with them all. Yet, they have politely denied various services saying they wish they could but.....

Years ago I had been having problems with my battery dieing. It would be fine in the evening, then stone dead the next morning. Just momentarily giving it a boost instantly started the car. Then it would also restart, indicating the battery was not actually drained. For many, many months I kept bringing in the car and they would check the battery (they kept me there for hours while they fully charged it first so their tester could work), then they kept telling me the battery was fine. One of the excuses they gave me was that since I put in a new stereo system, it could be my fault. I explained that when the key is turned off, then there is no way the stereo could be draining anything but they did not care. Finally, I heard about a TSB issued for defective batteries and brought my dealer a copy of it. With that information, they tried using a DIFFERENT tester and found my battery to be bad. They finally gave me my new battery, and I have not had any problems since.

Dealers hate warranty work, because they don't get paid as much for the repair. If they can stall you till the warranty is over, or make it an out-of-warranty repair, then they are more than happy to fix it.

Snoopy

I agree Whooper.....regardless of what other people state, Canada has no monopoly on good vehicle service.

I have had trouble with 2 GM dealers (1 no longer in business)in the 45 years of owning GM cars (and some 53 GM vehicles). When I found they were wrong, I found resources to correct their stupidity. But on the overall scale, good service....as long as I didn't screw up or tamper, excessively, with the vehicle. I even "cammed" one vehicle (GMPP) and they still performed warranty work on the engine (TBI failure). It's all in how you approach the problem.


And Lee....

Your friends '06....probably has some miles on it. Don't you think the "code" is due to a normal part failure? I mean, my god, it's going on 6 years old and he is just starting to have trouble !!

Lee3333

Like me, he doesnt put on too much mileage (about 40,000). (He has 2 other cars, and the HHR is usually used by his wife for local trips like shopping).

In my case, I too have
I already replaced both of the sensors normally thought to be the problem (MAF and MAP), as well as switching to a dry filter to eliminate the possibility of oil causing the problem. Still no luck. Had all of the wheel sensors checked also. Just living with it for now. I drive easy until the code pops up, then I can beat on the car a little until I turn the engine off.

But another problem I have been having, and meaning to start a thread about, is the engine shutting off when I hit a pot hole or speed bump. I understand our cars have a sensor that turns off the fuel pump in case of an accident, but I think mine may be a little too sensitive.

pitbull76

Lee, for your shut-off issue, is your car's key possibly moving to the ACC position? Does the car shut off if you jiggle the key a bit? My 06 had a very weak lock cylinder that would occasionally cause the car to turn off unexpectedly on a hard bump. A new lock cylinder cured that problem.

Lee3333

I have to check Thanks

whopper

re: key in ignition.... didn't ChevyMngr mention something some time ago about not adding a mess of other keys and stuff onto the key ring? Something about too much weight flopping about, and disturbing the key and it's ignition contacts.