What Does HHR Stand For On The Discontinued Chevy Car?

We have a way of feeling enormously nostalgic for things that have been discontinued, don't we? Whether it's the final episode of a beloved show, a candy bar you haven't had since 1987, or a vehicle that has been out of production even longer than that, many people just can't get enough of the retro rarity of a discontinued — anything. It's even more painful when a popular car is discontinued.

On the other hand, you might be one of those fickle types who quickly forgets something once it's out of the zeitgeist. Either way, though, if you're a fan of the Chevrolet marque, you'll probably be interested in the case of the Chevrolet HHR, a model that was rendered kaput in 2011. 

The acronym HHR refers to a very distinctive feature of the vehicle: its roof. More specifically, its Heritage High Roof. This is a reference not only to the shape of the model's roof itself, but also to a broader design choice Chevy made with it. It was created to harken back to previous models, in shape and style. Here's a look at the models that led to the HHR's creation, the body that inspired its name, how the family evolved, and what ultimately led to its discontinuation. 

From the Caprice to the Camaro, Chevy has certainly brought the world some successful vehicles. Fans of that nostalgic sense of style will find great appeal in each of them, and the HHR is a bit of a forgotten commodity in comparison. The concept behind it, as with so many new releases in just about any field you care to mention, was to take inspiration from an existing success story. As Regular Car Reviews put it in February 2017, the HHR was "General Motor's attempt to make a PT Cruiser," also taking inspiration from the iconic Suburban model that was released in the late 1940s. The original HHR, the '06, featured either a 2.2 or 2.4 liter engine, the latter of which boasted 162 lb-ft torque and horsepower at 172. 

The HHR SS (the line's equivalent of the Super Sport, essentially) arrived in 2006, and would remain until the line was discontinued. The final version pushed the horsepower up to 260, via a 2-liter engine. This component was a vital part of the package, which was heralded by Ed Peper, general manager at Chevrolet, for its "muscular stance, turbocharged power and track-capable handling... the HHR SS is a worthy addition to [the] SS lineup." The HHR family may yet have had further potential to be teased out, but it wouldn't get the opportunity.

As we've seen, the HHR attracted a lot of attention from Chevy drivers, and the wider family lasted several years. In that time, it branched out in some interesting directions. The HHR Panel was a very different take on the concept, a Panel van that was first offered in 2007. This model was available until 2011, when the wider HHR ceased production at the plant in Coahuila, Mexico that had been manufacturing it since its debut. 

In an industry that can be as fickle as this one, there are so many different reasons that a vehicle model can be discontinued, but for the HHR, one of the most fatal of all struck. The High-Performance Operations Division, creator of the HHR SS, which even received a strange General Motors Panel model, was shelved in 2009 amid financial issues at the company, and this ultimately marked the end of the HHR family's production. 

This doesn't mean it isn't still driven, though, as it has its appreciators in its various guises.  The HHR SS, in particular, was known to impress and surprise with its performance and practicality. As Auto Week put it during a test drive back in December 2007, "on a test track, we forgot we were driving a front-drive vehicle, let alone one that can haul a small family and their luggage." That's certainly an impressive legacy for a vehicle of its type.