Autoblog

AM General to offer civilian Humvee kit car

George Kennedy — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 18:51:00 EST

Filed under: SUV, Hummer, Military, Diesel, Off-Road

For anyone feeling nostalgic about the passing of the Hummer brand, or the actual wartime vehicle that inspired it, now is your chance to own a version of the original HMMWV, albeit without an engine.

After a 12-year hiatus from the civilian vehicle market, AM General is reportedly set to offer a kit-car of the C-Series Humvee. The kit will conform to U.S. government regulations and has been made possible by a deal with General Motors.

The kit costs $59,000 - and you still need an engine. A likely favorite would be a Duramax Diesel V8 and Allison transmission combination, as was found on the H1 Alpha. AM General estimates that an owner could buy the kit Humvee and outfit a powerplant and transmission for $75,000. Not bad, considering that H1 Alpha has an MSRP of $140,000 in 2005.

How is this possible? If you recall, GM was trying to unload the Hummer brand to Chinese-based Sichuan-Tengzhong, among other suitors. As we all know, a deal never happened and the brand rumbled off into the sunset. The deal with AM General worked so that the military Humvee producer could offer a vehicle to the public as long as it was fundamentally different from the H1. By offering a kit car, they apparently end-around much of the legal confines.

But that also means are other setbacks. The final product will not look like the civilian Hummer H1, and it will not have niceties like interior trim, power locks, door mounted mirrors, or even hard doors. It will simply be a four-seat, soft-top, soft door vehicle. AM General will offer 'add-on' factory options such as the Central Tire Inflation System, rocker protection, and potentially two-piece beadlock wheels.

As the story over at Hummer Guy puts it, "just remember - its a Humvee, not a Hummer."

AM General to offer civilian Humvee kit car originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 18:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SEMA 2010: Zero South Biodiesel Electric Hummer shows its guts

Jeff Glucker — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 18:01:00 EST

Filed under: SEMA Show, SUV, Hummer, Off-Road

Zero South Biodiesel Electric Hummer - Click above for high-res image gallery

Zero South, a company that popped up at SEMA in 2008, is back again with its Biodiesel Electric Hummer. The heavily modified H1 rides on tracks at all four corners - a necessary modification, since this Hummer is designed for an expedition to the South Pole.

The trip is going to be documented by Chris Paine, who's best known for the film Who Killed the Electric Car? It was reported back in 2008 that the vehicle was going to be driven by Buzz Aldrin and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. The film is called Drive Around the World and was shot in 3D. Drive Around the World is also the name of an organization that works to inspire an urge to explore while raising money for various charities. The H1 shown above is Zero South's vehicle for participating in these expeditions.

The Zero South Biodiesel Electric Hummer was originally setup to run on B99 fuel, but Jay Leno joined the team and modified the powertrain so that a four-cylinder diesel Volkswagen engine would act as a generator to four electric motors. Each motor would then provide power to the individual track it's coupled to. It's one heck of a Hummer, and we invite you to check it out for yourself in the gallery below.

Gallery: SEMA 2010: Zero South Biodiesel Electric Hummer

SEMA 2010: Zero South Biodiesel Electric Hummer shows its guts originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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STUDY: Hummer owners believe they've made "a highly moral consumption choice"

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:29:00 EST

There probably isn't any one passenger vehicle on earth that earns more ire from environmentalists than the Hummer H2. While the reality of the matter is that most Hummers aren't really much worse when it comes to fuel mileage and overall emissions than any other giant SUV (most civilian Hummers are, in fact, based largely on truck platforms from General Motors) the brand has seemingly been made into the poster child of American excess.

Interestingly, however, according to a small study of 20 Hummer owners published in the Journal of Consumer Research, that stigma may actually be a selling point for those who purchase Hummers. According to the authors of the study:

As we studied American Hummer owners and their ideological beliefs, we found that they consider Hummer driving a highly moral consumption choice. For Hummer owners it is possible to claim the moral high ground... The moralistic critique of their consumption choices readily inspired Hummer owners to adopt the role of the moral protagonist who defends American national ideals.

It's hard to argue that this report offers a conclusive look into the minds of Hummer owners and Hummer haters alike - especially when the sample size is so small - and we doubt it's going to put an end to the debate over the seemingly conflicting rights of Americans to purchase the vehicle of their choice, consume or conserve whatever resources they deem necessary and breathe clean air. That said, it's an interesting bit of research, no?

[Source: Journal of Consumer Research - sub. req'd; via Wired]

STUDY: Hummer owners believe they've made "a highly moral consumption choice" originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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eBay Find of the Day: Hummer H1 gets beaten with aerodynamic ugly stick

Noah Joseph — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, SUV, Auctions, Hummer

Custom Hummer H1 on eBay Motors - Click above for image gallery

It takes a special talent to infantilize the brute strength of a Hummer H1, but someone's gone and done it with an oddly swoopy redesign. One of only two made (yes, there is another), this unique Hummer features a custom hood and front bumper, as well as a multi-section removable roof should the driver and occupants actually wish to be seen tooling around the neighborhood in this beast.

Inside, it's been all tricked out with a trifecta of television screens, ostrich leather interior, iPod-compatible entertainment system, sat-nav, back-up cameras...the works. Even the turbodiesel V8 has been tweaked and mounted with a polished aluminum snorkel, complimented by a chrome Mack truck bulldog hood ornament. Oh, and it has a $2,000 train horn, just in case someone can't see this behemoth coming from a mile away. All this can be yours for the low price of $89,900 or best offer.

Gallery: Hummer H1 custom on eBay

[Source: eBay Motors via Carscoop]

eBay Find of the Day: Hummer H1 gets beaten with aerodynamic ugly stick originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Determined man builds HUMMER H1 from tired Ford F-150

Jonathon Ramsey — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:28:00 EST

Filed under: SUV, Etc., Hummer, Lifestyle, Canada

Click above for a high-res image gallery of the homemade HUMMER H1

Life is stranger than fiction. If anyone tries to tell you differently, simply point to the Canadian man who built the truck you see above, from scratch. Francois Couture, known in his posts as "H150", showed up in the Full Size Bronco forum on September 17, 2004 with a simple query: "Since I'm a Ford nut but always wanted a HUMMER but don't have lots of money, I decided to fabricate my own [based] on Ford truck frame..."

As forum users do, there were soon people offering a multitude of answers to his questions. But what the other users discovered rather quickly was that this guy was, literally true to his word, was fabricating a HUMMER H1 from nothing but plans. Using steel from his job, he built his own sheet steel bending machine, and over the last four years has been welding together a HUMMER H1 practically out of thin air. And get this: before he started his project, Francois didn't know how to weld. He learned to weld in order to build the truck. And he's good. Like, awesome. His fabrication work is as professional as anything you'd see from folks with a lot more money than a dedicated husband and father in Quebec.

The H1 is being built on a donor frame from a 1987 Ford F150, with an engine from a donated E-350 Super Duty shuttle van, and a whole bunch of other ingenious swaps, all from Fords. If you have the time to read 45 pages, it is worth it. Our favorite name for the truck so far: H4d. After four years and a bit, he's still working on it, and he's taking donations at the behest of other forum members in order to get the truck finished this summer. The effort and the passion speaks for themselves in the gallery of photos below. Hat tip to reader Kiran!

Gallery: Homemade HUMMER H1 - The H4d

[Source: Full Size Bronco]

Determined man builds HUMMER H1 from tired Ford F-150 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HUMMER attacks perception problems with "Purpose Built" campaign

Damon Lavrinc — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:05:00 EST

Filed under: SUV, Marketing/Advertising, Hummer

HUMMER's image has always been one of excessive excess. While much of that portrayal is due to GM's own marketing, the people who purchase the imposing 'utes - be they high-profile celebs or well-to-do suburbanites - have done more to define the brand than GM's marketing boffins ever could. But the General wants to change all that.

Mark LaNeve, GM's North American veep of sales, service and marketing, is spearheading a campaign that's trying to show HUMMERs in a different light; specifically vehicles to get a particular job done. "No one criticizes a bulldozer for its gas mileage. That's because it's built to do a job," laments LaNeve in a USAToday interview. Fair enough Mark, but a bulldozer has a single-minded purpose - moving earth - whereas HUMMERs aren't always being used to plug mud and move boats. They've become lifestyle vehicles that are often not used for their intended purpose - just like the majority of SUVs on the road.

Regardless, GM's recent ad campaigns attempt to show the HUMMER in a more functional light, depicting the overblown SUV hauling firefighting gear and helping out with natural disaster relief. "Purpose Built" is the new tagline, but at the end of the day, no amount of PR will help HUMMER if people continue to see them parked outside the local Starbucks.

[Source: USAToday via Winding Road]

HUMMER attacks perception problems with "Purpose Built" campaign originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AM General to lay off 160 more workers

Chris Tutor — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 11:05:00 EST

Filed under: SUV, Plants/Manufacturing, Hummer

AM General says because of Hummer-sized dropoff in sales, it will cut 160 jobs at its Indiana plant by year end. Company officials say expensive gas and relatively large sticker prices are two obstacles even the lane-hogging Hummer H2 just can't overcome. H2 sales have also been cannibalized by the somewhat smaller and more fuel-efficient H3.

On an ironically positive note, U.S. government orders for military Humvees are outpacing the Indiana plant's production capability. AMG spokesman Craig Mac Nab says some of the newly unemployed workers might be moved to H1 production.

This isn't the first time H2 plant workers have been laid off. AMG let go 170 workers in January. The H2 plant also shut down for two weeks in October in an attempt to control overproduction. Is this the end of the lumbering, dinosaur-like H2? Or can it evolve into a more planet-friendly vehicle?

[Sources: CNN and The Detroit News]

AM General to lay off 160 more workers originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 29 Nov 2006 11:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Podcast #31

John Neff — Wed, 17 May 2006 17:02:00 EST

Filed under: Podcasts, Hummer

We're back from a short hiatus and Chris is all rested up from his week+ long trip across the country working on this year's One Lap of America. He and I talk about the event and some interesting autos that showed up to compete in Brock's baby. We also reveal the deal on Jason Vines taking issue with us (i.e. me) questioning his moves as a PR man in a post that went live yesterday. You can check out that post here for some background. Finally, we give our take on a proposal in Texas to up the speed limit to 80 mph in some areas, and say our piece on the soon-to-be-departed Hummer H1 that General Motors has announced will be cancelled next month.

Get the podcast
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Hosts
John Neff and Chris Paukert

Producer
John Neff

Length
37:09

Autoblog Podcast #31 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 17 May 2006 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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