Posted on January 29th, 2008 by Auto News
Hummer enters the pickup market with the H3T after flirting with the notion with its H2 SUT (Sport-Utility Truck). The H3T, unveiled at the Chicago auto show in February, will be available this fall.
???We??™re in the pickup business now,??? says Carl Zipfel, director of Hummer exterior design, in describing the five-passenger H3T crew cab that is sized between a mid-size and a full-size pickup, as opposed to the H2 SUT, which is an SUV with a quasi-bed that??™s shorter than four-feet long.
We first saw an H3T concept from Hummer at the 2004 L.A. auto show. Now, four years later, we are seeing the production-ready model. Hummer took the H3 SUV (they are the same from the B-pillar forward) and essentially added rear doors and a five-foot box, Zipfel says. The four-door H3T??™s 134-inch wheelbase is 22 inches longer than H3 SUV and the total length of the pickup is 210 inches.
The H3T shares powertrains with the SUV upon which it is based, which means the H3T Alpha has a 5.3-liter V-8 that delivers 300 horsepower and 320 pound-feet of torque, mates to a four-speed automatic transmission, and can tow up to 5900 pounds. The standard engine is the 242-hp, 3.7-liter inline-five with a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. The new pickup has standard full-time four-wheel drive and skid plates.
The truck can be outfitted with massive 33-inch tires??”an inch bigger than standard??”further and intimidating evidence that Hummer wants to lay claim to the most capable off-road -capable pickup crown. Unlike other mid-size pickups, the Hummer has front and rear locking differentials. This is a pickup that can crawl up a 60-percent grade and traverse a 40-percent side slope, with a 39-degree approach angle and 30-degree departure angle??”not stats you generally hear in the context of a pickup.
The H3T bed is similar to that in GM??™s full-size pickups, with a removable tailgate??”but no Midgate system, as on the Chevy Avalanche. The integrated bedliner is standard and a three-rail system for cargo solutions is available as a dealer accessory, as are removable, lockable bed-mounted storage boxes and a bed extender, to name a few of the 75-plus available accessories.
Customers will have a choice of four trim levels, and the vehicle will be sold in Europe and the Middle East as well as North America. Assembly begins in the third quarter of 2008 at GM??™s Shreveport, Louisiana, plant alongside the H3 and the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon pickups, which share the same architecture.
Meanwhile, Hummer general manager Martin Walsh says all vehicles in the brand will be capable of running on biofuels by 2010, starting with an E85 (85 percent ethanol) H2 line in August.
And the Hummer lineup continues to expand, with the HX concept that debuted at this year??™s North American International Auto Show giving us our first look at a smaller future H4 in the future.
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Posted on January 10th, 2008 by Auto News
That Hummer plans to continue to downsize and create a Jeep Wrangler??“sized H4 has been one of the worst-kept secrets in the industry. Each new Hummer entry has been smaller than the one before it.
But for three new designers at General Motors, the timing couldn??™t have been better. The recent graduates of the College for Creative Studies in Detroit were hired by GM a couple years ago, about the time the automaker decided it wanted a concept in a new segment to augment the mid-size H3 and the full-size H2 SUVs.
From the separate designs of David Rojas, Min Young Kang, and Robert Jablonski came the HX concept, sketches of which are included in our photo gallery. It??™s the same width as the H3 but this open-air, four-passenger off-roader rides on a wheelbase that is 10 inches shorter, with a 103-inch wheelbase.
GM will gauge public reaction to the HX at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, as well as at the Chicago show in February, to see if this is the design direction for the long-awaited H4. The concept explores the idea of a two-door fastback Hummer, says Martin Walsh, Hummer general manager, and is designed to appeal to affluent young buyers aged 20 to 30.
If the response is favorable, little stands in the way of production??”this concept is a runner. It would be more premium than the Wrangler, which would be among its competitors.
The HX is a body-on-frame, rear-wheel-drive SUV on its own chassis (GM didn??™t have an existing platform it could use). The young designers offered a modern take on the Hummer grille, and the concept has a standard built-in winch in the front, full underbody protection, and 35-inch tires. The suspension is independent up front and a solid axle in the rear. Under the hood is the 3.6-liter, direct-injection V-6 from the Cadillac CTS that generates 304 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque.
The concept is designed to run on biofuels. For those of you hankering to get 30-percent-worse fuel economy, Walsh confirms that Hummer is still moving to becoming an exclusively biofuel brand, starting next August with the E85 (15-percent gasoline and 85-percent ethanol) H2. Over the next few years, Hummer will upgrade all its powertrains so that by 2010 the entire lineup is E85 or biodiesel compatible, Walsh says.
The trio of designers also incorporated practicality in the form of removable fender flares. If there is damage to one on the trail, the driver can hop out and release the fasteners and remove it. The big hinges help facilitate removing the doors, and the roof panels come off, too.
Design creativity also manifests itself in a choice of backs: a slantback, an open SUT type, or a squareback or wagon body. Essentially, you would pick one, and the others would be available as accessories.
Inside, the center console is a prominent feature, incorporating the shifter, a giant lever that can be pulled from its flush position. The four seats have a helicopter theme: thin and lightweight, and designed to look good when the doors are removed. Imbedded in the front-passenger seat is a shovel; the driver’s side has a flashlight and first-aid kit.
The giant aluminum instrument panel, mounted on an exposed crossbeam, has removable storage bins and reconfigurable LCD screens that display different information depending on whether the vehicle is on- or off-road.
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Posted on December 28th, 2007 by Auto News
Hummer has released sketches of a new concept ahead of its unveiling at January’s 2008 North American International Auto Show. The HX concept is a look at the brand’s next step, a two-door, four-passenger open-air SUV smaller than the H3.
Three recent Center for Creative Studies graduates were tasked with styling the vehicle. Working on their own, they created the three designs you see here. After GM chose its favorite, the team then collaborated on the final concept to be shown in Detroit’s Cobo Hall. Design elements include a louvered hood, exposed billet aluminum hardware, large fender flares, and a version of Hummer’s standard seven port visage.
The HX looks like a direct competitor to the Wrangler, though Hummer claims it will be more upscale than Jeep’s offering. Like the Wrangler, it features removable doors, roof panels, and fenders. The slant-back rear roof section can be taken off or swapped for a more conventional - not to mention practical - squared off roof cap.
The concept’s engine will run on E85 ethanol, part of Hummer’s push to make all of its offerings biofuel-ready by 2010.
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Posted on December 21st, 2007 by Auto News
Pity the Hummer team. First, it launched the H1 and H2??”both strong but hedonistic off-road beasts??”to an exuberant public. But once everyone who wanted one had one, sales fell flat because they??™re just too much for anyone else. Then, in 2005, Hummer launched what should have been the panacea??”the similarly styled and prudently packaged H3??”but owing largely to its anemic five-cylinder engine, sales never materialized because it just wasn??™t enough.
This left nothing but crickets and tumbleweeds in all those industro-chic Hummer showrooms for the past couple of years, even as several other GM brands enjoyed significantly refreshed products. Well, Hummer finally got its turn, and thus you??™re looking at what could be the best-driving Hummer ever: the 2008 H3 Alpha.
The H3 Alpha, essentially an extroverted new trim level for the three-year-old H3, comes with lots of niceties, including??”finally??”real V-8 muscle. Specifically, the H3 Alpha features GM??™s all-things-to-all-trucks aluminum-block 5.3-liter V-8 that, in the H3, produces 295 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque. This is far superior to the regular H3??™s 3.7-liter inline-five, which makes 242 horsepower and 242 pound-feet. These engines share a four-speed automatic transmission but not a five-speed manual. However, the stronger V-8 raises tow capacity to a very respectable 6000 pounds from the standard H3??™s 4000.
Now, although the H3??™s powertrain is nearly 100 ponies shy of the 2008 H2??™s new 393-hp, 6.2-liter V-8, the H3??™s ???mere??? 4850-pound weight presses into the ground with nearly a ton less force. Thus, we expect 0-to-60 times to drop into the mid-seven-second range, which should make the H3 significantly more appealing to, well, anyone. Other mechanical components remain the same, so we expect no change in the rock-hopping prowess that??™s every Hummer??™s hallmark.
The H3 Alpha and all other H3 models received minor interior upgrades for ??™07, and the Alpha model incorporates these enhancements, as well as everything in the Luxury and Chrome Equipment packages, the 4.10 rear end, and glitzy chrome wheels. As such, the Alpha is certainly on the loaded side, and thus intrepid H3 owners may find themselves in the most luxurious vehicle on top of the Rubicon Trail??™s grueling Cadillac Hill.
Hummer stepped up the safety equipment as well, with stability control, tire-pressure monitors, anti-lock brakes, and traction control standard on the Alpha and all other H3s.
However nice the Alpha may be, we think it??™s gonna take a lot more than one trim level to keep the dust from collecting on the hoods of Hummers currently in those fancy showrooms across the country. We??™d like to see the V-8 become available on a less-luxury-laden H3 in an effort to appeal to off-road purists who care less about heated leather seats than prodigious low-end torque. And while we??™re at it, a V-8 and manual combo would be nice, too. And how about a convertible for the Jeep crowd? Maybe a canvas roof? And what about that oft-rumored H3 pickup? That??™s the kind of model proliferation Hummer needs if it??™s serious about reclaiming and sustaining the popularity that greeted its early models. So, we hope the Alpha is exactly that: the ???alpha,??? not the ???omega.???
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Posted on December 21st, 2007 by Auto News
Most significant to us is the installation in both H2 models of GM??™s gutsy 6.2-liter V-8, also found in the Cadillac Escalade and GMC Yukon Denali, producing 393 horsepower. That may be 10 fewer than in the Caddy, but it??™s 68 more than in the previous H2. Torque rises to 415 pound-feet??”50 more. A six-speed automatic replaces the previous four-speed unit, and due to its wide gear spacing, the new tranny helps the 6600-pound moving bricks make it as far as 367 miles on a single 32-gallon fill-up (yes, that??™s just 11.5 mpg). And that, according to Hummer, qualifies the ??™08s as more efficient than last year??™s models.
The transmission has also been calibrated specifically for the H2??™s off-road intentions, and its manumatic feature will no doubt be appreciated by off-roaders. The engine??™s newfound strength should allow the H2 to handle trailering duties with greater ease, all the way up to its 8000-pound limit.
The styling changes are so minor they??™re barely worth mentioning, but since you asked, the openings in its trademark seven-slot grille (or was Jeep the one with the trademark on that?) have grown a bit wider, and the lower air intake is larger in order to cool the more powerful engine. The silver-painted lower bumper now matches the metal skid plate, which is still embossed with ???H2.???
Although the exterior is all too familiar, you won??™t even recognize the interior. New, more sculpted bucket seats face an all-new dashboard highlighted by cool blue-lit gauges, and a nicely redesigned center stack has flush-mounted controls that recall, but don??™t copy, those in GM??™s other full-size trucks and SUVs. There??™s even a??”gasp!??”center-mounted analog clock, ? la Maserati and Infiniti. Also noteworthy is the fitment of an SUV-only, optional full-width, two-passenger third-row bench (replacing last year??™s single third-row ???mother-in-law??? seat), bringing max capacity to seven.
Anyone interested in a truck this heavy should be somewhat reassured that the ??™08 H2 features a new, four-channel anit-lock braking system and now has standard stability control with a special mode optimized for sand and desert racing conditions.
Also new for all 2008 H2s is a panic brake-assist feature??”a first for a full-size GM truck??”as well as three-row curtain airbags with a rollover sensor, front-seatbelt pretensioners, and a tire-pressure-monitoring system.
The changes under the skin are indeed thorough, and somewhat long in the waiting. But without major styling changes, will anyone even notice? Guess we??™ll have to wait until the ??™08 H2 hits the streets later this year to find out.
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