Japanese fashionistas are getting a three-ton present from the General this coming spring when it will begin shipping HUMMERs to the Land of the Rising Sun. Martin Walsh, HUMMER's General Manager, told the Detroit News that despite slow vehicle sales in Japan, the island nation will become another niche player for GM's iconic off-roader.
Although Walsh remained mum on what models will be making their way across the Pacific, we were surprised during our recent trip to Japan when we saw a few H2s and H3s making the rounds on Japan's congested motorways. The HX concept revealed yesterday would be an obvious candidate for consumers abroad, and we're convinced that an H5 kei-car would be a winner if HUMMER ever decided to think small(ish).
[Source: Detroit News]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
icu812ru469 @ Dec 11th 2007 8:04AM
How many of these does GM plan on selling? Three?
nissanfreak87 @ Dec 11th 2007 9:57AM
there's a huge demand for American cars in Japan, the Hummer will probably do quite well there.
Will @ Dec 11th 2007 10:37AM
There's a huge demand for WHAT? When I lived there, (12 years, moved back to the US in '04), the very last thing in demand over there was an American car. In fact, I bought a 2 year old Chrysler Stratus for the whopping sum of $3000. I'm sure demand may have had something to do with the price? And I had a choice of literally dozens of cars of the same age, as they were just decaying at the sole dealership in Tokyo.
It would do you well to research this a bit further, rather than spout off uneducated guesses at how the world works. There's not one place I've been outside the US where there exists a prime market for American cars. A notable exception is Europe, (for the Mondeo and Focus), two chassis that weren't developed in the US. And their sole factor for popularity is value for money, something the Hummer brand isn't exactly renowned for. Look at how well this truck was received in the UK.
nissanfreak87 @ Dec 11th 2007 10:56AM
That's a bit of an agressive response,
What I've read, is that the big thing over there is American luxury cars, you'll see people rolling around in Buicks, Caddys, Lincolns, or whatever they have over there. There's not a demand for Chrysler Stratus anywhere, that's for sure. It's a more recent trend than 2004, but the American luxury brands are gaining popularity in Japan.
Will @ Dec 11th 2007 11:47AM
Chrysler sold 6500 units in Japan last year. Ford, 6,200. I can't find published numbers for GM, probably better for my own peace of mind. The fact is, even with the introduction of the aggressively styled "Dodge" brand this year, American cars total less than 1% of Japan's new car sales. And in a country where gas is 33% more expensive than in the US, I have a feeling that it's going to continue this way for a while. On top of the styling, quality, or efficiency issues, there's the trade imbalance that impacts the American brands. Even more so than here in the US, there's a strong fuel-efficiency market there, with lighweight fuel-sipping cars being all the rage. In an economic slump similar to our own, Japanese car sales have fallen again, with small cars deftly beating everything else. It's just a market we can't compete in, not with the American cars you and I would recognize. Now, a Euro-spec Focus or Ka, that may be competative, but not an H3. And certainly not any of our sedans.
Will @ Dec 11th 2007 12:16PM
"Look at how well this truck was received in the UK."
(Finally) Found the link for the Top Gear video where the guys talk about the Hummer H3. It's at the very end of the video, and I have to warn you, this is the uncut "TG News" edition, containing some profanity. Now, I don't agree with their anti-American sentiments, but wholeheartedly agree on their Hummer H3 stance. Have a lookie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMlYuODkG0E
Justin @ Dec 11th 2007 12:21PM
Next popular sport in Japan:
Hummer-drifting
Too bad you'd take out half a block in the process.
WillDaThrill @ Dec 11th 2007 8:20PM
I spent 4 years in Japan from '94 to '98. Young ones want the pocket rockets. Older ones want the long and sleak. American cars are the one percent because you promote a high status when you drive an American car, meaning you have money. You have to be well off, in most cases, to own an American car. It's just like our young guys here, they want the 4/6 cylinder rockets. What percentage of those have non-domestic badges on them? The 25 to 40's want the blown/tweaked V6/V8. The percentage is more balanced now between markets. Come 50 your wanting underpowered land yatchs that are usually luxury cars. Same with the Japanese. Now that comparable cars over there are cheaper than ours, of course they will buy their brands first without thinking of the gas crunch. It's the same thing we did to our top 3.
No they won't trip over themselves to buy a Hummer or any American car, but it speaks exclusivity when you have one.
MadeinDetroit @ Dec 11th 2007 8:08AM
Well Hummer is a rather unique vehicle which is a good thing that helps in the Japanese market. Great graphic by the way Autoblog!
stang fan @ Dec 11th 2007 8:20AM
I can see GM's marketing slogan now:
"Hummer, the brand of choice among hip Yakuza".
Will @ Dec 11th 2007 8:29AM
I owned an exported Chrysler Stratus in Japan. Over there, the car was ginormous, just too big for Tokyo's many narrow roads and parking garages. I couldn't even imagine trying to navigate this barge to point B in the land of the rising sun.
Frank @ Dec 11th 2007 12:26PM
Curious. Does that mean that the Camry, Accord, and Altima sold here in the US are "ginormous" too? Because they are all relatively the same size.
Will @ Dec 11th 2007 1:14PM
They're different cars in that market. The (last gen) Accord as we know it here isn't the same car there, think: Acura TSX. And yes, the Stratus is bigger than that.
All Toyota Camrys and Honda Inspires (The JDM name for the car sold here) are narrower than the Stratus, no matter the generation. The Honda has actually shrunken from it's 6th generation. And they're not as ubiquitous as they are here, as they're considered full size sedans. Bigger cars over there are classified into a different road-tax bracket, an annual fee based on engine size.
The Altima, ever since it's second generation, doesn't have an equivelent in Japan.
John R @ Dec 11th 2007 8:36AM
I can't remember if I saw it here or on Jalopnik, but there was a link to a video about Japanese Hummer owners. It was pretty humorous.
There is a Hummer club over there so that owners could network to get parts and stuff and share group therapy sessions concerning the pains of own these things in Japan.
Maybe it was Jalopnik.
Steve_S @ Dec 11th 2007 8:49AM
Just seems too large a vehicle for Japan. Rural China or Australia maybe but not Japan.
kevin @ Dec 11th 2007 9:01AM
This is actually a smart move - American cars and the "American look" are big in Japan, just like the JDM look is big here in the states among the import owners. I remember seeing a story about the ADM scene in Japan - everyone had bras and steelies with hubcaps on their American imports.
tankd0g @ Dec 11th 2007 9:29AM
Japan has had their own Hummer for years, it's what the American was copied fromif you ask me.
http://www.megacruiser.com/
nissanfreak87 @ Dec 11th 2007 9:52AM
read the first line of your own link, it's Toyota's answer(copy) of the Hummer
rar @ Dec 11th 2007 9:55AM
"Japan has had their own Hummer for years, it's what the American was copied from if you ask me." FWI, the HUMVEE, the military version was first delivered to the US army in 1985. The Toyota megacruiser you linked to was first in production in 1995. Now who copied who?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Mega_Cruiser
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Mobility_Multipurpose_Wheeled_Vehicle
tankd0g @ Dec 11th 2007 10:00AM
The humVEE is not the humMER, that company was founded in 1995.