2006 Chevrolet HHR - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

Based on the safety rating data for the 2006 Chevrolet HHR, it is evident that the car has excellent crash test ratings in both the front and side crashes, with a top score of 5 in most categories. However, the overall rating is listed as "Not Rated," which might be due to missing data in some areas. The car does not have electronic stability control, forward collision warning, or lane departure warning systems, which are advanced safety features found in newer models.

Additionally, the car has a high number of complaints, with 999 reported issues, and has been subject to 6 recalls. Despite the impressive crash test ratings, potential buyers should be aware of the significant number of complaints and recalls associated with this vehicle. It is crucial to consider all aspects of safety, performance, and reliability before making a decision to purchase the 2006 Chevrolet HHR.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

999

Recall Count

6

Investigation Count

0

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2006 Chevrolet HHR 4-DR. Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2006 Chevrolet HHR 4-DR.

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

No
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2006 Chevrolet HHR 4-DR. Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2006 Chevrolet HHR 4-DR. Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2006 Score 2011 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2006 Score 2011 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 Not Rated
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2006 Score 2011 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated

Complaints for the 2006 Chevrolet HHR

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"the power steering went out. very hard and unsafe to drive."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2024-11-11

Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that the power steering warning light was illuminated, and the steering wheel was difficult to maneuver. the contact stated that the failure recurred while driving at various speeds and while idling. the contact stated that the failure occurred at least once every hour. the contact learned that the electronic power steering gear needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 46,973."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-02-07

Complaint:
"while driving in town lost the power steering on a turn making it difficult to steer and control the car. self explanatory for keeping control of the car. not sure what the problem is for sure the motor or other components. there was a vehicle safety recall but i was not notified that my vehicle may have been included. problem still exists. no inspections as no accident occurred. got a chime when unit failure immediately when it got disabled. no warning or message before or prior to failure."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-05-03

Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving 30 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. the power steering assist warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was turned off, restarted and the vehicle operated as designed. the failure recurred on several occasions and persisted. the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 40,000. invalid vin."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-11-09

Complaint:
"steering light came on cant turn wheel"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-08-10

Complaint:
"power steering keeps going out while driving. it's been happening for over a year"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2022-02-07

Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle loss power steering assist and became difficult to steer. the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who replaced several fuses however, the failure persisted. deery brothers inc located at 200 s. gear ave, west burlington, ia 52655, and the manufacturer were notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 138,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2020-02-07

Complaint:
"power steering stops frequently making it very difficult to control car."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2020-05-03

Complaint:
"i bought a 2006 chevy hhr last february i qas driving it on the interstate and it suddenly starts beeping saying power steering it doesnt say there is a recall on this year but i feel they should be because it starts out doing it ever now again to everytime u drive it. it was very dangerous i got my replaced which was 200 dollars but im glad i dont have to. go through that again"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2019-01-03

Complaint:
"the power steering light came on, on the information obdi and i have power steering. i heard is a recalled on this problem."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2022-06-01

Recalls for the 2006 Chevrolet HHR

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"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 been..."
Consequence:
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.
Remedy:

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. GM’s recall number for the vehicles that may have received the replacement parts is 14092. Note: Until the recall repairs have been performed, it is very important that customers remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the vehicle key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. Always wear your seatbelt.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2014-02-10

Recall:
"gm is recalling 181,516 my 2006-2008 chevrolet hhr vehicles not equipped with optional roof rail air bags for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 201, 'occupant protection in interior impact.' in tests, one of the upper interior occupant protection test points exceeded the standard's requirement."
Consequence:
THIS STANDARD SPECIFIES PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE HEAD IMPACT PROTECTION FOR OCCUPANTS.
Remedy:

DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ENERGY-ABSORBING PLASTIC PIECE TO THE HEADLINER TRIM. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 2, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438 OR THROUGH THEIR WEBSITE AT <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM>HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM</A> .

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2008-01-30

CHEVROLET Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

CHEVROLET ranks 2 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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