PT vs. HHR in motor trend

[EJIII]

Chevy has been displaying an HHR at most of the NASCAR races this year and it seems to me a nice compliment to our PTs. I like it, especially the hot rodding potential. It looks like it will make a more natural looking sedan delivery-type vehicle than the PT has. Overall though, the HHR just reinforces how much I like my Cruiser!

[hangtym3]

Welp, my mom and I took a test drive in a top model HHR today, it was very nice. Really quiet on the inside, nice sound system, i luv the onstar feature with the xm, and it seemed more roomy above the head. However it isnt nearly as fun to drive as the PT cruiser GT. In sence of power, it doesnt even compare to the GT, and the handling seems worse. Ummmmmmmmmmm, yeah i guess thats about it. any questions about it you could ask me, and I will try my best to answer! Thanx!

[rszappa1]

Well I just seen a 2006 PT up close and I must say that I do not like what they have done to it. If I was looking for a PT right now...It would not be a 2005 at all. I realize that they had to make some changes to it but the changes they made dont look good to me...especially the interior....

[coolvanillagt]

Just for kicks and grins...check out the forum at Motor Trend, general discussion. Posted a comparison question regarding this same topic/article. Fun responses!

[2step]

Here's the link that Coolvanillagt forgot to post.

http://forums.motortrend.com/ubbthre...b=5&o=&fpart=1

They get off topic and away they go.

[amazingarthur]

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.

But c'mon, they're not even close.

[Truth]

Give it 1 year and they will pop out with the Cobalt SS 210 HP Supercharged Ecotech in the hhr.Just like the Cruiser and SRT-4, the lancer and Evo...Chevy will test the waters then release the performance model as press from the release dies down. The Saturns (red line) are a little quick, and the cobalt SS's/cavaliers with the Eco and a little boost are fast.

[02PTLEmike]

We have both a 2002 PT-LE and a HHR LT2. So who cares what MT has to say?

Contrary to the specs an earlier post may have claimed, the HHR has more cargo space with 5 people seated hands down. We can put more guitars in the back when going to a gig, or bags when taking a trip.

The PT has a stick and the HHR has an auto with the 2.4. The PT seems to perform better after recent plug change, the HHR gets slightly better highway miles. Combined it is a toss up except the LT2 requires premium gas even though we put plus in it with no problem.

The interior and trim in the 02 LE is much better than the HHR interior. The fake leather dash in PT looks somewhat real, the fake leather in the chevy looks like the cheapest leather one can possibly get, and not a very good imitition at that. The Chevy is plain and simplistic with less than I am used to for cup holders from the PT. The PT takes advantage of interior room to a higher degree.

The head room of the HHR I test drove w/o sunroof was huge... about 4 inches over my head. The car I ordered had a sunroof it in... has about 1/2" less head room that my PT-LE with sunroof, which has about 1.5 inches. Big surprise. Luckily I am used to the PT.

Items most missed from PT when using HHR:

-Two cupholders at front of console

-Grab bars over doors for easy in and out

-Mapholders in doors large enough to put water bottles into

-The crank down spare tire mounted under chasis... the HHR would require moving all the cargo out the larger cargo space to get to the spare.

-window switch location. I like center but they have it down low with the front switches outside of backs...

-under passenger seat storage.

Features in HHR that are nifty:

-top of dash storage bin. Helps make up for the glove box that is half the size of the PT.

-recessed storage bins behind rear seat

-better front seats with electric adjust and lumbar support

-Onstar features, but unfortunately annual onstar fees are nearly as much as an indash navigation system.... so guess what will be changed after one year.

-Accessory input on radio (recent aftermarket head unit upgrade in PT took care of that)

-the onboard indash system information setup is really nice

-Auto trans in HHR shifts real nice and the car runs very nicely on highway (I wouldn't own another Chrysler A604 auto after having a car with one.)

Item that have my head shaking in wonderment:

-Drum brakes on rear of HHR? WTF is it with that? Seems to stop OK though.

-Why couldn't Chevy come up with better interior features than the PT? Iguess the '09 has a bit of a redesign...

-Battery located in spare tire bin? I guess they couldn't find a way to put it under the seat like they did in the old days. Again.... unload all the junk in the trunk to check the Batt...

I guess to be fair, I did pay about the same price in 02 for the PT-LE as I did in 2008 for the HHR-LT2. PT has leather while HHR has cloth.

We have a trailer hitch and roof rack on the HHR and we traded in our SUV for it.... so it is basically our SUV while the PT still fulfills our commuter car needs. I drive PT by preferance and wife has the HHR with the security of Onstar.

What I like most is no more trading vehicles based on how many miles we might be driving every day or week. I get to reclaim my PT as my own.... ;-)

They are very close in character, we have loved the PT since day one, so it's not a stretch why we ended up with the HHR as our other car.

have fun!

[soonercruiser]

(Show me the money!)
Who owns the parent publishing company for Motor Trend Magazine?
Most of the car mags I glimpse at, at work or the barber shop, seem to have an agenda. And, I seldom me Chrysler products favored favorably!!

***One of you Motor Trend subscribers needs to write them a letter asking for a comparison of similar cost vehicles!!!

[careyk]

The HHR SS is kind of cool but I like my GT more