Combo #V8: HUMMER with a side of French factory
HUMMER's up for sale, and General Motors is looking around the house for other items to include in its yard sale. During a presentation to Deutsche Bank, GM's powertrain plant in Strasbourg was added to the For Sale listings by Treasurer walter Borst. Together, the HUMMER brand and the French transmission plant could bring up to $4 billion. GM's likely not done raiding the attic, either. A list of other salable assets is currently being drawn up as The General continues attempts at righting its ship.
A selloff of HUMMER probably doesn't mean much for the brand's lineup in the immediate future. A new owner would be purchasing the name moreso than the GM truck-based H2 and H3. New models based off some other architecture will take a considerable amount of time to work up; it'd likely mirror what's going on with Land Rover and Jaguar under Tata's ownership.
[Source: Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Avinash machado 10:38AM (9/26/2008)
Why not bundle up Saab in the package as well? GM can get rid of two weak brands in one step. Also GM could continue selling engines and parts to the new owners which could get them some extra cash on the side.
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Jei 11:08AM (9/26/2008)
Tata was such the "sucker" for purchasing Land Rover & Jaguar. Unless they plan to invest billions to develop new/updated platforms, transmissions, engines, etc. to continue and increasingly luxury flavor to the brands, they'll continue to lose money like Ford did.
Their best bet is to try to sell the LR brand back to BMW to take advantage of engine & transmission quality and advances. And maybe try to sell Jaguar to VW (or Porsche) so it receive a multitude of updates from VW's vast parts bin
I would expect the Germans to both update the exterior designs and maintain the overall heritage of the brands while increasing viable sales and volume in the market.
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jpvbs 11:11AM (9/26/2008)
Maybe whoever buys the Viper can also by Hummer. It would make for some interesting "crossovers." I'm picturing a lifted Viper on dana 60s.
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jp 11:16AM (9/26/2008)
that burger looks really good!
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Todd in Sonoma 1:26PM (9/26/2008)
That was my thought too. God I'm hungry.
Jei 11:13AM (9/26/2008)
And with Hummer, the enigma is: If you buy the Hummer brand, what then do you do with it? Hummer is only know for 3 models that all look fairly similar except for their varying sizes.
Can a Hummer be built on a G-wagen (or GL-class) platform?...probably not. Who else has that go anywhere capability on a modifiable platform? Maybe Land Rover.
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G-Meister 11:34AM (9/26/2008)
Nissan and Toyota both have such a platform.
Yar 1:35PM (9/26/2008)
The H2 has a 3/4 ton chassis, which means that in order to duplicate the vehicle the buyer's parts bin will have to include such sturdy bits. Toyota is working on a heavy duty Tundra (I think, although I might remember them canceling the project), so that is a possibility.
Remember, AM General still builds the H2.
Martman 11:33AM (9/26/2008)
I think this is very short sighted. Keep hummer but just scale it back. GM has very few world class or unique things in there lot.
They have already sold allison tansmission which made money for them. GM is bankrupt and Rick and the other top brass are selling off anything they can so thay can get another $15 Millions in salaries this year as well. It is a shame how so much money is being given to the GM top management instead of being invested in better products.
The CTS is nice, the vette is nice, but everything else is not up to the challange of the world standard.
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Avinash machado 12:03PM (9/26/2008)
What about the Malibu,G8,The Lambda CUV's and the Solstice\Sky.
Yar 2:26PM (9/26/2008)
@Dan Roth
Jesus Christ are you serious? How many times do I have to tell people, the H2 is not on the Tahoe platform, not even close. It's a freaking 3/4 ton chassis built by AM General. Heavy Duty 14-bolt GM axles, Beefy 6 speed auto, and big 6.2L motor. None of which are offered by any 4wd Tahoe.
Autoblog, you need to do a HUMMER myths post.
Martman 3:01PM (9/26/2008)
Yar
You replied to my comments, but I never said the H2 was based on the Tahoe.
I think the H2 is a unique SUV and in some cases a good unit to own.
I see the 2009 tahoes etc coming in with the 6.2 gas engine. The last new H2 i seen had a 6.0 liter, but that was earlier this year.Give the H2, and H3 a 4 or 5 cyl turbo diesel and manual transmission, make it better don't just toss it out. GM has some many brand simlar cars and truck now. Get rid of them do they really need 4 Lambda crossovers, do they really need saturn aura,pontiac G6,and chev malibu?
The H2 is a significantly heavier and different truck than the Tahoe or other GM trucks.
I just think GM is short sighted in trying to sell hummer like an unwanted pregnancy.
Ford Got rid of the excursion becasue some people said it was to big, but to some people who needed them they were perfect.
Yar 3:04PM (9/26/2008)
@Martman
Autoblog's reply system is the pinnacle of crap, I was replying to Dan Roth, who said:
"AM General build the H1, which is the "original" HMMWV that kicked the brand off. H2 is a Tahoe, really, and H3 is a Colorado. "
jpvbs 6:42PM (9/26/2008)
Isn't the H2 based on the GM HD pickups? - the diesel powered, 8 lug ones, with the torsion bar front suspension, but with coils in the back. Not exactly the same, but that's the one it is closest too.
Dan Roth 1:43PM (9/26/2008)
AM General build the H1, which is the "original" HMMWV that kicked the brand off. H2 is a Tahoe, really, and H3 is a Colorado.
TriShield 11:49AM (9/26/2008)
That's if they can sell HUMMER and that's a big IF.
The brand has been "for sale" for awhile now and nobody around the world is interested in it. GM can't even sell off their medium duty Chev/GMC truck operations.
A potential sale of this brand name is probably not going to bring a whole lot of money for GM as it stands now. GM publicly dissed it this past Spring and the economy has sucked all the value out of it for potential customers.
It's a shame too, not long ago it was GM's strongest, most unique and most profitable brand. And the H3T doesn't look half bad at all.
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BoxerFanatic 12:54PM (9/26/2008)
I hope they at least make a few H3Ts before things change irrevocably...
Then maybe I can find one later on if I ever need a utility vehicle. (notice, i did not say "sport")
Maybe they can re-invigorate it, or subjugate it as a model line inside GMC, or something. Make Hummer a model name, rather than a brand name, and sell them as off-road variants of GMCs. (which they are, anyway, common with Chevy trucks, as well.)
But H3T does look like an interesting product, and I hope it gets a little bit of sunlight before the house of cards comes crashing down.
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Dan Roth 3:16PM (9/26/2008)
Both trucks are GMT 900s - if you want to be pedantic, it's a little overly-simplistic to say that the H2 is essentially a Tahoe, I suppose, but both vehicles ride versions of the same architecture. The H2 is on the GMT 913, while the Tahoe rides the GMT 921 - there's more similarity between the H2 and the HD Silverado, I suppose, but I was looking for an SUV to SUV comparison.