Boston.com's view

The easy thing would be to compare the 2006 Chevrolet HHR with the five-year-old, retro cult hit PT Cruiser; to ask why, since we were given the Cruiser all those years ago, we need another retro box, this time from General Motors Corp.

But we won’t do that, since it has already been done too many times.

Instead, let’s just consider the HHR.

It is a functional, economical, roomy, box that can seat five with seats up, or just the driver with all other seats folded flat, turning it into a ”van” with room for furniture, groceries, and even 8-foot two-by-fours.

The HHR comes with touches of the 1949 Chevrolet Suburban and today’s SSR, a retro pickup with a grille from the 1950s, bulging, rounded fenders, and a convertible hard top, all fronted by the distinctive Chevrolet bow tie at mid-grille.

It is not expensive, starting at around $16,000 and, covering three models, climbing toward $23,000 for our test car, the LT.

To buy the test car, you need to fork over $1,800 for the 2.4-liter high-output engine package, which includes chrome exhaust tip, sport tuned suspension, leather wrapped steering wheel, four-wheel ABS, fog lights, 17-inch, wheels and extra chrome trim.

Add $1,000 for an automatic transmission, packaged oddly with a remote start system, $750 for leather seats to match your steering wheel, $325 for XM satellite radio, and $295 for an upgraded sound system with MP3 player and you are near the top of the line.

The HHR, which sits atop the same platform as GM’s delightful, small Chevrolet Cobalt and Saturn Vue, comes in just three trim levels with two engines: the base 143-horsepower, 2.2-liter, or the 2.4-liter, 172-horsepower engine in the test car. Transmission options include a five-speed manual or, as tested, a four-speed automatic. I would have preferred the manual since there were times it lagged in downshifting when I wanted better acceleration in pulling out to pass, and upshifted prematurely several times when I wanted to max out the motor.

The 172-horsepower engine provided plenty of power to move even a fully loaded car, and passengers, front and rear, had plenty of head room (HHR stands for Heritage High Roof) and surprisingly spacious rear seat leg room.

It is nearly 7 inches longer than the PT Cruiser, and a couple of inches wider and higher.

It is not space that is readily apparent sitting inside, however, as both the HHR and the PT Cruiser are virtual minivans. The fold-flat seats — rear and front passenger — turn the HHR into a virtual cavern of space.

And considering that I got more than 25 miles per gallon overall in lots of fully loaded driving, that’s an efficient hauler of people and cargo in these days of prohibitive gasoline costs.

Many critics have written that the HHR will be a flop because it comes too late in the dust and tracks of the PT Cruiser.

I haven’t seen many HHRs on New England roads, but these utilitarian boxes will sell here. General Motors said it sold 8,000 HHRs in August and that is a respectable figure for a car trying not so much to create a niche as to enter one.

Royal Ford can be reached at ford@globe.com.