10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 18 / 1
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 6 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 78,616 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
I was coming home from work in heavy traffic and making a left hand turn when the power steering light came on and the vehicle suddenly was very hard to turn. I entered into another lane before I could get it back in mine. I stopped on the freeway and turned off my vehicle. A young man stopped and asked me what the problem was and I told him it terrified me, but that while turning my power steering went out. I had lost my power steering. He said my power steering was electrical and to try and turn the car back on to reset the power steering. I did, and the power steering was fine. Made it home. However, have had about 10 more instances of the power steering going out while at a stop light, while turning, and while driving on a straight freeway. It is in the Chevrolet dealer as of today. $1,307 to fix. They checked my VIN # and said I don't qualify for any recalls. This is so dangerous. GM should recall these, and or pay us for this problem we have had to get fixed.
- Hithcock, TX, USA
When driving vehicle approximately 20mph, chime sounds, dash displays power steering message and power steering is gone. Has happened twice and when going around corner nearly crash twice now due to sudden loss of power steering. I bought this car new 1/2/06 and it only has a tad over 40,000 miles so warranty has expired. Vehicle has same power steering pump as cobalt for which a recall was done. Same exact part means problem should not just be limited to the cobalt and G5. This is a safety issue and cobalt & G5 were recalled but not the HHR. I belong to a very large HHR community and this is a common problem and needs to be addressed before someone is seriously injured or killed. I live in Colorado and had this happened when roads were icy it could have created a serious issue. Please let me know what can be done to correct this as the other vehicles the same year as mine with the same part have been recalled. It's an obvious defect and out of concern for the safety of the driver of the vehicle and the others around them when the problem occurs, the cost to repair should rest on Chevrolet and not the owner of the vehicle. I am a single elderly woman struggling to make ends meet and cannot afford to pay for a repair, nor should I have to because of a known faulty part. Thank you for your assistance.
- Arvada, CO, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. The contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated. The contact merged onto the shoulder and turned the engine off. Once restarted, the power steering assist independently reset. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who advised the contact that there were no recalls for the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 140,000.
- Union, MO, USA
As I was driving on the interstate I heard a double chime and looked at my console and noticed the power steering warning had come on. At that time I noticed steering had become very stiff. After shutting the vehicle off and restarting it I found it to be working fine again, no warning lights, no issues turning the wheel. Approximately 20 miles later, coming off the interstate, the same warning returned and power was immediately lost in steering. Upon leaving work to take the car to the dealership, two hours later, the car was running as it did prior to the power loss. This is a safety concern. If I had not been a straight away both times I could have had caused an accident or been in an accident myself. This is unacceptable. I have had my vehicle for more than five years and have had nearly no problems with it until recently. I am an active duty member and am concerned about the safety of those around me who drive this make and model of a vehicle and have the same problems.
- Lorton, VA, USA
The key will not come out of the ignition at times. I take the vehicle out of drive and put it in park several times and do the same with the brakes before the key will come out. My mechanic has said that it is a brake issue and not the transmission.
- Horseshoe Bend, ID, USA
I have a 2006 Chevy HHR with 44,000 miles. While driving the power steering light came on the dash, then the power steering went out, almost causing me to loose control of the car in a curve. I am a 65 year old female, I do not have the strength in my arms to maneuver a vehicle that looses power steering unexpectedly. I made it home and did a search on the internet for a recall, I found where GM recalled 1.3 million cobalts with the same electric motor as the HHR, however, there is no recall for the HHR. GM is well aware of the problem. HHR owners are all over the internet complaining about this power steering problem. I am told that it could cost over $2000 to fix this problem.I am a senior citizen with a limited income, I can't afford to pay to have the car fixed or to purchase a new vehicle. I read on the internet that several people have already been hurt due to this defect. This is a very serious safety problem that needs to be addresses by GM and fixed as soon as possible, before someone is seriously injured or killed. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Memphis, TN, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. While driving approximately 30 mph, the power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel and the steering became difficult to maneuver. The failure recurred intermittently at different speeds. The vehicle regained power steering when the vehicle was shut off and restarted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing or repairs. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 52,000.
- New Orleans, LA, USA
When pulling out of a parking space the "power steering" warning flashed on my dashboard and the steering became very hard. After stopping the car and turning off the engine and checking under the hood I found I was unable to locate the power steering system. Upon restarting the car the light went off and the steering was fine. After several days the light came back on and the same problem steering occurred. This happened while on the highway. I researched online how to resolve and this became a recurring issue in forums that people had with the power steering system constantly turning off and needing to be reset. This problem has since sped up in occurrence since then.
- Round Rock, TX, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized upon shifting into drive. The power steering light also illuminated on the instrument panel during the failure. The failure recurred on an intermittent basis. The vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 40,000.
- Shreveport, LA, USA
Car suddenly loses power steering. Shutting off the car allows the power steering to reset and work again but it loses the power steering again at random times. Most of the time it only works for 30 seconds, sometimes the entire trip in the car, and other times it cuts off in the middle of a trip. Especially dangerous when it shuts off in the middle of a turn. Cobalts and Pontiac G5 have had similar problems resulting in a recall. Same steering components?
- North East, MD, USA
Driving vehicle city street making turn power steering message came on power steering failed.pulled over to safe area shut off vehicle restarted power steering functional for a few miles failed again with message this is a constant problem.
- Long Beach, CA, USA
The electric steering will shut down and the message center on the dash will show "power steering" and the vehicle becomes very hard to steer.
- Hemingway, SC, USA
As I was exiting the freeway I heard a chime and power steering came on the info panel as I made a turn to find out what was wrong I found turning the wheel to be extremely difficult and as the power assist motor is the same as a recalled motor (Chevy cobalt) I feel Chevy should recall HHR as well.
- Fresno, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. The contact was driving 50 mph and lost control of the vehicle due to the power steering system malfunctioning. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer but the dealer could not locate a failure with the power steering system and advised that the vehicle was safe to drive. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 77,351.
- Ceres, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. The contact noticed after rainy weather that there was a substantial amount of water on the front passenger side floorboard of water was at least four inches. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the water leak could possibly have come from the front windshield or sun roof. In addition, there was an intermittent loss of power steering. The vehicle had not been repaired for the defects. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 27,000. The VIN was unavailable.
- South Bay , FL, USA
The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet HHR. While driving approximately 45 mph, the power steering chime sounded with the warning indicator illumination. Immediately there was a complete loss in the power steering. The contact maneuvered to the side of the road with difficulty in turning the steering wheel. The engine was turned off and upon restarting the power steering began to function normally. The failure occurred on six different occasions. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who was unable to duplicate the defect. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 43,000. The VIN was unavailable. Updated 12/12/11 updated 12/14/11
- Frankfort, KY, USA
Key doesn't come out of ignition, blinkers do not turn off on own. Have to manually turn off blinkers. Key get stuck in ignition, luckily went online to see about the problem and found hundreds of people with same issue. A quick video showed me that the defect happens to a lot of people and you have to go under the steering column and pop off a cover and manually push a little button to pop the key out of the ignition, the car will continue to run, if you don't do this!
- Port Charlotte, FL, USA
The electric power steering has failed intermittently over the past months since July 4, 2011. The first incident was on July 4, 2011 when the power steering failed on a family trip almost causing an accident at 65 mph. There have been up to a dozen instances since with the latest being on Oct 2, 2011 causing my wife to run off the interstate into the median. GM claims there is no recall, however there are recalls for the same exact electric power steering motors for the cobalts from GM. The HHR's need to be a part of this recall as the motor is the same exact one as the cobalt. Please recall these also before someone gets hurt or worse. The internet sites are filled with complaints on this issue.
- Newton, NC, USA
Sudden loss of electric power steering assist immediately upon starting 2006 Chevy HHR (150,000 miles). Vehicle was in park when problem began. "power steering" message appeared on dash. Vehicle was repeatedly shut off and restarted. Message has disappeared, yet problem persists.
- New Paris, PA, USA
- Plantation, FL, USA