Earlier this decade Hummers were all the rage.  The original H1 hummers, seen during the gulf war, made there way to the streets in the late 1990s. In fact an old colleague of mine had one. I believe the top speed was about 70 miles per hour, it was extra wide, not much space inside and a huge gas guzzler.  Even with all the negatives clearly visible, for a car (and truck) guy like me it was very cool!  $125K might get you into one at the time, but that was way out of my price range and I clearly had no logical need for one.

 

 

By the early 2000s the H2 was in dealerships.  It could do about 80% of what the H1 could do at a much more resaonble price.  $50K got you a very nice H2 with lots of options.  Many of these vehicles pulled family duties in the suburbs.  Gas prices were relatively low and more and more people were accessing their home equity lines (remember those?) to buy them. Times were good!

By 2007 the housing market was beginning to crack and gas prices were soaring. $3, $4 and nearly $5 dollar a gallon gas was now the norm. H2s were now sitting on dealer lots with big mark downs, but still not many takers. GM brought out the smaller H3 to help improve sales, but it was too little too late. The H3 was underpowered and underwhelming. 

As the economy tanked, Hummer was seen as the poster child for excess. Even though it’s gas mileage was in-line with other large trucks and SUVs, its purpose was never clear to the general public. Prius was in, Hummer was out. Poor management at GM didn’t see the crisis coming.

Now GM has been trying to unload Hummer for more than a year. A Chinese company is interested, but may not get government approval to complete the purchase.  This might end up being a good thing. Hummer can succeed with the right make over.  So the question is, who can make hummer work again in the US? Here are a few of my thoughts.

What about Ford? Now Ford may not have the resources to buy Hummer, but maybe a partnership or licensing deal with GM would work. They could use their truck desiel engine for the H2 in small volumes, an Ecobost 3.5 on the H3 and possibly add the concept HX (pictured above) as a wrangler fighter also with the Ecoboost 3.5.

What about Huyndai? The could use a solid truck offering and might able to build one off the Hummer platform.  With this in mind, they might have to kill off the H2, but could certainly build the H3, a small truck verision of the H3 and the HX concept vehicle using drive trains currently used in their SUVs.

What about Volkswagen? Like Huyndai, they could use a serious truck offering.  VW has Diesel technology and a drive to be the biggest car company in the world. Hummer might be a great way for them to grow.

And while they are at it. GM/Toyota is looking to close out the Nummi plant in Northern California.  Nummi has been building small trucks for quite a while, namely the Toyota Tacoma.  Now that this partnership is ready to end, wouldn’t it be the ideal place to build the “New Hummer”?  California is ready to offer tax breaks and the union seems eager to work out a deal to keep production rolling in Fremont, California.

Hummer can be tough, fun and relatively fuel efficient.  Time for someone to step up and take on this challenge before Hummer becomes a distant memory.  Just remember, not everyone wants to drive a Prius (not that there is anything wrong with that!).

Tags: Hummer, Nummi, Off-Road, Prius

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