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2010 Chevrolet HHR steering complaints

Page 7 of 9: complaints 161 to 190 of 232, newest first, as owners wrote them.

See the summary of 2010 Chevrolet HHR steering problems: which part fails, at what mileage and related recalls.

Filed Oct 17, 2013 · Steering · 71,000 miles · HI

While driving the vehicle will lose power steering. Dash indicator says "power steering". I turn the car off and turn back on and it fixes the issue everytime.

Filed Oct 2, 2013 · Electrical, Steering · 57,213 miles · FL

10/1/13 as I left work, heading home, the car drove fine for approx. The first five minutes. Out of nowhere, the steering became tight, as if it locked up. I could not turn the wheel left or right, the car almost instantly produced more heat, I felt the heat around my feet and it came through the vents. I looked at the dic panel and power steering was flashing. There was a smell as if the car was burning. With force, I was able to maneuver the car to a parking lot to sit. After reading through the user manual, I followed the suggestions from the manual, turned the wheel left and right hoping it would loosen and letting the car sit idle. After about two hours of sitting, my brother drove the car home with no problem. 10/2/13 I took the car, early morning, to be inspected by a local repair company. After running diagnostics on the car, I was told that once diagnostics began immediately power steering control circuit was diagnosed as an issue, the only issue from the diagnostic report, that had malfunctioned. I was also informed that could be the reason why one minute power steering malfunctioned and hours later it worked fine. I was also told that normally something like this is recalled by the automaker.

Filed Oct 1, 2013 · Steering · 56,500 miles · GA

Power steering intermittently goes out. The car dings 3 times, the console flashes "power steering" and the car becomes very heavy and hard to turn. Turning the car off and back on resolves the issue in the short term, but it continues to happen at random.

Filed Sep 30, 2013 · Steering · 33,500 miles · RI

2010 hhr with 35,000 miles, steering message came on and car wouldn't steer. Stopped car and steering came back on for a while then went out again. Did this several times over weekend making steering almost impossible. Took car to dealer, they replaced the motor stating it was overheating, per computer. Cost me 271.00, I am retired and it has put me in a financial squeeze. Reason I bought a new car to avoid having problems like this, still making car payments. Definitely believe this is a major defect on this car.

Filed Sep 30, 2013 · Steering · 40,000 miles · MI

Tl* the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the power steering system malfunctioned and caused the steering wheel to seize. The contact stated that after shutting the vehicle off, the vehicle was restarted and resumed without failure. The contact did not take the vehicle to a mechanic or a dealer. The failure mileage was 40,000. Updated 2/11/14

Filed Sep 21, 2013 · Steering · 45,000 miles · MA

For no reason the power steering just stopped working ,,making the vehicle impossible to steer,,after you shut the vehicle off and restart it,, the power steering came back on only to stop again when it felt like it ,,at slow speeds as well as high,,if it were snowing or on slippery roads this could of been a major fatality,,,very unsafe if children are in the vehicle

Filed Aug 29, 2013 · Steering · 65,000 miles · MI

During normal driving conditions, the power steering will fail making steering difficult. The problem reset with a key cycle. This intermittent problem has become more frequent during the last month.

Filed Aug 23, 2013 · Steering · 53,400 miles · ME

On the highway I heard some warning beeps and my info screen said "power steering". My steering became increasingly more difficult to use especially after I got off the highway. After turning off the car and turning the car back on the steering worked again. Now it goes out every so often. Seems to be a common problem on the hhr, but no recall yet.

Filed Aug 19, 2013 · Steering · 57,150 miles · AZ

I was driving and the power steering light went on, the car started to smell like it was on fire and the power steering was gone. Lost control of the vehicle and hit a curb. No injuries and no other damage to vehicle. Could have been worse if inexperienced driver or elderly person was behind the wheel.

Filed Jul 26, 2013 · Steering · 58,000 miles · MI

I was driving on the expressway and my power steering warning came on and vehicle was tighter, after exiting the expressway the vehicle became even harder to steer. I pulled into a has station checked all the fuses all we're fine, restarted the vehicle power steering worked again, after a few miles the power steering light came back on and was difficult to turn. This is very dangerous I had 3 small children in my vehicle and could have been a very bad situation.

Filed Jul 23, 2013 · Steering · 83,290 miles · CO

Power steering light comes on while im driving. Im unable to turn my wheel w/o using alot of force.

Filed Jul 17, 2013 · Steering · 69,000 miles · VT

Tl* the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving 30 MPH, the steering wheel failed and tightened with the illumination of the power steering warning light. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 69,000.

Filed Jul 13, 2013 · Steering · 50,000 miles · IL · crash

The power steering on my 2010 chevy hhr failed as I was driving causing me to hit another driver. Chevy has problems with the cobalt and the hhr has many similarities to the cobalt. I think a recall is needed before someone dies. If you look online many hhr owners are having issues! Please help us the innocent consumer.

Filed Jul 10, 2013 · Steering · 67,000 miles · AR

In the last week the power steering has went out 5+ times while driving it on city streets. I will be driving around 40 MPH then I will here a dinging sound then look at the dash and it says power steering. After it says power steering there will be a complete loss in power steering assist from the electronic power steering. This is a big safety hazard because it could easily cause a wreck if driving around a curve when it goes out.

Filed Jul 8, 2013 · Steering · 35,050 miles · CT

Tl* the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving 20 MPH, the power steering warning light illuminated as the contact lost power steering assist. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for inspection and was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 35,050. Updated 8/21/13 *cn the dealer replaced the power steering motor. Updated 09/05/13

Filed Jul 7, 2013 · Steering · 73,000 miles · MI

I was driving down the road at 60 miles an hour when I heard a ding ding I look at my message board and it said power steering. I had a hard time steering and making turns. I shut my car off and the message went a way and I could steer again. About 5 miles down the road I heard a ding ding and it was my power steering light again I had a hard time steering. Luckily I mad it home. I only have 73,000 and no power steering.

Filed Jul 2, 2013 · Steering · 51,000 miles · MI

While driving the power steering warning light dinged and I had been making a turn which almost caused a accident not knowing why it went out. I can drive the car for 1 or 2 miles and it keeps going out and I have to restart the car for it to be working again but im told it some type of module that controls it and its not covered by any warranty. I think chevy needs to correct this issue before someone is killed for a steering issue . I see I am not the only one with this issue there have been others.

Filed Jul 1, 2013 · Steering · 29,876 miles · NY

Entering a roundabout at only 27mph and power steering quit making it very difficult to control my car. Any other situation at higher speed could have been catastrophic . There is a recall for the cobalt model gm but not the hhr model.

Filed Jun 24, 2013 · Steering · 48,000 miles · OK

Tl* the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 48,000.

Filed Jun 7, 2013 · Steering · 37,304 miles · NJ

While driving on the highway my power steering stopped working I heard a 3 beep warning looked down at the dash and on the display "power steering" was displayed. I called the dealer and I was told that my car was 304 miles over my warranty and that this was not recalled. I went home and started to do research and to my surprise I wasn't the only one with this issue, there are thousands of them online with the same issue. This is very scary for me because I have a 4 year old and a 1 1/2 year old. I don't want this to be a reason for me to have an accident. Chevy isn't helping me in anyway, I need help. Thank you for your time.

Filed Jun 7, 2013 · Steering · 52,000 miles · CA

Bought used 2010 chevy hhr in early february 2013 from a dealer. Shortly after the 30 day warranty is over, message lights up on the dash while driving "power steering" then the power steering turns off. I almost crashed as I was turning the first time I experienced this! The power steering is restored when you restart the car. This happens sporadically all the time, at any speed and sometimes several times in just a 10 minute drive. The car is hard to steer when the power steering goes off and is seriously dangerous!

Filed May 18, 2013 · Steering · 52,750 miles · TX

Driving down interstate at 65mph when the electronic power steering failed without warning. Could barely get maneuver car off road onto exit. Shut car down to check out, restarted car, everything worked fine and power steering was functioning. Turned back around to go home and park car, power steering went out again - this time as I was turning off main road, into my subdivision. Almost had car in the ditch as wheel jerked back and power steering went out again. Got car to driveway and shut down. Restarted car and everything came back online again. Drove car down subdivision street to test the problem. Could not go more than 5-10 seconds before power steering shut off. Very dangerous. I am a 6'2", 225 lb guy and I struggled to get car off the road. When steering, the car is not like an older car without power steering, it turns like you have to fight the wheel. If someone is not aware of the problem and it goes out for the first time in mid-turn, this could definitely cause an accident or kill someone.

Filed Apr 29, 2013 · Steering · 54,000 miles · TX

While driving the car the power steering light comes on, there is a ding, and suddenly the power steering goes out. It first happened 10 days ago and happens at random times everything the car is driven. The power steering will reset if the engine is shut off and restarted, but it will soon go out again within seconds or minutes. This is a very dangerous issue and has caused us near accidents. I see that there are many, many complaints about this issue on hhr's of multiple model years. Please address this issue. I have never had power steering on a vehicle just go out before. This is a late model car and an issue of this type and of this frequency definitely points to a defect and not a wear and tear issue. A recall is needed!

Filed Apr 29, 2013 · Steering · 91,000 miles · FL

While driving the car on sat 04/27/2013 at a rate of 45 MPH I went to make a turn and the steering froze up making it very difficult to make any kind of turn. I found out then that it had a power steering motor vs a reservoir or anything like that. Took it the next day to my mechanic who said fuses checked out good he believes it is the power steering motor. Calling chevrolet but getting the run around not good for a part that can cause a major accident.

Filed Apr 29, 2013 · Steering · 988,556 miles · TX

I was turning in the driveway of an apartment building and a bell went off and the steering got really hard to turn. I looked at the dash and saw the power steering light had come on. I got out my book and it says the power steering doesn't need maintenance, but to call the dealer if it happens. Well, I restarted the car and the light went out, so I drove to the store a few blocks away and it did it again. Luckily I wasn't going fast or in heavy traffic or a really bad accident could have happened and lives could have been lost. I have had ignition problems, I couldn't turn off the vehicle, loss of engine power, rotor replaced. Two of the same side broken inside driver door handles and bad gas mileage. The steering has been the most dangerous so far. I read on-line how many people this has happened to and I wonder when they will recall this vehicle. When someone dies?

Filed Apr 22, 2013 · Steering · 43,441 miles · NY

Tl* the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 MPH, the power steering warning light illuminated and the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic, who stated that the power steering motor would have to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 43,441.

Filed Apr 16, 2013 · Brakes, Driver assistance · 50,000 miles · FL

I have had two issues with this car and it has made me feel unsafe when driving it. The first involves the brakes. When braking after driving at 45mph or more, the steering wheel begins shaking. I was told the brake pads needed to be changed. I did and the problem still continued. Last month, the power steering light came on the dashboard. For a couple of days, it went away but soon the steering wheel became too hard to turn. Took it to mechanic who changed the power steering module as indicated by the diagnostics test. Once the change was done, the service ESC light came on and the car has been crazy ever since. I have yet to resolve the issue as nobody knows what is wrong with my car. It has been almost a month already. I am unhappy with this car and would not recommend to anybody. After looking it up, I see that many have this same issue. It is very unsafe since this can happen at any moment while driving!

Filed Apr 14, 2013 · Steering · 56,000 miles · OH

Driving down road coming to stop light. Chime went off & power steering was indicated on my information system. My car lost all power steering- was very difficult to steer. Glad I was not in the middle of a curve or turn when that happened.

Filed Apr 9, 2013 · Steering · 160,000 miles · AR

While driving my power steering will stop working. It doesn't happen every time we drive our hhr but at least once or twice a week. It has almost caused 4 accidents that could have been avoided if the power steering would work properly. The power steering alert will show up on our vehicle and we have to shut off the vehicle and restart in order for it to work again. I'm scared to drive this vehicle now after what has happened tonight.

Filed Apr 2, 2013 · Electrical, Steering · 67,000 miles · MD

While going around a bend in the road at approx 35/40mph, the power steering in my 2010 chevy hhr went out. There was a ding and then it was very difficult to turn the wheel. I almost hit a jeep that was turning into a subdivision opposite of us because I could not turn the wheel to get in the passing area. This resulted in me going off of the road. I pulled onto the next side road I saw. Checked for any issues and restarted. I regained power steering and was able to be on my way. In approx. Another mile or so it went out again. It did so intermittently all the way to the dealer. The dealer was of no help basically saying it was an operator error. There was a steering recall that I had taken care of earlier in the year and my mechanic said that it looks like it was replaced with equally defective parts. My mechanic also said that it's not a "wear part" and nothing that I did could have caused it to do that. It is a short on the motor/computer for the power steering.

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