2008 Chevrolet HHR SS Review

Specifications

Regrettably, out of all the questions I was hoping to have directed my way during the week I had the HHR SS, nobody, not even the most curious of souls asked, “So, mister, what’ll it do?”

Part of my disappointment lies in the fact that the HHR SS is a car that’s actually got a few conversation-worthy figures. It makes 260 horsepower, which is a lot coming from an engine that’s just 2.0 liters in displacement. It’ll sprint to 60 mph in six point three seconds, leaving Honda’s Civic Si and VW’s GTI to suck on its dust. Heck, it’ll even pull a very respectable 8:44:52 around the Nurburgring circuit in Germany. While these numbers might speak of a blistering sport compact, you wouldn’t expect them to come from a car that looks anything like the HHR SS.

Up until now, the HHR has suffered from living under the scrutiny of being a PT Cruiser-xerox that’s several years late to the scene. Nevertheless, GM’s retro wagon, which has a bit of ‘40s Chevy Suburban in its styling, has been embraced by Chevy fans. Being newer and more modern than the PT, it’s more refined and more car like, not to mention, unlike Chrysler, Chevrolet capitalized on turning it into a panel van, allowing it to cater to small businesses that neither want nor need an expensive Dodge Sprinter or thirsty Chevy Express. And just like the PT, customizers have taken to it with pinstriping kits and airbrushes in hand.

With is bulbous nose, perched fenders and chopped look, the HHR definitely has a hot-rod look and feel, and so it really isn’t a surprise that the General would want to do something more with it. But GM’s Performance Division found itself in a similar predicament with the HHR as Chrysler did with the PT Cruiser – a car like the HHR cries out for a small block V8, giving it rumble, bark and street cred. But you can’t go dropping a V8 under the hood of a compact economy car, let alone one that’s front wheel drive. Not only won’t it fit, it just doesn’t work.

“There’s no replacement for displacement.” I don’t know how many times I’ve read that catchy phrase on a T-Shirt or a bumper sticker, but it certainly wasn’t the motto of whoever designed the HHR SS. Its engine is not only delivers the highest specific displacement GM has ever created, but it’s also the most advanced. You won’t find pushrods here. Instead, dual overhead cams and direct fuel injection with a turbocharger help things along. It’s the same engine that put the Solstice into the same sentence as Nissan 350Z or Porsche Boxster, and it’s here to do business under the hood of the HHR.

In addition to the 260 horsepower that the HHR SS makes, it also has 260 lb-ft of torque, and that’s quite a bit for a small car. It’s almost as much as what the Mazdaspeed3 makes, and it isn’t too far off the pace of the wild Dodge Caliber SRT4. Unlike those two, you have a choice of transmission – a five-speed manual, which for some strange reason has been sourced from Saab, or a four-speed automatic that despite being predicted as the more popular choice amongst HHR SS buyers, is not my choice. Besides dropping a gear, it also means you lose out on the option of a limited slip differential, not to mention a hefty reduction on power and torque. Opt for the auto and the engine is detuned to 250 horsepower and 223 lb-ft of torque.

The five-speeder isn’t the most refined transmission I’ve come across, and despite being completely unrelated, it’s strangely akin to those featured in its rivals; it’s stiff, requiring a strong hand to get in gear, and you could never really call the shift action slick. Still, between the two choices, it’s hands down for enthusiast drivers.


But you can’t blame GM Performance for setting up the car like this. It’s been designed to take a ton of abuse, mostly, I might imagine, from owners trying to prove its worth against Mustangs and the like. And to make sure stoplight takeoffs are the best they can be, the HHR SS boasts launch control for picture-perfect starts. Just tap the traction control button twice and put your foot the floor, and as if by magic the tach’s needle stops rising at 4,100 rpm… then drop the clutch and hold on. Behind the scenes, the engine’s ECU retards the timing ever so slightly to reduce the chance of performing a wrong-wheeled burnout. While it’s certainly a cool trick, it isn’t the SS’ only one. When it comes time to shift into second, don’t waste time letting off the clutch, just dump it in with your right foot welded to the floor.

Yes, it sounds like a sure-fire way to grenade your engine, but you won’t in the HHR because it has something called “No Lift Shift” which seeks to keep the turbo spinning as quickly as possible so it’s always at peak performance for the next gear. You shouldn’t worry about over-revving the engine as the ECU prevents the tach’s needle from venturing into the red zone, thereby ensuring that your HHR’s stellar five-year, 100,000 mile powertrain warranty doesn’t go up in smoke should you try and have a little fun.


That traction control button doesn’t just operate the launch control system – push it again and it tells the watchdog that is the stability control system to relax a bit with something GM calls Competition Mode, which allows for more wheelspin and oversteer before kicking in. The very fact that such a feature has been calibrated into the HHR SS gives you an idea that the folks at the Performance Division had more in mind than just drag racing.

At the outset, I mentioned the HHR SS’ Nurburgring lap time, which seems odd for an American sport compact that isn’t sold across the Atlantic. Yet despite this, GM’s engineers realize that if a car can do well out there it’ll be extremely capable in the real world. Besides the sheer brute force of its engine, the HHR has its fair share of suspension modifications such as stiffer springs and dampers and larger anti-roll bars to improve body control. The power steering system is still the same electrically assisted unit as before, but it’s quicker than before, making it much more direct. It’ll also feel more agile to your hands, as Chevy has replaced the steering wheel with one that looks nearly identical, but has a smaller diameter.


What’s most impressive about the HHR is that it’s truly up to the task of putting a smile on your face. Yeah, the hiss of the turbo, the chatter of the wastegate and the thrill of boost accounts for part of it, but this thing handles surprisingly well, besting my expectations. The ride quality hasn’t suffered much either, and it still possesses quite bit of give to absorb bumps. And while you should, in theory, be wary about laying down the hammer due to the fact that the front wheels don’t just turn but propel the car, torque steer isn’t really an issue. It hasn’t been eradicated completely, but it’s far less pronounced than in other high-horsepower front wheel drive cars. You won’t find the wheel adding its own opinions on the direction of travel, other than a faint pull to the right. Because of the higher height of the body, the HHR SS has more body roll than its contemporaries, but it’s still a flat-cornering car by most standards.

Like the PT Cruiser, the HHR’s looks won’t be up everybody’s alley, and I’m willing to say that it’s even more true with the SS model. I happen to think it looks clean with its diamond mesh-filled upper and lower grille inserts and the deeper chin spoiler. The HHR’s faux-look running boards are replaced by fat, body-colored sill extensions that meet up nicely with its inflated fenders, and you can’t forget the roof-top spoiler or the 18-inch wheels, polished and sparkly.

If there’s one thing that I’m not such a fan of, it’s the interior. I don’t mind the layout of the dash, and I’m not offended by the quality of the materials (not especially given how much performance you get for your dollar). No, what bugs me about the HHR is that the bright red garnishes that appear on the armrests and on parts of the seat bolsters is just so bright that it’s hard to ignore. It’s very boy-racer, but not in a good way, however it does match up nicely with the boost gauge that hangs in a pod off the A-pillar. A couple of other little tidbits worth noting – you can order a performance seat trimmed in grippy faux suede with extra fat bolstering, but it’s only for the driver and not the passenger. I’m not entirely sure why this is the case. Secondly, I’ve always liked the HHR’s minimalist gauge pod, which consists of a speedo plus a tiny, stopwatch-sized tach placed on top, but the snazzy italicized font type of the HHR SS is too small and too tightly packed together to read, particularly the tach.

And there are a couple of little changes that you might not have necessarily noticed with the HHR SS that were altered in the name of performance. Take for instance the shifter on the manual version; it’s been moved forward and upwards so that it’s within closer reach to the driver’s right hand. As a result, Chevrolet has moved the window switches from the center stack to the door, which is a more conventional and arguably better location for them anyway.

Out of all the capabilities and traits that the HHR SS features, I’d really have to say what makes it unique is its ability to transport five people plus a ton of cargo room at a very rapid pace. With the rear seats up, there’s 25.2 cubic feet of cargo capacity in back, which is above and beyond what the Caliber SRT4 or the Mazdaspeed3 are capable of, and few compact cars, performance-oriented or otherwise can touch it when the seats are folded down. For the record that’s 63.1 cubic feet, plus the front passenger’s seat can fold flat if for transporting extra long objects. For smaller items, the HHR has plenty of covered storage space in the cargo bay, as well as in the dash-top bin.

And the price isn’t bad either. The HHR SS starts at $23,565, which is more than either the Mazda or the Dodge, but then again, neither of these competitors are as civilized on the road, nor do they offer as much cargo capacity. On the track, its rivals might outperform the HHR SS, but in the real world, as a fast and truly useable vehicle, the HHR comes out on top.