Problems with 2008 Chevrolet HHR STEERING

No one can pinpoint what the cause is, but my power steering cuts off suddenly while driving. this has happen numerous times. i have searched the internet and noted several articles and postings that detail the same problem with similar cars in the hhr 2008. this happens when the car is in motion. tread quarters thinks replacing one of the tires would help, but it has not. chevy needs to look at this issue since it seems more electrical than anything. there is something defective or faulty with the car. the power steering always cuts off when i am either turning, driving, on the highway, etc. parking is horrible when this happens. it takes so much effort trying to turn. it needs to be investigated since other owners complain of the same thing. i even tried balancing and rotating the tires before but it keeps happening. http://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/14953/chevrolet/hhr/chevrolet-hhr-power-steering http://www.carcomplaints.com/chevrolet/hhr/2008/steering/power_steering_shuts_down.shtml http://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/vehicles.detail.html/content/pages/news/us/en/2014/mar/0331-power-steering.html http://chevroletforum.com/forum/hhr-51/power-steering-cuts-out-46325/

2008 chevrolet hhr. consumer writes in regards to sudden loss of electric power steering while driving. *smd

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving 20 mph, the power steering failed without warning. as a result, the contact lost control of the vehicle and crashed into another vehicle. the air bags did not deploy. a police report was filed. the driver and passenger sustained neck and back injuries that required medical attention. the vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 55,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while traveling approximately 45 mph, there was a sudden loss of power steering. the steering wheel was tight and it shook and vibrated. in addition, the steering wheel was difficult to turn left and right and would remain straight. the contact was able to pull the vehicle over, restart it, and reset the computer. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for further inspection and diagnosis. the vehicle was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 14v153000 (steering). the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 151,757.

While driving down the road...i heard a ding and the "power steering" message came up on the dic...it was very hard to turn left or right....was able to pull over and shut the car off....started the car back up and everything was normal.....but the problem keeps coming back at different speeds and at different times..sometimes it may take a day or two before it comes back...but it does come back.....i've seen hundreds of complaint about this particular problem. i hope a solution is found to prevent this from possibly injuring or killing somebody....obviously there is a problem and something needs to be done about it

I was on the freeway going 65 mph & all of a sudden the power steering light went on &lost power steering immediately! this could have been a very bad accident & was scary. it will cost me $500 or more to get it fixed. also, at approx. 48,000 miles the back rear door latch broke & would not open, it cost me $125 to replace it as there was no other way to fix this. beware of your power steering.

Power steering goes out while driving. at first this only happened during the heat of the day but now is happening no matter what time of day i drive. speed does not seem to be a factor as i can be going slow or the posted speed for the roadway and it will occur. the first few times only happened when i turned a corner now it happens as i am driving. i called the dealership today and was informed this is not a problem. ?????? how can this not be a safety problem??????!!!!!!

I was driving down my street and i went to make a right turn into my driveway. that is when it first started acting up. i try not to drive much (doctor appointments are mandatory for household) because after driving maybe a mile or so it goes out. it is very hard to steer in the fact there is no power for easy steering. i drive on some winding canyon roads to go places and it has gone out on those roads. it bothers me when i have to drive down the winding roads through the hills as there are no shoulders to pull over. is there a recall? *tr

I was driving at about 30mph in a residential area, when a sound went off and on the display it read "power steering." the power steering had failed and did not come back. i was not far from home, but this has happened nearly every day since the first time. it usually only happens at low speeds, less than 45mph or so. if i turn the car off and start the engine again it's usually fine for a short time, sometimes as little as 5 minutes before the power steering fails again. *tr

My daughter drove it to local college this morning , no problem. i got in it after about 3 hours that she came home and went to use the car and i could not turn the wheel, then i looked down and there was a message that said power steering. i went to church and now it is working again. i am very concerned because she drive quiet always to clinical every week on a very curvy rode. if it goes out in one of those curves this will end bad. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving approximately 25 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated as the steering ability seized. the vehicle was maneuver to the side of the road where it was turned off. the vehicle was restarted and resumed normal function. the vehicle was not taken to a mechanic or the dealer. the contact stated that after calling the dealer, the technician stated that the failure might be caused by a faulty power steering module. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 124,000. the vin was not available.

The power steering stop working after driving a few minutes. it is becoming more frequent. this makes it hard for my wife to control and steer the car. when she turns the car off and restarts it works only to stop a few minutes later. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that the power steering warning lamp illuminated. the power steering failed and the vehicle was merged over to a parking lot. the vehicle was turned off and restarted, which reset the computer. the vehicle was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 14v153000 (steering). the vehicle was not diagnosed. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 112,000.

Husband driving to gas station in our community and power steering went out....he managed to drive it to our mechanics shop about 4 miles from our house....he turned the car off and restarted it and the power steering was working again....he explained what happened to our mechanic and he was advised it was a sealed pump and it was not power steering fluid leak....i can only imagine what could have happened if we had been on one of the 3 major hi ways that we travel once a week to get into st. louis. we always research these types of problems on the internet and found numerous complaints for this same issue... the cobalt and hhr are literally the same car why was the cobalt recalled for this major and dangerous problem but the hhr is not.....never will i ever purchase another chevy.....sticking with the foreign manufacturers from now on since chevy fails to see that this is a problem. *tr

While driving the words "power steering" appeared on the dashboard where the odometer and other warnings appear and the vehicle became very difficult to control. this has happened several times while at a high rate of speed which can possible lead to a crash resulting in injury or death. something is wrong with the power steering from all the research i have done this is a very common issue on the hhr. i've seen it all over discussion boards people describing the exact same thing, some have even resulted in crashes. unless you have a little bit of strength then your not going to be able to turn this vehicle once the power steering goes out. i've seen it recalled on later years 2009 and 2010 yet they are having the same problem with the 2008 model as well. i think gm needs to take a look at this issue and fix it for the safety of my family. *tr

Power steering light came on and i lost power steering. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving approximately 45 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to turn and the power steering warning light illuminated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and stated that the vin was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 14v153000 (steering). the failure mileage was 56,000.

I made a right turn onto a highway and my power steering failed temporarily causing me to almost lose control of the vehicle. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering would suddenly malfunction causing the steering wheel to become very difficult to turn. after shutting the engine off and back on, the power steering would operate as normal. the contact also indicated that while operating the vehicle, the warning "service air bags" had illuminated. the was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 108,000.

While driving on i4 power steering (ps) suddenly failed. warn sound chimed then display stated ps. fearful of driving on interstate pulled over to call aaa for tow. looked online and saw recall for 09 & newer but not 08. restarted car and power was restored so continued, cautiously home. since that occurred it kept failing and the intervals became shorter until it would go out after driving less than 100'. called dealer to get ign switch repair and was told ps recall was added for my car in oct. took car in & was told ps not under recall but then said he found it & it was covered. they called next day & said, although there was a power steering recall for my car the issue i had was not part of the recall. said the power steering assist was.bad and needed to be replaced at a cost of $189. he went on to say there will be a recall and i would be reimbursed but he did not know when it would come. picked up car today and charge for repair was $230 and today said will not be recalled and will not be reimbursed. my 80yr old parents drove this car very infrequently and by the grace of god we no longer let them drive & now the car is only used by myself or my sister to take them to dr appts. if the steering went out while they were driving they would have def crashed as they do not have the arm strength to manually steer the car. i am very disturbed at the number of complaints listed here and nothing is being done. i found this site by accident, while searching to see what the recall did include, so i can only imagine how many people are having the same issue & just blindly trust the dealership or repair facility. not sure how many deaths/accidents need to occur before something is done. co-worker has 2010 hhr which is recall & issued are identical. expect to hear something soon to resolve those still having issues. *tr

Power steering goes out in the middle of a turn making it hard to complete the turn and potentially causing an accident. apparently, bulletin #14119 under recall #n140115 does not extend a lifetime warranty for 2006-2008 chevy hhr power steering motor. like it says...."note: gm bulletin number 14119 will be implemented for model year 2006-2008 and early production of 2009 chevrolet hhr (non-turbo) and model year 2003 saturn ion to provide eps motor replacement for the life of the vehicle (source: safercar.gov)." the customer service representative from chevrolet said that the extended warranty is only valid for vehicles being recalled. the 2006-2008 chevy hhr's are not part of the recall. i want my car fixed under this extended warranty. gm do more people need to die before you recall the vehicles and have them fixed? *tr

When vehicle is in motion there is a single "click" sound ( no "beep" or chime ) along with "power steering" displayed on the driver information center, and sudden failure of power steering. manual steering and turning is then required until ignition can be turned off/on. restarting ignition restores power steering until vehicle is in motion again. all vehicle services have been done by dealership where vehicle was purchased. vehicle was taken to dealer service center for maintenance and power steering diagnosis. vehicle is not part of any power steering recall to date. service specialist said that the diagnosis was inconclusive. service specialist claimed they were given a diagnostic code that they did not know. service specialist suggested replacement of power steering rack, and if that does not solve the problem, replacement of entire steering column. power steering was not repaired, as requested by vehicle owner, until a conclusive diagnostic service can be done. *tr

I start my car and go to pull out onto the road and there was no power steering which could have caused me to wreck. the power steering light came on. i pulled over and shut the car off and restarted the car. same problem. very very dangerous!!! ..updated 10/15/14 *bf updated 4/7/2015 *js

Driving mountain roads when power steering failed and "power steering" indicator light came on. when engine was turned off and back on, power steering worked for about one mile before failing again. judging by the number of similar internet complaints on the 2008 hhr, can't understand why this problem hasn't been focus of a recall. wonder what would have happened on that mountain road if my wife had been driving (its her car). *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving approximately 55 mph, the steering wheel seized and the power steering warning indicator illuminated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the contact received a recall notification for nhtsa campaign number: 14v047000 (air bags, electrical system); however, the parts needed for the repair were unavailable. the manufacturer was notified. the approximate failure mileage was 38,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving various speeds, the power steering suddenly malfunctioned and caused the steering wheel to become very difficult to turn. after turning the engine off and restarting the vehicle, the power steering operated as normal. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified, but no solution was offered. the failure mileage was 92,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving various speeds, the power steering warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. the failure was followed by a sudden loss of power steering. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer and dealer were notified. the failure mileage was 76,949.

Power steering goes out intermittently. there is a notification on the dash that just states "power steering" and there is no power steering. if the car is turned off and back on again, power steering will return but will eventually go out again. there is no pattern as to when or where it will go out and it goes out with out any warning other than the dash indicator mentioned above once it has gone out. it appears a replacement motor should be covered under gm bulletin number 14119, however the dealership is claiming i am responsible for the replacement which costs over $300. the dealership has stated they have talked to gm and they are not covering it. i have requested names and numbers of the people the dealership has spoken to at gm. *tr

the power steering has failed five times in the month of august 2014. almost failed to make my turn. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving approximately 70 mph, the power steering light illuminated as a chime sounded and the steering wheel became hard to maneuver. the problem recurred five times. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 71,041.

My wife was driving we had pulled out of a parking lot on route 207 in the town of hamptonburgh,ny.no more then 20 feet from exiting the parking lot the car shut down and pulled to the right causing us to hit a telephone pole and totaling the car. it is my contention that power assist steering failed thus causing the accident. we where notified of the ignition recall had that taken care of in august of 2012. however chevy/gm contention is the ignition did not fail. the body shop mechanic and gm/chevy's own service advisor at the local dealership said that a catsophic malfunction took place causing the accident. *tr

This is my 3rd complaint. i am still having trouble with my power steering i have now pulled a chest muscle because of the issues i am having with my power steering. is anyone going to do something about this? it's so unfair that we are having the same problems but we are expected to have to pay for faulty parts in our cars. this is dangerous and something needs to be done sooner than later about it. once again i'm on here quite a bit so if anyone knows anything please let me know. . thanks *tr

Chevrolet hhr 2008 model, the power steering will sporadically cut out, making it extremely difficult to turn the steering wheel. steering wheel can not be turned by one hand. very dangerous mine cut out while turning left in heavy traffic. you can cut the car off then back on and it works with no issues until it decides to cut out again. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. the contact stated that while driving at 30 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated and the steering wheel seized causing excessive force on the steering wheel to be required. on one occasion, the vehicle was restarted and operated as normal. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 90,000.

Just a fyi i contacted my local news station and was informed to call the attorney general and also the bbb (312)-832-0500 to get the word out about this problem before someone is really hurt since they seem not to want to help us with this very dangerous problem. *tr

Letter from senator klobuchar on behalf of constituent requesting assistance regarding her motor vehicle recall for her 2008 chevrolet hhr; attn: cacjectbedimi henderson. *smd the consumer stated the power steering went out while driving. the consumer received multiple recalls from gm. however, the dealer stated the recall had not reached the united states, and it was only for vehicles in canada. *jb

I was driving to my music lesson.when the power steering. stoped working. so i had to drive the car carefully .to get to my class. after it sits for awhile it works again or will stop working. also it has gotten a lot worse and works only when it wants to. *tr

I was driving and the car died and i lost my power steering and hit the ditch and apparently hit something in the ditch and busted my oil pan. now i cannot tell if my motor locked up or what. it will not start. this is not the first time my car has died while driving. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving at low speeds, the steering wheel seized and became difficult to turn. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 168,000. updated 10/22/2014 updated 02/03/15*jb

Electric power steering fails completely causing the vehicle to be very difficult to steer and making the vehicle dangerous to operate at all speeds .occurs intermittently and unpredictably. *tr

For the past couple months the power steering has locked up while driving if i shut my car off and turn it back on it will go back to normal, but never know when it will kick out again, the electric is cutting in and out, the lock on drivers side wont work when using key which happens periodically especially when it rains, my automatic start stopped working including my key-less entry will not unlock my doors or lock my doors even though i have changed the battery. i work for the youth service bureau/children's bureau of state of indiana as a case manager so often i have to transport clients to destinations, doctors, food pantry etc. i cannot take the chance of being in a wreck with clients, which has all most happened when i took a curve while by myself luckily. when i contacted the chevy dealer about recalls he stated there was only an ignition switch recall, which i beg to differ i have been on numerous websites where many other hhr owners are complaining about the same thing i am complaining about, i asked the chevy dealers maintenance guy if i could get a rental while waiting for it to be fixed because of my job, he stated that he had to order the part and then he would call me when it arrived for me to bring my car in and it would take only an hour to two hours to fix, so while we are still waiting now for two weeks i am putting my clients and their children in jeopardy over an issue i am not at fault for, i personally feel that chevy should cover the cost of a rental car until all issue are taken care of properly. this was my first time owning a chevy, and after what the maintenance man said about not letting me have a rental even though i work for county and state organizations i was very disappointed in chevy i am in the process of looking for a new car and not sure if i will purchase another chevy after this!

Power steering fails daily, lose all power assist. why are 2009-12 covered under recall and 2008 is not? also brake rotors warp too easy. *tr

Warning signal beeps (alarm) then says power steering on dashboard. the power steering goes and it is difficult to turn the steering wheel. very dangerous as it is random and has happened in the middle of making a turn. read many, many owners of this car's complaints yet nothing has been done. *tr

Power steering fails consistently every time car is driven. first started around 96,300 miles and has continued for the next 9000 miles or so with little change in frequency. car is not safe for my wife to drive. could completely fail in a curve or in a steering situation and cause a serious or fatal accident. *tr

As i was driving down the road, my chevy hhr suddenly lost its power steering. there was a message on the dashboard that read, "power steering," but otherwise there was no warning. i managed to get home without an incident, but this is a potentially dangerous problem. the power steering was fully functional when i tested it later that same day. i read in the usa today that gm had issued a recall for power steering failure in several of its vehicles including the hhr, but my local chevrolet dealership told me that my vehicle was not under recall and that i would have to pay for any repair work. it is too dangerous to drive without getting it fixed, but i think that gm needs to stand by its product. *js

While driving the power steering will suddenly cut out- the power steering message will appear on the dash message board. this occurs several times during a trip at varying speeds (65mph, 55mph, 45mph). i am concerned about the extent of the permanent damage. since the first occurrence, it has been a near daily concern. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet hhr. while driving approximately 60 mph, the power steering warning indicator illuminated and the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. the failure occurred multiple times. the dealer stated that the vin was excluded from nhtsa campaign number: 14v153000 (steering). the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. the approximate failure mileage was 105,000.

Vehicle steering wheel became extremely difficult to turn--similar to a vehicle having lost the power steering function. no vehicle warning--feeling, vibration, or sound--was apparent prior to the failure. the chevrolet hhr, as well as other chevrolet models, have been issued a power steering recall; however, the 2008 hhr model year is not yet included. calling the phone number from the gm website, the customer service representative could not confirm gm would be issuing a recall for the 2008 model. *tr

Driving on the city road when heard a chime on the car and the car pulled to the right i park the vehicle and notice the steering sing on display and the steering wheel got real hard i turn off the car and re started the car and went away has happen twice since the first time. *tr

2008 chevy hhr power steering message came on. *tr