This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Driving down the freeway, the on board computer dings and a message appears on the dash that my power steering is out. It doesn't lock it up but it becomes extremely hard to steer. I stopped at a auto parts store to get power steering fluid only to find out there is not fluid, it uses an electric motor. Starting the car must reset the electronics, it worked fine for several months. It is now happening quite frequently and I feel it a very dangerous situation. In checking on the internet, it is a very common problem with the car. My understanding is that Chevrolet recalled the cobalt for the same issue, but not the HHR, even though both are basically the same.
Driving getting onto on ramp to interstate. It is very difficult to turn with no power steering around the turn. And of course there was two more ramps to go around. Turned off the car to get gas and the power steering came back and the power steering light went off. Have been reading the other posts and I guess I'm not alone. I just hope that this is covered under a recall so it can be fixed right.
As I am driving the power steering indicator warning comes on and the power steering goes out. Once I stop the car and restart it the power steering is fine. This can happen after driving for a while or after driving for 5 minutes. One day it happened 4 times within 15 minutes.
Making a left or right turn, I lose power steering, if I turn the car off the power steering will come back for a while, then I lose the power steering again. It is hard for me to turn the wheel I have carpal tunnel, elbow and shoulder and neck and lower back pain already.
Electric power steering failed, steering wheel became hard to turn, requiring significantly added muscular strength to maintain directional stability and to turn and maneuver the vehicle in traffic. Power steering function restored and normal operation restored by stopping the vehicle, turning off the motor, and electrical system, then restarting the motor. This happened several times on the trip home, distance less than 3 miles. Restored power steering failed again within 30 to 120 seconds of each restart. Outside air temperature was below freezing, vehicle operated on paved highway in good condition.
- Naperville, IL, USA
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The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet HHR. The contact stated that while driving 40 mph, the power steering assist failed without warning while he was attempting a turn. The contac turned the vehicle off and once restarted, the power steering assist was functioning properly for a shirt time before the failure recurred. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnosis or repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 28,000.
The powersteering will go out as I am driving. Very unsafe!! warning will come on after the power steering goes out. If I shut the car off I will get the power steering back temporarily, but then it goes back out again. I see I am not the only one on here with the same complaint.
While driving at various speeds the power steering will turn off leaving the vehicle extremely difficult to steer. Although the warning message does come advising of the incident there is absolutely no warning. If I stop the vehicle and turn the ignition off and then restart the car, the power steering will return to normal for several minutes but will eventually turn off again. This had led to a couple close calls since when the power steering is off the vehicle is very hard to steer at lower speeds such as trying to park or around sharp curves. I have taken it to 2 different mechanics and both have stated that the power steering on this vehicle is a sealed system and they can't even check the fluid level and that it must be taken to the dealer for service. I find it absolutely unacceptable that Chevrolet would make a vehicle that has no means of checking the fluid levels on something as critical as the power steering assembly.
Power steering failure light came on dash and was extremly hard to steer, this has happened numerous times, progressively getting worse, checked with dealer no recall on HHR however there is a recall on the cobalt with same problem.
I was driving about 45 mph and the power steering just went out. The light sounded and power steering light came up on the dash. The wheel was very hard to turn. When I stopped and turned the car off and back on again, it started working again. I searched online what the problem was and found that this is happening a lot on HHR models. I saw where many of the Chevy models have been recalled for this same reason and even the HHR in Canada but not in the usa. I find this very dangerous. Please recall the 2007 HHR for this problem. I fear driving my car now.
Driving on highway, 70mph, power steering simply went off. Pulled off onto another road, stopped at a nearby Chevy dealership, turned car off to ask for service, when car was pulled in to be looked at, power steering worked again.
My clutch went out and the car stopped working gas I was driving along the highway. It was not during a shift, just acceleration. The clutch did the exact same thing on December 23, 2013 (mileage about 115,000). I have driven manual transmissions previously and have gone well over 100K miles without replacing the clutch and I am now on my 3rd clutch. I know there is a tsb on a possible bad flywheel (which was not replaced either time), but a clutch to go out twice on a car that has seen for the last 55K almost all highway miles indicates there is a problem with the car.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet HHR. The contact stated that while traveling 5 mph, the power steering warning lamp illuminated and the power steering assist failed. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for a diagnostic. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 77,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet HHR. The contact stated that as she parked, the power steering warning light illuminated. Several hours later, the contact attempted to drive the vehicle but the power steering assist failed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection where they stated that the power steering column and motor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 113,954.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet HHR. The contact was driving 40 mph when the power steering warning lamp illuminated and the power steering assist failed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for inspection and was advised that the power steering motor would need replacing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 35246. Updated 02/11/14 updated 02/12/14
Power steering assist motor stopped working and the dic showed "power steering". engine was stopped and restarted to resolve the issue. The issue appears to happen at random speeds and at random intervals, and once the dic warning is showing steering is extremely difficult. The issue has occurred at least a dozen times in the last ~2 weeks.
On multiple occasions I lost power steering lasting approximately 2-5 seconds. Occasionally the "power steering" light would register on the dashboard. I brought my vehicle to the dealership and they could not find any problem. Over the next 3 months I would lose power steering approximately one to two times a day. It would happen at speeds from 10-60 miles an hour, while turning right or left, and any change in the surface of the road. I brought my car to my local mechanic and they stated that there was voltage going in but not out. I had the power steering motor replaced. I have read multiple articles on this problem. I feel rather lucky since my power steering would return within 5 seconds. Many reports have people having to restart their vehicles to reset the system. I also feel very lucky that I was not involved in any accidents. This is a very dangerous situation to be in. From my understanding, the cobalt had a recall on their power steering motor and is the same motor in the HHR. I hope that there is some consideration in recalling this motor in the HHR.
I was crossing a large parking lot, and saw the words power steering appear in the information display under my speedometer. When I tried to turn a corner to get to the exit drive, I found I had no power steering. I was able to manually steer the car, but with only with extreme difficulty. I drove to a nearby garage, turned the car off, explained my problem to the mechanics, and when we turned the car back on, the steering was back to normal. I see this problem is also happening in other GM cars: Saturn ion, Chevrolet cobalt, Pontiac G5, Pontiac G4, and Pontiac pursuit. General Motors issued a recall in 2010 for 2005-2010 Chevrolet cobalt, 2007-2010 Pontiac G5, 2005-2006 Pontiac pursuit (Canada only), 2005-2006 Pontiac G4 (Mexico only), and is extending a 100,000 mile/10 year warranty on Saturn ions for this problem. Why is GM not recalling or extending warranties for affected Hhrs" Canada's recall included 2006-2010 HHR as well as 2003-2007 Saturn ion. Why doesn't the us's recall include them" according to us recall news, when the 2010 recall was issued, "there were 16 complaints with the NHTSA for the 2009 Pontiac G5 which included two separate injuries and one reported death." On December 4, 2013, I found over 140 complaints about the loss of power steering assist in Hhrs on the internet (), two of which stated that the loss of power steering assist caused them to crash. Why is a recall not being issued to prevent more serious crashes or possible fatalities?
I had to replace left and right control arms on this vehicle, brakes constantly can't unlock doors from inside, have to roll down window to unlock, now having engine problems and one of the control arms going bad again.plus something is causing rain to get in my car somewhere, because when it rains at smells mildewy.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Justice, IL, USA