2009 Chevrolet HHR: doors won't lock, open or latch

Filed Jul 3, 2019 · Body, Electrical · 100,000 miles · TX

Chevrolet hhr 2009, doors mechanism. Door latches stop working and can open at a turn or while driving. Or latch can lock you in unable to get out of vehicle in an accident and or emergency. I was driving home and back door flew wide open I had not opened it at all but when doors lock and open they all do so the back latch opened never closing unaware of this the door flew open almost causing an accident at an intersection.

Filed Jul 17, 2018 · Driver assistance, Electrical · 165,000 miles · NC

For the last month my electrical system has been going haywire, all of a sudden all my gauges start fluctuating and all service indicator lights will come on and after the car is off for a while all warning lights will go off. This morning on my way to work my security lock and ESC warning lights came on and when I stop and start to go again the car feels like it is getting hit from behind. My two rear windows no longer work, front passenger door will not unlock automatically and driver door handle is broken. I have seen a lot of electrical issues on this site, yet there have been no recalls. What is going on??

Filed Dec 6, 2016 · Body, Locks · 139,000 miles · CA

Door latch - drivers side passenger door - failed to engage - door flew open while driving.

Filed Feb 22, 2015 · Brakes, Electrical · 140,000 miles · IL

Went to back hhr out of my garage and the brake pedal was rock hard with no give. Power steering has no power and the exc light is on. Not safe to drive at all. I have had numerous problems with this car. The ignition, air bags, brakes, door lock actuators...the list goes on. This one takes the cake due to safety concerns.

Filed Feb 15, 2015 · Electrical · 65,000 miles · LA

Today I made the mistake of leaving a dome light on while in church for a few hrs. Came out it started up with no problem. Got on the ferry parked and turned the car off. When I attempted to start up to get off the car was dead. Now this is the terror of that , the door locks didn't work, the horn was dead, the window locks didn't work and the steering was locked. I got the attention of a person passing and they opened the door from the outside. My daughter is totally disabled and she was asleep and the passenger seat. What if this had been some life or death matter and we needed to get out. Is this normal or is it something I didn't know to do. There have been so many recalls on this car, it should have been a total recall. I am so afraid for our lives and I don't know what to do. Terrified to get in it with her and go any where. Is there anything I can do to stay alive until it's paid off?

Filed Jan 28, 2015 · Locks · 150,000 miles · CO

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that the latches inside the vehicle failed to operate due to part of the assembly in the door panel fracturing. The contact mentioned that the doors would not open from the inside and the windows were required to be opened in order to open the door from the outside. The failure recurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact was concerned that in the event of an accident, no one would be able to exit the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.

Filed Aug 25, 2014 · Body, Electrical · 99,998 miles · TN

2009 hhr. We have had so much trouble with is car, I don't have the space to tell you all the complaints. This is the latest happening; wife calls me from town, cant get out of the car, door wont open. Finally had to crawl over the console and exit on the passenger side. Quiet a feat for a 260 lb 72 year old lady. Now I read on the internet this is a ongoing problem for hhr going all the way back to 2007. One person said the dealer charged $450.00, because the whole door panel had to be replaced. Gm is certainly aware of the defective door locks and latches on the hhr. When some gets burned alive because they cant get out of the car gm cannot say the were not aware of the failures of the door latches because there are hundreds of complaints about the doors failing to open. This is just the latest problem we have with this car.,but right now this is the most important thing for me to register this complaint in case my wife is trapped in this car again and sustains injury.

Filed Jul 11, 2014 · Body · 40,103 miles · FL

Pulled in to driveway and went to exit vehicle. The plastic driver's door handle broke off in my hand. This basically left me stuck in the vehicle unless I crawled over the center console or unless I was able to roll down the electric window, pivot in the seat, and reach the outside door handle. Obviously in an accident, or vehicle fire, the extra time needed to exit, if the door handle broke off, is unacceptable. A very basic internet search shows that this is a very common problem with this vehicle model. An inconvenience for a younger driver but this could be a catastrophic failure for an older, less physical driver.

Filed Jun 18, 2014 · Body · 134,000 miles · GA

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that the driver's side door handle fractured. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 134,000.

Filed Dec 23, 2013 · Body · 60,000 miles · CA

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 requires the replacement of the entire interior door panel. It is a dangerous situation because once the handle has snapped the only means to open the door is to unroll the window and open with the ouside handle or to have another person open the door from the outside - not ideal, especially if one is in an accident or emergency. I believe chevy should replace all handles with a sturdy, non-breakable metal handle. This would improve safety of this dangerous situation.

Filed Jul 29, 2013 · Body · 44,700 miles · IA

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated the front driver's side interior door handle partially broke. In order to exit the vehicle the window glass was released downwardly to open the exterior door handle. The dealer advised that the part would need to be ordered and were unable to provide an expected date for arrival. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 44,700. Updated 9/23/13

Filed Apr 3, 2013 · Body · 101,000 miles · FL

I went to open driver side door to get out of my parked car. Door handle would not release the door to open. I have to role done my window (power window) and open door from outside to be able to get out of my car trough the driver side door. Dealer said that whole new door panel is required at a cost of $450.00 because the handle and trigger is part of the panel. The dealer went on to say that 100s of these panels have had to be replaced because of and engineered defect and gm does not want to cover the problem. This is a safety concern because if I had to get out my car in case of an emergency, the drivers door can not be opened unless the window is rolled down and opened from outside. I would be trapped in the driver seat if unable to get window opened.. Gm should be held responsible for their engineered defect. .