Hummer Guy

The military already has a lot invested in the Humvee — over 25 years of R&D and manufacturing. Humvees remain the main source of mobility for U.S. Ground Forces, and will probably remain that way for some time. Basically, now is not a good time to completely switch gears and start to design and produce a new vehicle to take its place - and it is probably easier, smarter, and cheaper to invest in what we already have. Defense Industry Daily recently had a post with all the contracts that were Humvee related in September — you can tell by the ammounts being spent that the Humvee isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

During a speech in Paris, General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz announced this week that Hummer needs to double its product lineup by adding two or three new models. Lutz said making a Hummer-branded pickup truck, which would have ample passenger seating, remained an “option.” GM executives have said previously that a smaller vehicle, similar in size to a Jeep Wrangler, is also being considered for the brand.

I’ve never given much credence to the Drudge Report – and still don’t. Here’s why: A recent blog post by Carla Marinucci on SFGate.com questions a recent article linked on Drudge that claimed Arnold Schwarzenegger was turning a new GREEN leaf and getting rid of his 4 Hummers. The article claimed Schwarzenegger “has ditched his beloved $950,000 fleet of Hummer cars in a bid to save the environment.” It noted that the former “Terminator” “is devoted to the sport utility vehicles for their “precision,” and let’s face it, their macho appeal. But this week, with Attorney General Bill Lockyer announced he was suing six major auto manufacturers – Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Honda, Chrysler and General Motors over greenhouse gas emissions, that was the catalyst in the Hummer-dumping, the item said, adding “ex-movie star Schwarzenegger felt it was prudent to make the change.” Arnold still has 4 Hummers — three registered in California and one in Idaho — and a source close to the governor has treated the article as a joke. Its also no surpise that some of the UK Tabloids are publishing the matter as truth.

Hummers have always been popular vehicles for emergency and rescue crews. GM is trying to keep that tradition alive with its most recent and affordable model — the Hummer H3. Here’s the breakdown:
Between October 1 and December 31, 2006, when an active member of the fire and rescue community – volunteer or career firefighter or emergency response personnel associated with a fire association – purchases or leases a new HUMMER H3, the vehicle will include the HUMMER First Responder package at no additional cost.

The HUMMER First Responder package includes the purchaser’s choice of either an emergency signal package from Whelen Engineering Inc. (whelen.com) or Federal Signal (federalsignal.com) valued at up to $2,500, or a black wraparound brushguard and lower grille-mounted off-road lights.

The first vehicle was displayed here in Dallas at the Fire-Rescue International 2006 show.

Hummers and off-roading are normally associated with one gender — the one which produces testosterone. But recently a group of women of varying ages set out in a Hummer H3 to tackle one of the roughest trails there is. . The Rubicon Trail is located in Northern California near Lake Tahoe in the Eldorado National Forest, and is known for its four wheel drive challenges. The group was accompanied by some of Hummer’s female engineers and P.R. officials. The women came out unscathed saying, “we hadn’t broken down. We hadn’t gotten stuck. We hadn’t panicked. And we had enjoyed testing ourselves and the vehicles.”

This heavily modified H2 was recently seen outside a production shop in L.A. — and is presumed to be for the upcoming Transformers movie. The original plan was to have a Humvee-based vehicle for the role of “Ratchet” but these leaked photos appear to based on the H2 frame. Ratchet’s role in the movie is that of Autobot medic, and is 24 feet tall. Transformers is a live action science fiction film conceptually based on the popular Transformers franchise and toy line. The film has a projected release date of July 4, 2007 and is currently filming. The feature is being directed by Michael Bay with Steven Spielberg acting as the executive producer.

GM recently made the bold move to increase Hummer’s power train warranty to 5 years and 100,000 miles, showing consumers they are both confident and committed to quality. Recent quality tests have shown a lot of improvement for GM across the board, especially after a decline in quality in the mid-90s. The extended warranty will now put GM’s money where their mouth is. By putting a guarantee on quality GM takes a gamble on how well their products will hold up in 5 years. If GM’s quality isn’t where it should be, this could be a huge loss for the automaker. However, would GM make a move that would jeopardize their future? Probably not - and they also would not have stood behind the warranty unless they knew for sure, through their own testing, that the quality was there and it would be a sound decision. The real winner is the customer – since they have the guarantee. Whether or not GM is a winner will only show in time.

The Plan: Take a Hummer H3 to 100 different architectural masterpieces around Europe in only 50 days. The young Dutch architect Joris Lüchinger is accompanied by artists and other architects, and of course his Yellow Hummer H3. The trip is sponsored by Kroymans HUMMER Europe, who has the responsibility for all HUMMER imports into the European market. Kroymans serves as the official importer of the brand in 27 countries.

I found this out of a Maryland Newspaper – not a bad deal! “When Jay Turner went to the Crofton Country Club, he was the proud owner of a 2005 Chevy Cobalt. A few holes and two beers later, he had a new Hummer H3.

At a charity golf tournament, the Millersville man played a round with his company, Datalink Interactive, and bagged a hole-in-one, winning the vehicle.”

The Camo Hummer H3 is released as part of Sewell Hummer’s celebration of opening weekend for hunting. The truck is equipped with off-road 33-inch tires, and custom black wheels. With the Hummer H3’s off-road capability and reliability, coupled with its small size (maneuverability) and this custom camo wrap, make this an appealing vehicle for any hunter. Plus, once hunting season is over, you can remove the outer wrap and you’ve got a nice, non-scratched, black H3 to ride around in.