2008 CHEVROLET HHR airbag

Seats and Restraint Systems........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
..............................................1-10
Safety Belts
.............................................1-12
Child Restraints
.......................................1-33
Airbag System
.........................................1-57
Restraint System Check
............................1-72
Features and Controls..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
....................................... 2-9
Windows
.................................................2-15
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................2-18
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
...........2-21
Mirrors
....................................................2-39
OnStar
®System
......................................2-44
Storage Areas
.........................................2-47
Sunroof
..................................................2-52
Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
......................................3-23
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........3-28
Driver Information Center (DIC)
..................3-46
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-59Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-32
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
...............5-10
Headlamp Aiming
.....................................5-43
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-46
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
.........5-50
Tires
......................................................5-52
Appearance Care
...................................5-110
Vehicle Identication
...............................5-118
Electrical System
....................................5-118
Capacities and Specications
...................5-125
Maintenance Schedule..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
............................... 6-2
Customer Assistance Information.................... 7-1
Customer Assistance and Information
........... 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
...........................7-13
Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy
...........7-16
Index................................................................ 1
2008 Chevrolet HHR Owner ManualM

Front Seats......................................................1-2
Manual Seats................................................1-2
Seat Height Adjuster.......................................1-3
Power Seat...................................................1-3
Power Lumbar...............................................1-4
Heated Seats.................................................1-4
Reclining Seatbacks........................................1-5
Head Restraints.............................................1-7
Passenger Folding Seatback............................1-8
Rear Seats.....................................................1-10
Split Folding Rear Seat.................................1-10
Safety Belts...................................................1-12
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone................1-12
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly.................1-18
Lap-Shoulder Belt.........................................1-26
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy..................1-32
Safety Belt Extender.....................................1-32
Child Restraints.............................................1-33
Older Children..............................................1-33
Infants and Young Children............................1-36
Child Restraint Systems.................................1-40Where to Put the Restraint.............................1-42
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH)..................................................1-43
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear Seat
Position...................................................1-51
Securing a Child Restraint in the Right
Front Seat Position....................................1-53
Airbag System...............................................1-57
Where Are the Airbags?................................1-60
When Should an Airbag Inate?.....................1-62
What Makes an Airbag Inate?.......................1-63
How Does an Airbag Restrain?.......................1-63
What Will You See After an Airbag Inates?.....1-64
Passenger Sensing System............................1-65
Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle..........
.1-70
Adding Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped
Vehicle....................................................1-71
Restraint System Check..................................1-72
Checking the Restraint Systems......................1-72
Replacing Restraint System Parts After a
Crash......................................................1-73
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
1-1

Passenger Folding Seatback
Your vehicle has a front passenger seat that folds at.
{CAUTION:
If you fold the seatback forward to carry longer
objects, such as skis, be sure any such cargo
is not near an airbag. In a crash, an inating
airbag might force that object toward a person.
This could cause severe injury or even death.
Secure objects away from the area in which an
airbag would inate. For more information, see
Where Are the Airbags? on page 1-60and
Loading Your Vehicle on page 4-27.
{CAUTION:
Things you put on this seatback can strike and
injure people in a sudden stop or turn, or in a
crash. Remove or secure all items before
driving.
To fold the seatback, do the following:
1. Move the front passenger seat rearward to ensure
there is enough room to fold the seatback forward.
SeeManual Seats on page 1-2for more
information. The head restraint may need to be
removed if the seat is not able to be moved
fully rearward. If removing the head restraint, store
it so that it will not move while the vehicle is in
motion.
2. Make sure that the seatback is in an upright
position. Use the recliner lever located on the
outboard side of the seat to move the seatback to
the upright position.
1-8

Questions and Answers About
Safety Belts
Q:Will I be trapped in the vehicle after a crash if I
am wearing a safety belt?
A:Youcouldbe — whether you are wearing a safety
belt or not. But your chance of being conscious
during and after an accident, so youcanunbuckle
and get out, ismuchgreater if you are belted.
And you can unbuckle a safety belt, even if you are
upside down.
Q:If my vehicle has airbags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A:Airbags are supplemental systems only; so they
workwithsafety belts — not instead of them.
Whether or not an airbag is provided, all occupants
still have to buckle up to get the most protection.
That is true not only in frontal collisions, but
especially in side and other collisions.
Q:If I am a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should I wear safety belts?
A:You may be an excellent driver, but if you are in a
crash — even one that is not your fault — you and
your passenger(s) can be hurt. Being a good
driver does not protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within 25 miles (40 km) of
home. And the greatest number of serious injuries
and deaths occur at speeds of less than 40 mph
(65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.
1-17

Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster
Your vehicle has a shoulder belt height adjuster for the
driver and right front passenger position.
Adjust the height so that the shoulder portion of the belt
is centered on your shoulder. The belt should be
away from your face and neck, but not falling off your
shoulder. Improper shoulder belt height adjustment
could reduce the effectiveness of the safety belt
in a crash.
To move it down, press
the release button (A) and
move the height adjuster
to the desired position. You
can move the height
adjuster up just by pushing
up on the shoulder belt
guide.
After you move the height adjuster to where you want it,
try to move it down without pressing the release
button to make sure it has locked into position.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for front
outboard occupants. Although you cannot see them,
they are part of the safety belt assembly. They can help
tighten the safety belts during the early stages of a
moderate to severe frontal and near frontal crash if the
threshold conditions for pretensioner activation are
met. And, if your vehicle has side impact airbags, safety
belt pretensioners can help tighten the safety belts in
a side crash or a rollover event.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a
crash, you will need to get new ones, and probably other
new parts for your safety belt system. SeeReplacing
Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 1-73.
1-28

{CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to,
any airbag when it inates can be seriously
injured or killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer protection for adults and older
children, but not for young children and
infants. Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system
nor its airbag system is designed for them.
Young children and infants need the protection
that a child restraint system can provide.
Q:What are the different types of add-on child
restraints?
A:Add-on child restraints, which are purchased by the
vehicle’s owner, are available in four basic types.
Selection of a particular restraint should take
into consideration not only the child’s weight, height,
and age but also whether or not the restraint will
be compatible with the motor vehicle in which it will
be used.
1-38

Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat.
We recommend that children and child restraints
be secured in a rear seat, including: an infant or a child
riding in a rear-facing child restraint; a child riding in
a forward-facing child seat; an older child riding in
a booster seat; and children, who are large enough,
using safety belts.
A label on your sun visor says, “Never put a rear-facing
child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the
rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s airbag inates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint
would be very close to the inating airbag.
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the right front passenger’s
frontal airbag if the system detects a
rear-facing child restraint, no system is
fail-safe, and no one can guarantee that an
airbag will not deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though it is turned off. We
recommend that rear-facing child restraints be
secured in a rear seat, even if the airbag is off.
If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in
the right front seat, always move the front
passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is
better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing System on page 1-65
for additional information.
1-42

If your vehicle does not have a rear seat that will
accommodate a rear-facing child restraint, we
recommend that rear-facing child restraints not be
transported in your vehicle, even if the airbag is off.
When securing a child restraint in a rear seating
position, study the instructions that came with your child
restraint to make sure it is compatible with this vehicle.
Wherever you install a child restraint, be sure to
secure the child restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can move
around in a collision or sudden stop and injure people in
the vehicle. Be sure to properly secure any child restraint
in your vehicle — even when no child is in it.
Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH)
The LATCH system holds a child restraint during driving
or in a crash. This system is designed to make
installation of a child restraint easier. The LATCH
system uses anchors in the vehicle and attachments on
the child restraint that are made for use with the
LATCH system.Make sure that a LATCH-compatible child restraint is
properly installed using the anchors, or use the vehicle’s
safety belts to secure the restraint, following the
instructions that came with that restraint, and also the
instructions in this manual. When installing a child
restraint with a top tether, you must also use either the
lower anchors or the safety belts to properly secure
the child restraint. A child restraint must never be
attached using only the top tether and anchor.
In order to use the LATCH system in your vehicle, you
need a child restraint that has LATCH attachments.
The child restraint manufacturer will provide you
with instructions on how to use the child restraint and its
attachments. The following explains how to attach a
child restraint with these attachments in your vehicle.
Not all vehicle seating positions or child restraints have
lower anchors and attachments or top tether anchors
and attachments.
1-43