So I had the issue with the butyl patch that's been well-documented through the forums....bought my hhr used last winter and didn't know about the problem until recently. I did the fix for it myself, thanks to other forum members who posted how to do it. My issues with the water leak were a bit more severe than I've seen though.

The patch was almost all the way off...only a small part was still attached, and the patch had fallen into the inlet, creating a ramp leading directly to the cabin filter. Filter's been changed, and my blower hasn't shorted thankfully. However, the water droplets that got into the ventilation system collected around the actuator cam that moves the vent doors back and forth, and last winter they froze, and cracked the cam. My mechanic said it was a terrific ***** to get at the part, since it's buried right inside the dash, and the whole thing had to come apart to get at it. On top of that, a bit of water also dripped down onto the radio wires and shorted that out too. When it happened I didn't know about the patch issue, and was a bit mystified as to how the water got into the system, but now it makes more sense. Anyways, just sharing my story. Forum's awesome for info, thanks to all the members for sharing!

 

Glad you're enjoying the forum, it's just too bad a situation like that brought you here....

 

[shrug] Driving high maintenance cars improves my knowledge of them, if nothing else. Since I've bought the car I've had a host of stupid little issues happen with it, including a colossal error with a brake job that's unrelated to the engineering of the car. My next purchase is for a lower front grille before winter to prevent ANOTHER rock puncturing my A/C condenser. :p I love the HHR, I just wish it was a little better built.