KnownCarProblems2009 Chevrolet Hhr Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 508 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Chevrolet Hhr, most often about the electrical (30% of complaints, typically around 55,000 miles). It is 5th of 6 Hhr model years by number of complaints and has 4 recalls.
Most common 2009 Chevrolet Hhr problems
Electrical
151 complaints · 30%Half of these problems showed up before 55,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, instrument cluster/panel, 12v/24v/48v battery.
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Hhr. The contact stated the ignition key failed to turn the vehicle off and the vehicle was stuck in the on position. The contact removed a fuse in order to shut the vehicle off, and have it towed to the dealer. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer, but the manufacturer was…
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Hhr. The contact was unable to turn the key in the ignition. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The technician stated the ignition housing and ignition switch had to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 55,000. Updated…
Steering
127 complaints · 25%Half of these problems showed up before 60,000 miles. Parts named most often: electric power assist system, hydraulic power assist, column.
2009 chevy Hhr lt which is having the same problems that caused a recall on the chevy cobalt,the pontiac g6 ,g5 .the chevy malibu. My power steering system fails in the middle of a turn , the LED read out says power steering and then it completely goes out , I have to either turn the vehicle off and re start it or…
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Hhr. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH, the power steering would intermittently fail without warning and the steering wheel would become difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was diagnosed that the power steering assist…
Air bags
104 complaints · 21%Half of these problems showed up before 56,000 miles. Parts named most often: side/window, frontal.
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Hhr. The contact stated that the air bag light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was found that the air bag module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 56,000. The…
The contact own a 2009 Chevrolet Hhr. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the air bags erroneously deployed without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who could not diagnose why the failure occurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The…
Fuel system
84 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 105,000 miles. Parts named most often: delivery.
Rusty fuel lines. Corrosion occurs in every connection to underbody and back part where fuel lines are covered with heat resistant material. Rust is so big that fuel lines start leaking fuel excessively and very close to exhaust pipe(extremely hot) what may cause fire. First you smell fuel, then it starts dripping and…
On september 6, 2018 on highway going to work. I got there park my vehicle noticed a strong gas odor. Gentleman in his car smell it as well look saw I had a gas leak from the left rear. Took it to be checked out was informed rusted gas line. I only had the vehicle for 9months and I checked for recalls only reading…
Brakes
30 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 44,000 miles. Parts named most often: fluid, power assist.
At 18,000 mile my 2009 Chevrolet Hhr started shaking as the brakes were applied while going down a 5% mountain grade. Within a short distance after leveling off the braking returned to normal. This occurred several more times and at 24,000 mile the vehicle was taken to the dealership to have the brakes checked. The…
After sitting overnight the vehicle has a hard pedal and would not stop. It appeared to be from the booster not holding the vacuum. There was a buliten #09-05-22-001a that addresses this issue but it requires an additional vacuum pump to be added to the vehicle that was not in the original design. I feel this should…
Engine
25 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 59,000 miles.
Went to leave from friend's house, vehicle would not start.called tow truck, but by the time ( 2 hrs ) I waited car started-up.cancelled tow truck. Next time while making turn, power steering stopped working. It has not worked since approx 05/21/14. Called the dealer to make appointment on 06/03/14. They give me the…
Started smelling smoke and the whole vehicle shut down with the being stuck on ignition. Couldn't open the doors and smoke was billowing out and fire start coming out of lower middle console. Luckily was able to open door and exit vehicle. Fire then erupted and quickly traveled straight down the center console to the…
Stability control
25 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 84,500 miles.
While driving on the highway my service ESC light came on along with the road traction picture and my car started jerking and shaking after a few minutes my check engine light came on. My husband thought it was misfiring so he changed out the spark plugs but it is still doing the same thing. The ESC light will go off…
When I parked my car in the driveway my keys got stuck in the ignition and I couldn't turn my car off.I had to get it towed to a dealers who replaced the ignition. The next day my security light went on so I took it back to the dealers they we're very busy so they checked to see if my keys were programmed then the…
Body and structure
21 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 53,500 miles. Parts named most often: body.
Chevy Hhr all models, all years: when exiting my vehicle the drivers door handle snapped. It is made of plastic!! After research I discovered this is an extremely common problem with all models and all years of the chevy Hhr since all interior handles are made from plastic. This is a very expensive part because it…
My 2009 chevy Hhr repeatedly has water in the front driver and passenger side floor. I am not sure where this is coming from, however, after I researched on line, this is an ongoing problem with this vehicle. Besides the floor being wet this causes a horrible smell, most likely mold in the vehicle. This needs to be…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2009 Chevrolet Hhr recalls
Electrical: ignition
Risk: If the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "off" position, the vehicle could roll away: (a) for an automatic transmission, if the transmission is not in the "park" position; or (b) for a manual transmission, if the parking brake is not engaged and the transmission is not in the "reverse" position. This potential for rollaway increases the risk for a crash and occupant or pedestrian injuries.
Fix: General motors will notify owners, and for vehicles that were built with the defective ignition cylinder and have not previously had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will replace the ignition cylinder and cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition/door keys for each vehicle. For vehicles that were built with the redesigned ignition cylinder or had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition/door keys for each vehicle. The recall began on april 18, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact general
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 chevrolet cobalt, 2006-2011 chevrolet hhr, 2007-2010 pontiac g5, 2006-2010 pontiac solstice, 2003-2007 saturn ion, and 2007-2010 saturn sky vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "off" position.
Steering: electric power assist system
Risk: If power steering assist is lost, greater driver effort would be required to steer the vehicle at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will perform one of four bulletins. Parts are not currently available. Gm expects to send an interim notification around may 28, 2014. When parts are available, owners will be mailed a second letter to come in to have the applicable bulletin applied. Bulletin 14115 covers model year 2004-2007 saturn ion, 2009-2010 chevrolet hhr and 2010 chevrolet cobalts. Dealers will replace the eps motor. Bulletin 14116 covers model year 2004-2006 chevrolet malibu and malibu maxx, 2005-2006 pontiac g6 and 2008-2009 chevrolet malibu, pontiac g6 and saturn aura built from mar
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 and 2008-2009 chevrolet malibu, 2004-2006 malibu maxx, 2009-2010 hhr (non-turbo), 2010 cobalt, 2008-2009 saturn aura and 2004-2007 ion, and 2005-2009 pontiac g6. In the affected vehicles, there may be a sudden loss of electric power steering (eps) assist that could occur at any time while driving.
Air bags
Risk: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ignition switch, free of charge. An interim notification was issued to owners of 2007 and earlier models on march 10, 2014, informing them of the safety defect. Owners of 2008 and later vehicles will be mailed an interim letter on april 21, 2014. All affected owners will receive another letter once parts are available. The recall began on april 18, 2014. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, pontiac at 1-800-762-2737 or saturn at 1-800-553-6000. Gm's number for the initial recall is 13454 and 14063 for the expansion. Gmâs recall nu
Full defect summary
This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General motors llc (gm) notified the agency on february 10, 2014 that they are recalling 619,122 model year 2005-2007 chevrolet cobalt, and 2007 pontiac g5 vehicles. On february 25, 2014, gm increased the recall to include an additional 748,024 model year 2006-2007 chevrolet hhr and pontiac solstice vehicles and 2003-2007 saturn ion vehicles and 2007 saturn sky vehicles. In these models, the weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine. On march 27, 2014, gm notified the agency that the defective ignition switches may have be
Transmission: column shift
Risk: The driver may not be able to restart the vehicle and the vehicle could roll away after the driver has exited the vehicle, resulting in a possible crash without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and ensure that the shift cable adjustment clip is fully engaged. In the event that the clip does not engage, the shift cable will be replaced free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on or before march 24, 2009. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668 and saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
General motors is recalling 276,729 my 2009 buick enclave, chevrolet cobalt, hhr, malibu, traverse, gmc acadia, pontiac g5, g6 and saturn aura and outlook passenger vehicles. These vehicles fail to comply with federal motor vehicles safety standard 102, "transmission shift position sequence, starter interlock, and transmission braking effect", and fmvss 114, "theft protection and rollaway prevention". On some of these vehicles, the transmission shift cable adjustment clip may not be fully engaged. If the clip is not fully engaged, the shift lever and the actual position of the transmission gear may not match. With this condition, the drive could move the shifter to "park" and remove the ignition key, but the transmission gear may not be in "park".
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Fuel line leak
Summary
On july 5, 2020, the office of defects investigations (odi) opened pe20-011 to investigate instances of metal fuel lines under the vehicle corroding and leaking fuel in model year (my) 2008 through 2010 chevrolet cobalt and 2008 through 2009 chevrolet hhr passenger cars manufactured by general motors (gm). The metal fuel lines are corroding and leaking fuel in the area between the front and rear wheels on the driver's side of the vehicle before the muffler. Most consumers allege a fuel odor and/or an observable fuel leak that alerts them to the condition.the subject metal fuel lines have a protective age coating and, in the vicinity of the left rear wheel, are further wrapped in a foil heat
Questions about the 2009 Chevrolet Hhr
- What are the most common problems with the 2009 Chevrolet Hhr?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (151 complaints, typically around 55,000 miles); steering (127 complaints, typically around 60,000 miles); air bags (104 complaints, typically around 56,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2009 Chevrolet Hhr have?
- 4 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from April 10, 2014 (electrical). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2009 a bad year for the Chevrolet Hhr?
- It is 5th of 6 Hhr model years by number of complaints, with 508 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.