Hummer

This article is about the Hummer brand. For the Hummer H1, see Hummer H1. For other uses, see Hummer (disambiguation).

Hummer is a brand of off-road vehicles sold by General Motors, also known as GM. The H1 version is based on the military High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, or Humvee). The H2 and the H3, were introduced as smaller civilian market versions.

In most countries, some Hummers are considered to be trucks, rather than regular SUVs, as they do not meet environmental protection standards. For example, in New Zealand and Australia, a truck licence is needed in order to operate some of the heavier models^{[citation needed ]}.

Hummers were originally built by AM General Corporation, which was formerly AMC Jeep's General Products division^[1] , in its South Bend, Indiana assembly plant. AM General had planned to sell a civilian version of the Hum-Vee as far back as the late 1980s. In 1990, two matching white Hum-Vees were driven from London to Beijing over the rough roads of central Soviet Union. The Hummers made the trip with ease, for they were built to drive on off-road terrain. The highlights of this journey were broadcast in the United States on ESPN. This publicity would pale in comparison to the attention that the HMMWV received for its service in Operation: Desert Storm the following year.

In 1992, AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV or Hum-Vee) vehicle to the public under the brand name "Hummer". According to sources^{[citation needed ]}, they began doing so after Arnold Schwarzenegger asked them to; apparently, he was impressed by a convoy of HMMWVs that drove by during his filming Kindergarten Cop in 1990.

In 1998, AM General sold the brand name to General Motors but continued to manufacture the vehicles. GM is responsible for the marketing and distribution of all Hummers produced by AM General. In the next few years, GM introduced two new homegrown models, the H2 and H3, and renamed the original vehicle H1. AM General continues to build the H1 and is contracted by GM to produce the H2. The H3 is built in Shreveport, LA alongside the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon pickups.

As of 2006, Hummer has gone international with selected importers and distributors in Europe and other markets.

Since October 10 2006, GM has been producing the Hummer H3 at its Port Elizabeth plant in South Africa for international markets.^[2] Hummers at the Port Elizabeth plant are built both for local South African consumption and exported to Australia in the 2008 model year. In Europe, the Middle East, and Japan, the H3 is also already available. As of October 2006, Hummer vehicles are marketed by about 300 dealers in 34 countries. 173 of those are in the U.S.

The H2 is also assembled in Kaliningrad, Russia, by Avtotor, starting in June 2004. The plant produces a few hundred vehicles annually, and its output is limited to local consumption (five dealers in Russia initially).

On May 12 2006, GM announced it would cease production of the original H1 Hummer.^[3]

GM CEO Rick Wagoner has said the Hummer brand of trucks will run on Biofuel Powertrains in Last Year's Los Angeles International Auto Show. Schwarzenegger has subsequently had one of his Hummers converted to run on biofuel and now promotes this approach.

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The Hummer H1 is basically a HMMWV built for civilian use; it has no armor or weapons fittings. However the powertrain, chassis, body, suspension, etc., are the same. The H1 differs from the HMMWV in having a civilian interior, including trim, comfortable seats, stereo radio, and air conditioning as standard options. As a result of its commercial use, features introduced in the civilian Hummer have been incorporated into improved military versions. The H1's electrical system is 12-volt, with the two batteries wired in parallel. The HMMWV runs on a 24-volt system, where the two batteries are run in series.

Since all Hummer vehicles have heavy-duty capabilities, they have been employed by owners for aid in large disaster situations. Hummer Owners Prepared for Emergencies (HOPE) was created by the efforts of The Hummer Club, INC. and the American Red Cross. Together, the two organizations train Hummer owners with CPR and First Aid skills, and basic off-highway skills so that they may assist victims during a disaster situation.^[4]

GM has been very active and effective in licensing the Hummer. Various companies have licensed the Hummer trademarks for use on colognes, flashlights, bicycles^[5] , shoes, coats, hats, skateboards, laptops^[6] , clothing, jewelery, CD players and other items.^[7]

Starting in the early Nineties, when AM General started selling to the civilian market, Hummers began making appearances in the Film and Television industry. Some earlier and noticeable appearances include Jurassic Park , which featured several different SUV style vehicles, seaQuest DSV which used the Hummer H1 in in place of HUMVEEs, and Earth 2 which featured a large, "solar-powered" Hummer Concept truck as their main mode of conveyance. More recently noticeable appearances include CSI:Miami , being driven by the chief of the crime lab Lt. Horatio Caine (played by David Caruso) and in the 2007 Transformers movie the Autobot known as Ratchet transforms into a search and rescue Hummer H2.

Criticism of Hummers includes all the criticism of SUVs in general, although at a higher degree. See Criticism of sport utility vehicles.

Specific extra criticisms of Hummers include:

Poor fuel economy

Along with other heavy passenger vehicles, Hummers have relatively poor fuel economy. For instance, the H2 in one engine configuration averages about 15 mpg (US) (16 L/100 km) on highways, (10 mpg or 24 L/100 km on the street),and has a curb weight of over 6000 pounds (2722 kg).^{[citation needed ]}

Safety

Crash data for Hummers is less complete than for other SUVs. Because of its weight, it takes longer and farther to stop in emergency braking situations. There is a lack of standard safety features, including child safety locks, child seat tethers, side air bags and stability control. Large blind spots make parking difficult and possibly dangerous.^[8]

Size

Some Hummers are significantly bigger than other SUVs; this can cause problems parking, driving and fitting in a garage.^[9]

Cost to run

High maintenance costs.^{[citation needed ]}

Safety and ecology

Safety and ecological perceptions from other road users has attracted a lot of criticism.^{[10] [11]} Eco-terrorists have specifically targeted Hummers.^{[12] [13] [14]}

There are three current and possibly two future models in the HUMMER line:

Production models

• HUMMER H1 (discontinued)
• HUMMER H2
  • HUMMER H2 SUT
• HUMMER H3
  • HUMMER H3T
  • HUMMER H3x
  • HUMMER H3 Alpha
  • HUMMER H3 SUT (coming summer 2009)

Concept vehicles

• HUMMER HX

• Jeep
• High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (Hum-Vee)
• Lamborghini Cheetah
• Lamborghini LM002
• Toyota Mega Cruiser
• International XT
• Unimog

• AM General official site
• GM's HUMMER homepage

• Off-road vehicles
• Motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States
• Hummer
• Indiana culture
• Truck manufacturers
• St. Joseph County, Indiana
• Companies based in Detroit

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