I got an eye opener as i headed out sat evening
to pick up my news papers. We had gotten at least
2 inches of snow already. ( total of 4 reported at Lambert Stlouis)

There is a small train track over pass
that i have driven over for decades in all kinds of weather.
As i came down the other side the light is green in my favor.

The next thing i know is that my hhr is fish tailing
both directions and ended up backwards facing the way i had come
The road was unplowed and slick ( slicker than i gave it credit for)
i didnt hit any thing. This is my 2nd winter with front wheel drive

So never had a front drive car to fish tail like mine did.
Goodyear Eagle GT tires with bout 10,000 miles on them.
I went on and picked up my papers and finished the night with out
any more excitement. Dw!

 

i have winter tires and mine still fish tails, throw some 24pack of watter bottles in the back might help

 

Slightly lower your rear tire pressures. That puts more pressure on the outside shoulders.

Remember .. what ever you put in the back to add weight will come and get you if you hit something that throws the loose load hard enough.
Leave your rear seats in the up position to help protect you and put your weight up against the seats.

Personally I like sand bags cause they stay pretty well put and they keep a low profile.

SF

 

running 30psi so thats low enough i believe still doesnt help, the back is just way too light

 

It will help after you add the weight.

However the brand and model tires that are on the HHR along with the tread depth will vary in performance even with the extra weight.
My winter tire is 205/60r/16 with 28lbs. @ 32 degrees F on the rear.
When driving at low temps and snow on the ground your tires do not build up as much heat unless you are driving steady and fast or constantly spinning your wheels.
Hence .. a slightly lower pressure in the rear for will not harm the tire unless you put in too much weight.
200-250lbs. would be fine for around town driving.

 

35 years of driving in Minnesota winters. Most of that in rear wheel drive vehicles, The HHR handles just fine to me. FWD, traction control and Anti lock brakes I feel like I'm driving a snowmobile. I have never bought winter tires for anything.

If road gets glazed, it doesn't matter what your driving - all you can do is creep along.

 

First winter I had the Eagles on, we had about a 6" dump of snow, then it got cold and froze then top layer of snow to a crusty ice. The Eagle GT's did not like that at all. Traction was nil.

 

My first of many HHR's ... a Mocha 2011 1LT.

I put on a set of 215.55R/16 Michelin Ice 2 's and they were great in the snow and ice. Of course it is flat around here and we don't usually get a lot of snow all at one time.

The 2011 Black 2LT is one of the HHR's I am driving this winter and I put a set of Michelin 205/60R/16 Ice 3's on it 5 weeks ago.

WOW ..... I am impressed with the overall performance of these tires. They are extremely quiet and comfortable riding. Very reasonable handling qualities, but I don't drive like an idiot either.
Only one small test in the snow ice so far but they seemed just fine.
It's going to be hard for me to take them off with all the pluses they have to offer.
They actually Tame the Sport Suspension so it's not so rough.
As I mentioned earlier I have 30lbs front and 28lbs. rear set at 32 degrees F.
Also in case you missed it I have 16" tires and wheels on my Black 2LT.
I have found that 28lbs. is the minimum I can use or the TMPS sets off a low tire warning on the 2LT.
It is set on the computer for 215/50/17's and 35lbs psi ... not 30lbs thats on the 1LT with 16" tires and wheels.

 

i dont have traction control on mine and i am using the new Blizzak W70's i think is what they are called, just got them for this season and im using the stock 16" size rim

 

somehow i had more traction in my RWD Chevy Astro van with all seasons lol