One more wagon, my breadwagon

"tyburg" (tyburg) 11/20/2013 at 23:33 • Filed to: None

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This is my 2008 HHR SS. Somehow I had found myself in a 1.8 T Jetta that had a whole host of electronic gremlins, and a transmission that was starting to get iffy. I had been looking around for another car and had been on a few test drives, but nothing was seeming like it would be much better than the Jetta for one reason or another.

Since I first saw a pic of an orange one in a magazine, I thought they looked pretty sweet. After reading !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! I saw a turbo breadwagon for sale a town or so away, I knew I had to go check it out. I had been keeping my eye on it, and over the course of several months, it had been dropping in price. A test drive, some hemming, hawing, and some negotiation I ended up taking it home. It has been a great car. Lots of space, solid power (260 hp and tq), three pedals, and under the radar.

My favorite question I get about it: "what kind of PT Cruiser is that?"

Some people love it when they see it, others not so much. Either way, it puts a smile on my face every time the boost builds.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > tyburg 11/20/2013 at 23:37

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Since day one, I loved the HHR... my biggest fear is that it will be like the PT Cruiser and be a laughing stock in a few years.. but you can't really laugh at the power the SS makes.

Question about your Jetta... what year was it? Early 2000's? My dad had an 04 Passat (bought new) and it was filled with electrical gremlins. I heard that the 00-03 Jetta's had some of the worst transmissions ever built.

Life and Times of Magoo: The People's Champ > tyburg 11/20/2013 at 23:49

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Yes, there is others like me. Always liked the look of these along with their size but found much opposition. And the interior is way better then I expected. Think Chevy actually hit it right on this one.

#thosewhoknockitaintrockedit

tyburg > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! 11/20/2013 at 23:51

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Not gonna lie, it does pretty well. I have taken it for autocross once, it made a good showing.

The Jetta was a 2001, a friend had one that he was really happy with, so in spite of the reviews I went for it. The engine itself was great, but the rest of it was unreliable and expensive to fix. After trading it in for the SS, I saw this sticker on a GTI of similar vintage, I was happy I got the joke but relieved I was rid of it.

tyburg > Life and Times of Magoo: The People's Champ 11/20/2013 at 23:55

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Do you have one as well? Form your avatar I would guess Mazdaspeed.

tyburg > Life and Times of Magoo: The People's Champ 11/20/2013 at 23:56

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Do you have one too? From the avatar I would put you down as an MS3 guy.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > tyburg 11/20/2013 at 23:56

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My dads Pasat drove and looked great. It had 20,000 miles on it when it all went wrong. His power seat would start moving on its own in the middle of driving. The radio would adjust itself. The whole dash would light up with warnings, then turn itself off. The interior lights flickered. The AC fan was always changing speeds. Even the sunroof had a mind of its own. Special cars indeed. Great engine though.

Life and Times of Magoo: The People's Champ > tyburg 11/20/2013 at 23:57

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No, I have a Protege5 aka slowest car ever made Lol. Always liked the HHR though even before knowing of the turbo version.

tyburg > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! 11/21/2013 at 00:00

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Mine ended up with a bum door sensor, when you would round a sharp bend at speed it would make the door open noise and the dome light would turn on. The radio liked to change stations or modes.

Winklovic > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 00:08

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Looks great. These have been on my radar as well.

offroadkarter > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 00:28

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One of my friends used to own the arch nemesis to your HHR, a 2005 PT cruiser GT, with the 230hp SRT4 Neon motor. Sadly his had the shitbox 41TE 4spd auto, which is why he eventually sold it last year for a 2010 jetta 2.5.

tyburg > Life and Times of Magoo: The People's Champ 11/21/2013 at 00:46

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I dig the Protege 5, I have a thing for fog lights, I blame Gran Turismo 3 and all those rally cars.

tyburg > offroadkarter 11/21/2013 at 00:47

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Ah, nearly the same story in reverse. I hope the new dub suits him well, I hear the 2.5 is a peach.

tyburg > Winklovic 11/21/2013 at 00:49

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Thanks man! If you can find one, I would highly recommend the manual, the auto looses 30hp. Happy hunting.

offroadkarter > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 00:50

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Stupid kinja, I know I posted this

The jetta only had 26k on it when he got it, and he avoided the GLI because apparently the 2.0T's eat cam sensors like every 30,000 miles. We'll see, I don't have to much faith personally lol

tyburg > offroadkarter 11/21/2013 at 00:52

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Kinja strikes again! Yeah, I know some folks live by em, but I think I will be steering clear of the dubs in the future.

offroadkarter > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 00:57

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Kinja is as reliable as a VDub apparently

Nibbles > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 09:46

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I love your car

When you gon let me drive it

When I get finished rebuilding the SPG, we gon have to hit up an autoX together

tyburg > Nibbles 11/21/2013 at 12:25

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Hmm, howzaboot, next time we swing by?

Nibbles > tyburg 11/21/2013 at 12:27

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PhiLOL (slowcarSLOW-MPGlol) > tyburg 11/26/2013 at 13:25

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Factory A-pillar boost gauge? Suhweet. I think you found a great combination of hoonability and livability. I don't like the way they look but the black helps. Enjoy!