2009 Chevrolet HHR consumer reviews

2009 HHR SS- Victory Red. Beautiful car. Comfortable-cozy. Fast. Fuel efficient. Since I have owned car, overall gas milage combined is 27+. This is nice from a car that puts many v8's to shame in 0to80. I would have no other HHR than the SS. Comfortable high bolstered seats and very good highway feel. This car can be doing 80 on the highway and you would swear you were only doing about 50. Now I want a black SS. You can get a Stage 1 performance kit from GM, will keep your warranty and give you HP up to 295 from 260.

I traded in my mini van for the HHR. The HHR doesn't seat as many people but the milage and style of the HHR is worth the setting. The ride is smooth and handling around conners is tight. The HHR averages 24 MPG but on the highway its over 35 MPG.

I traded my 04 Subaru STi for 09 HHR SS as I needed more utility and better mpg.My Subaru was giving me 18 mpg at most (300+hp), this one so far 42 mpg at 60 mph on highway and 22 overall, as I drive mostly in town. The car is a great value as it offers up to 250 hp, very comfortable ride, very quiet, high quality materials inside, very true paint, 18 inch chrome wheels and Michelin tires,large disc brakes, Nice radio with 3 months free XM and 1 year of OnBigBrotherStar. The auto tranny in mine is super smooth and traction control eliminates torque steer. Some people complain about visibility, I am 5-7 and find it to be great, so does my wife. The car has standard remote start and I use it all the time. The factory speakers aren't all that, but the radio unit itself is nice. Driving this car is very easy and relaxing. There are no squeaks, leaks or imperfections in plastics.The car has some of the best rear view mirrors of them cars. In the rear there are lots of compartments and even a net. The battery is neatly tucked under the rear bumper, but easily accessible. Both rear seats and the front passenger seat neatly fold down for large items. The rear seats' backs are hard plastic , matching the cargo floor and they fold truly flat with just one move, unlike in most cars. Also the car can run on any grade of gasoline, gets first oil change at 5000 miles free. The engine assembly appears very neat and well engineered. The turbocharger is located on the backside, next to the firewall, but dressed in thick heat shield and sounds very inspiring at full throttle. The exhaust note is one of the best four - banger I heard.

I drove a 03 Nissan Maxima with a 6-speed before this HHR. I'm in my mid 20s. I wanted something with better gas mileage, space to carry bikes, and better reliability. I feel like I got it all, and a car thats easy to love. I ended up with a 09 Chevy HHR LS with panels in the far rear side windows. 2.2L engine. It was between a HHR and Scion xB. I found the gas mileage of the xB to be unacceptable in the end. Performance I expected the 2.2L to be pathetic. To my surprise it accelerated quite briskly and actually felt torquey when the mid RPMs kicked in. I found the 2.2L very satisfactory, specially since I want mileage. The handling is not quite as good as a sedan but no where near as bad as say, a caravan or SUV. The suspension takes bumps quietly and without a jolt. The steering is almost effortless. INTERIOR There's all kinds of little places to store stuff, the center of the dash has a covered compartment, the glove box, little compartments behind the rear seats and another larger compartment under the removeable floor in the rear. All the seats fold flat exept the driver seat of course making a ton of room for stuff. I'm 6'1" and the rearview mirror is kind of in my line of sight so if you're tall you may find it to be an issue, it doesn't bother me. Love the features that come with this car like 3 months of XM, 1 year of onstar, side airbags, traction control w/on/off, Flex fuel 2.2L, remote start from the factory, gauge setup is awsome, very easy to use radio, auxilary hookup for say, an ipod. I find the car to be comfortable and even relaxing. I like the shorter windows because it feels more private and secure. There's lots of interior illumination with 3 dome lamps(front has reading lamps w/buttons driver/passenger). SUMMARY This is a very versatile vehicle with very few close competitors. I've never owned an American car so the only question up in the air for me is reliability, though my Nissan was pretty bad and expensive to fix. I do believe, without doubt, that Chevy is the most reliable American car. If you want great gas mileage with lots of space and versatility, the HHR is a very strong candidate. Not to mention all the other great features. I "love" this car and hope it continues for many many miles.