Chevy HHR Engine Air Filter Replace 

Thanks for the great video! Actually, you don't need to remove the small hose (with the spring clamp) just remove the intake bellows in the back, the lower clamp of the outlet bellows in the front, remove the sensor connector, then you can flip the entire assembly over and access the screws, replace the filter, etc. Yes the design seems overly complicated! Anyone here had to replace a headlamp on the HHR? That's pure joy...

You sir are a hero, this is the biggest pain in the ass car I've ever owned.

Thanks! Saved me $35. I managed to get er done in 5 minutes

Sure was a lot simpler in the old days. One wing nut, lift the lid and remove the filter... Thanks for the instructions

Still don't understand why they made this such a ridiculous process. They could have easily made the filter removable right through the top of the engine cover.

The engineer that designed that needs his ass kicked!!!! Thanks for the video!

Nice video. Nice tip about the hose sticking on the pvc valve.

T26 for the screws. Unclamp the front hose at the top and twist it 1/8th turn CCW to pull it off. No need to remove the PCV hose (the HHR doesn't actually have a PCV valve, it has an Exhaust Recirculation System with an orifice pressed into the head, which can be clean easily). I suggest, since you have the air box off, just go ahead do a quick cleaning on the Throttle Body. :)

Thanks, Steve. This Sun City AZ HHR owner appreciates your AZ help!

Thanks Steve I learned a lot. I was primarily headed to the throttle box to clean it and was told to change the air filter too.

This guy did this the hard way

I had a 1965 Pontiac with the 283 V8. For the air filter, you unscrewed a wing nut with your finger and thumb. Pulled the top off (a metal lid that sat on top of the housing), tossed the dirty air filter in the garbage. Put a new filter in and put the lid back over the bolt and screwed the wing nut back down. They sure have made things more difficult in the newer cars.

Dumbest idea Chevy has had. They couldn't design an easier way to change a filter? If you take it somewhere to have it changed (Chevy or not), the "mechanic" will get annoyed with the installation & break something. This happened to me twice because the 3rd brake light cover was a pain in the ass the reinstall. The fat pig broke the cover, then wanted to charge me for a replacement. Wrong! The owner had to swallow the cost.

This video helped me through. Step by step.

thanks Steve from Arizona,

Disconnect the hose and mass airflow censor first.

Love the show!

What horrible engineering... for an air filter change??? Are you kidding me??? This is why chevy is failing.... great vid!

Thank you!

Brother, I like my HHR, but it not a user friendly car to work on - even the simplest things aren't - changing a headlamp is also a pain - I've had two mechanics, and a guy at the quickly lube comment on how difficult they are to work on - the oil pan on mine leaks, and it is a major hassle to access and replace the gasket - oh, it doesn't have a gasket - gotta run a bead of sealant to seal it up - Thanks for sharing this video - I'm headed out the door to replace the air filter - thanks again!

thanks for taking the time to make this video. They make it complicated to change. takes 30 secs in over cars with on screw driver..but it is just another reason to hate this car. it's the worst car I have ever owned!

Thanks for the demonstration.

Lot of work just to get to the filter great job GM

probably one of the most difficult designs for an air replacement but once you know how to do it then you can do it in 10 minutes.

good job , thank you for showing

I don't like working on my HHR. Engine bay is too constricted/cramped. And some parts that need to be changed out are a bit overly complicated to save on that limited space. Like this vs just popping off some tabs on a box.

thanks Steve

I don't mean to be uppity but if you just loosen the clamp on the upper intake hose, closet to the sensor, it comes off a lot easier and you don't have to take off the pvc hose. Saves you a couple of steps and aggravation. :]

I said screw that I took the air filter out of my box removed the tube that ran from the box to the firewall ran a new tube bought from Home Depot smooth forward to where the hole was where the original hole was made for air intake and added the secondary hose that sucks air into the cold air intake filter into the center Target's plenty of cool air under hard acceleration still warms up quickly much easier to clean or change filter! Definitely helped with acceleration I used a little RTV all the way around the airbox and I do mean a little just enough to seal it bolted it back together and the results were astounding to say the least! The original air filter was way to restricted the new air intake filter in its place sounds good stays really clean and with three pieces of sheet metal I managed to pretty much enclose the whole thing. It was either that or spend $329 on their cold air filter tube for everything from the Chevy Cobalt to the HHR I think the cheapest one was like 239$ since then I have a friend with basically the same HHR that can't hang at all with the 329$ kit! You could say he was a little mad but I got much better results deleting the air filter in the Box and adding a cold air filter on the intake tube to the Box and let me stress I did not use the original tube a trip to Home Depot for some 3 inch thick wall tubing was well worth it! Is simple rubber 90° with the band ties that simply screw tight from the plumbing aisle at the same Home Depot worked fine! I was very surprised to find out I had better acceleration then the kit made for it and the air intake sounded better when running through RPM range!

Man all that trouble to just change its filter. OMG! Im buying one of these a 2007 for 900 bucks that the 1st owner was a older man that ran it low on oil and ruined the engine. The new buyer was his friend that bought it for parts to his wife’s 2011 HHR. He never had to use it for parts and its in great condition and just has the engine problems. He decided to sale it as is and Im currently paying 300 a month till its paid off and go get it. He says it still cranks and runs and just knocks real bad. So maybe it just needs a engine rebuild not a whole new engine. Either way it won’t be that expensive for another engine if it has to be changed. Maybe won’t cost me more than 3k tops if the engine needs replacing and labor. I’ve been studying up on this car on youtube and finding out all the trouble working on it is. The battery in the trunk and kinda hard to get to in a timely fashion and now where the air filter is Im like. Damn it why did they make these design flaws like this lol. What a pain in the ass it looks like. I like the standard way of our battery’s and air filters being so easy to get to in most cars where its easy to change them and not have to be a car mechanic to do it. All that looks confusing at times and so much trouble for something that should be made simple to do yourself. All they had to do for the air filter is make a opening on top with latches to unlatch and pull it out from the top and not put it under the damn thing where it looks like your doing a engine rebuild just to change a damn air filter lol. Now my excitement for this car is turning into a future pain to service myself.

Firewall hose always just falls apart on the 2008 so try to move as little as possible

My 2011 hhr is not completely accelerating, has anyone ever experienced this issue. Please advise

I think the hhr is the most stupid design ever , especially that battery way to the back

it help me

Thanks for the Video

Consumable parts like filters need to be easy to replace. That's bullshit.

this video help me

This is ridiculous.. whatever happened to take off the wing nut on top, lift the top, pull out the old filter and put in a new one??? I’m horrible with dropping things and I’m guessing I’d be spending over an hour trying to retrieve whatever screw or bolt I dropped in the engine.. looks like it’s worth it to me to just pay somebody to do it that knows what they’re doing.

I'm getting a humming noise coming from that area when I accelerate it hums & sounds like it's grinding almost would a new air filter stop that?

Quite over engendered that air filter case!!!

I miss the Wingnut!

Used to take 2 minutes to change a chevy air filter. What happened to GM? We should have let them go bankrupt. Next time...No bailout!

My car don't have a the other hose that goes into the side of the air cleaner

Got an air compressor ? Blow the dirt off first, maybe.

steve would this help if im having a rough idle only when stopped at lights on my 06 hhr

Does the HHR come with a timing belt or a timing chain?

unplug mass wire first

will this work with a k&n cold air intake?

I just take the hose off of air cleaner not the whole hose

Disconnect the electrical wires fist

is this the same as the 2011 hhr

wheres the fuel filter loaction on these hhrs

Oh I hate my Chevy hhr 09 I only had it a year and I have 4 kids and now my car does not work I put it in drive and reverse but it wont go

Thanks a bunch