My MINI is up to about 70k on the clock, and I've been thinking of picking up a used second vehicle to drive daily, so that I can garage the MINI most of the time and make it last.

Last weekend I rented a Chevy HHR for a road trip down to Pennsylvania, and with one glaring exception, I was quite smitten. To be fair, the car was a brand new 2011 model (150 miles on it), and equipped with leather, sunroof, and satellite radio - definitely the nicest rental I've ever had.

The exception was the seats, which were horribly uncomfortable. The bench was too short, and the seat back inexplicably could barely be budged back from vertical. I don't drive with my seat halfway down like some stupid ricer thug, but this was entirely unreasonable. It was like sitting in front of the emergency exit row on a plane. Need to research what's up with that, hopefully there are some real seats as an option that many people go with.

Other than that, though... decent ride, decent handling, and the big seller for me was that the rear seats fold flat and there is enough room for me (5'9") to sleep diagonally in the back of the car, which I did for two nights. I got around 30 mpg for the trip with the automatic tranny, so presumably the 5-speed would be even better, assuming I can find one.

Buying American also has a lot of appeal to me right now, even if it's a used car.

Any glaring red flags I should look for if I decide to buy one? It seems like they're fairly popular among the NAM crowd; are people happy with them?

 

My brother had one and it mostly seemed like POS. Everything was cheap. The different materials used, fit and finish....blah. And my experience with Chevy's leather seats is not a good one. My folks bought a Suburban and the leather was already cracking by 50k miles/2 years. Are you kidding me?

What's your price range?

Personally, if I were looking for a utilitarian vehicle that is reasonably priced and practical, I'd look at Subaru or Toyota. They both have a good reputation for reliability (unless you count Toyota's recent woes). Also, most of the vehicles that are sold in the US by these marques, are manufactured in the US.

just my .02

 

I had a HHR in between MINIs. I liked it. Rode good. Ran good. Comfortable. Cool looking. Make sure you get one with running boards. Stones will wreck the rear fenders.

Oh, and they're made in Mexico.

......Les

 

I traded a 2007 HHR for my 2009 mellow yellow Clubbie. The HHR was okay, but boring. It ran fine...changed the oil per the OBD recommendations, gave me 27 MPG, helped me move into my home (put lots of crap in it that day!). I just got very bored, very quickly when it came to driving it.

Would I recommend it? Yeah, mechanically it was fine. But don't expect to love it past 24 months or so. It's good, American transportation that really doesn't inspire.

 

Friend has an '09 SS and loves it. Ride & handling was better than I'd expected and he can fit a lot of crap in the back of that thing. I have a co-worker that has a Subaru Outback and I've always liked those...but she gets worse gas mileage than I did in my quad cab F150 4X4. She went down from a Suburban in an effort to save fuel and reduce carbon footprint but didn't...and that ain't right.

 

I have a client who bought a panel HHR for his business and he has had an incredible amount of problems with it. His service experiences have also been the worst ever. They have not fixed hardly any of his problems with the thing and he is not a happy camper. I personally have had horrible experiences with Chevy service. THey often broke something that was not broken and did not fix what was broken the first, second, and sometimes third time. Buy the HHR and be bored to death or buy a clubman and enjoy yourself as well as the good service that comes with the brand. I watched my wife get excellent service for years on her mini while my chevy was in the shop at least once a month for some minor or major problem. She also always had a loaner unlike me. When I did get a loaner it was usually a gutless chevy cobalt! Before you jump on the HERRRRRR...test drive the clubmanS. You won't be sorry! Better mileage too!

 

Oh please god no! I had one of these as a rental car once. Worst POS I've ever driven. Even though it was huge, I felt scrunched in the drivers seat. The gas mileage was terrible. Power sucked, handling was worse. If you want a car to beat on (like, with a bat) I'd go with an HHR, else stay away.

 

My dad's 2006 HHR has been pretty good for him.
I don't like driving it though. It's a manual and the stick shift is really low between the seats. I find sifting very awkward. It might not be bad with a long old school van sifter. Past that it feels a little cheap to me.

My dad loves it though. My mom prefers her old PT though.

 

Haha, thanks for the replies. My budget is well under $10k, so no Clubman for me. I'm not looking for something to fall in love with; more something to beat on in the winter and to bear the brunt of the high mileage road trips that I frequently take.

The other thing I didn't mention was that I just bought a house on a private dead end street that is horrifically (even comically) rutted and potholed, and also quite steep. I can get the MINI up it at walking speed, but I'm definitely looking for something with at least a bit more clearance. Nothing 4WD, though, I want to keep my fuel economy pretty good.

In all likelihood I'll end up with an old Corolla wagon or something like that; the tales of woe re: the HHR seem to be substantial.

 

Look at used PT Cruisers. I wanted to hate my Mom's PT but it really was a great car. She had it for about 5 years. It never gave her any trouble. With the stick I found it pleasant to drive. It got pretty good gas mileage and because the back seats are completely removable it was surprising practice. There is a lot of space in the back of those things. (the HHR's folding rear seats make it a lot less useful that way)

I've never driven them but I'd also recommend the XB and the Element. That Boxy body on a small car chassis combo really makes for a nice practical car. (if practical is at the top of your list. Obviously it wasn't for me because a MCS sure isn't)