The Hummer H3 is a vehicle from General Motors' Hummer division, introduced in 2005. The H3 is the smallest of the three Hummer models, and though the H3 concept car was a pickup truck, the final vehicle is a conventional SUV. Its GMT345 platform is based on the GMT355 which underpins the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon pickup trucks. Built on a modified Colorado/Canyon pickup truck frame (with more crossmembers and more frame boxing), the H3 shares many major components with its siblings.
The H3 is built at GM's Shreveport, Louisiana factory. Export versions will also be produced at the General Motors South Africa facility in Struandale, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
In the American market, the H3 is priced from $29,500 to just under $40,000. Sales have been strong, with the 33,140 sold in 2005 making up 58% of Hummer's total sales for the year. For the first two months of 2006, 8,071 H3s were sold, 74% of all Hummer sales.
Specifications
The H3 uses the 3.5 L (3464 cc) Atlas straight-5 engine.The same engine that is used in the Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon pickup trucks. This 20-valve DOHC unit produces 220 hp (164 kW) at 5600 rpm and 225 ft·lbf (305 N·m) at 2800 rpm. It is available with a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission that includes GM's Stabilitrak vehicle stability control. Its 111.9 in wheelbase is 1.1 in shorter than the GMT360 SUVs. It includes an electronically-controlled dual-speed transfer case and electronic locking differential.
Since it is rated at less than 8500 lb (GVWR), Hummer is required to provide official fuel economy ratings. It is rated at 16 mpg in the city cycle with both transmissions and 19 mpg with the automatic or 20 mpg with the manual on the highway. While the Hummer H2 will ford 20 inches of water, the H3 will handle 24 inches of water (it has been tested in depths up to 31 inches). The H3 is the only vehicle in its class to have a 2-speed transfer case standard.
The H2 is the second vehicle sold under the Hummer marque of General Motors. It is a large SUV (though smaller than the Hummer H1) with room for five passengers and substantial off-road ability. The rearmost part of the H2 SUV was modified to a pickup truck bed for the 2004 H2 SUT ("Sport Utility Truck").
Overview
The H2 is built under contract by AM General at a specially constructed plant in Mishawaka, Indiana, USA. Although it shares GM's GMT820 truck platform with the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon, those vehicles differ in many ways and are constructed in three other GM plants. The H2's final frame assembly is made up of 3 sections: The front uses a modified GM 2500-Series utility frame, the mid-section is all new and is completely boxed, and the rear section uses a modifed GM 1500-Series frame which is upgraded for the 8000 pound (3629 kg) gross vehicle weight.
H2 sales were initially strong, but fell to 28,898 for 2004 and 23,213 for 2005.
The H2 was nominated for the North American Truck of the Year award for 2003.
Engine
2003–2005 6000 6.0 L (366 in³) V8
Capabilities
With its high ground clearance, large tires, protective underbody plates, and low gearing, the H2 is capable of climbing over a 20-inch-high (0.4 m) step-up wall. A massive truck frame and wide track offer stability against overturning compared to some of the more common light truck SUVs, although objective tests have not been performed by the government or other outside parties due to its specialised vehicle class.
Fuel economy
For typical travel on improved roads, users report fuel economy of between 10 and 14 miles per gallon, which converts to between 14 and 17 L/100 km. Worst case urban driving is said to be in the range of 8 to 14 U.S. mpg (21 to 25 L/100 km). Although General Motors does not provide official H2 fuel economy ratings, most reviews have observed high single to low double-digit mileage, similar to the numbers above.
It should be noted that other large vehicles also have poor fuel economy especially with optional larger engines including the Dodge Ram 1500 series pickup trucks equipped with either the 8.3L V10 (MSRP US$48,500) or the 4.7L V8 Flexible Fuel engine running E85 fuel (MSRP US$31,300). Both of these engines are rated at 9 U.S. mpg city and 11 U.S. mpg highway by the E.P.A. as one example.
Tax benefits
Under the United States income tax code, the cost of vehicles over 6,000 pounds (2722 kg) can be deducted from income. This deduction was enacted decades ago to assist self-employed people in purchasing a vehicle for business use. The weight minimum was intended to limit the deduction to commercial-type trucks. For many years, the deduction remained below the average cost of a new vehicle, since large trucks were relatively inexpensive. Since it is a reduction in taxable income, the actual value of this deduction averages 30% of the price of the vehicle in question.
The increasing popularity of these vehicles in the last decade, however, pushed their average price to nearly double the average passenger car cost. In response, the 2002 Tax Act increased this "Section 179 depreciation deduction" to US$75,000, and it rose again to US$102,000 for the 2004 tax year. This is more than three times the current average cost of a passenger car in the United States and covers a large number of luxury models, including the Hummer H2. In late 2004, the deduction was again reduced to US$25,000.
Criticism
The Hummer H2 is one of the most severely criticized civilian vehicles on the market today. Critics have expressed concern at the fuel economy which they cite as being among the most inefficient of vehicles. The Environmental Protection Agency does not test them for fuel economy because of their weight, they are thus categorised as light trucks and thus are not bound to fuel economy standards.
The Hummer H2 is criticised for contributing towards petroleum comsumption in the United States. In addition, they are criticized for obstructing the views of drivers behind them with their large vehicles. Criticism is also leveled at the H2 by safety advocates who have expressed concern that their size and height make them far deadlier to smaller vehicles as well as bicyclists, and pedestrians since the front of the Hummer H2 will likely strike the head and/or chest where injuries are far more life-threatening instead of the knees where regular cars are most likely to impact a pedestrian.
The Hummer H1 is a civilian vehicle based on the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), popularly known as the Humvee, which was created by AM General.
History
Originally released in the civilian market in 1992, the Hummer H1 owes its birth to the popularity of photos from Operation Desert Storm and the enthusiastic campaign from actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who personally owns several variants of Hummer vehicles. GM announced that 2006 would be the last model year for the Hummer H1 with production winding down in June 2006, due to a new emission laws for Diesel engine vehicles which take effect in 2007. No version of the Hummer H1 ever produced would meet these new standards. AM General currently has orders for an excess of 50,000 new HMMWVs to be produced between 2006-2009 for the United States Military. AM General also will continue to produce the H1, just not the Alpha. These vehicles will be sold through Fleet sales. The next H1 will most-likely bear a refined version of the prior 6.5L Turbo Diesel engine, but that has not been confirmed. Selling the H1's through fleet sales will allow the AM General to not be subjected to the new emission rules and regulations. AM General has sufficient fleet orders to produce 600-800 units per year right now.
Specifications
The Hummer H1 has three common variants: a convertible-like soft top, a four-door hard top pickup truck and a Wagon body version. Other less known variants include a two-door pickup truck and a four-door slantback. At this time, the convertible/soft top and the station wagon versions are the only ones available in the mass market. The two door and four door pickup versions are only available in fleet livery.
Five engine types and three automatic transmission types can be found in Hummer H1s. The common engine/transmission combinations are:
* 6.2 L Detroit Diesel V8/GM TH400/3L80 3-speed * 6.5 L Detroit Diesel V8/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 5.7 L Vortec 5700 gasoline V8 TBI/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 6.5 L turbo Detroit Diesel V8/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 6.6 L Duramax LLY turbo Diesel/Allison 1000 5-speed (model year 2006)
The Hummer H1 shares some common driveline parts with its HMMWV brethren. Items like brakes, differentials, frame and major body panels (hood, tailgate and quarter panels) are identical between the HMMWV and the Hummer H1. All Hummer H1s and HMMWVs come off the same first stage assembly line, and then are separated midway to either become a military HMMWV or a civilian H1.
Hummer H1s are unique in the way they handle off road. They are inherently very stable, thanks to their wide stance. They also can ford 30 inches (76 cm) of water, climb a 22-inch (56 cm) step, have a stock ground clearance of 16 inches (41 cm) (thanks to its design of tucking driveline components inside a channel, which subsequently intrudes into the cabin space of the vehicle), have approach/departure angles of 72/37.5 degrees and most H1s are equipped with Central Tire Inflation System (CTIS), which enables the driver to increase or decrease the tire air pressure at will.
Hummer H1s have many unusual features. They use inboard brakes. They have geared hubs, allowing the drivetrain's half shafts to be up high for greater clearance. The radiator is up high, sloping back over the engine. Rather than using simple runflat tires, aluminum or rubber inserts are an optional feature for runflat ability. A central tire inflation system is available as an option. Chemical warfare resistant paint is available only on the military version.
Price
Price is projected to be around US$129,399 for the open-top, and US$140,796 for the wagon.
The Hummer H1 is a civilian vehicle based on the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), popularly known as the Humvee, which was created by AM General.
History
Originally released in the civilian market in 1992, the Hummer H1 owes its birth to the popularity of photos from Operation Desert Storm and the enthusiastic campaign from actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who personally owns several variants of Hummer vehicles. GM announced that 2006 would be the last model year for the Hummer H1 with production winding down in June 2006, due to a new emission laws for Diesel engine vehicles which take effect in 2007. No version of the Hummer H1 ever produced would meet these new standards. AM General currently has orders for an excess of 50,000 new HMMWVs to be produced between 2006-2009 for the United States Military. AM General also will continue to produce the H1, just not the Alpha. These vehicles will be sold through Fleet sales. The next H1 will most-likely bear a refined version of the prior 6.5L Turbo Diesel engine, but that has not been confirmed. Selling the H1's through fleet sales will allow the AM General to not be subjected to the new emission rules and regulations. AM General has sufficient fleet orders to produce 600-800 units per year right now.
Specifications
The Hummer H1 has three common variants: a convertible-like soft top, a four-door hard top pickup truck and a Wagon body version. Other less known variants include a two-door pickup truck and a four-door slantback. At this time, the convertible/soft top and the station wagon versions are the only ones available in the mass market. The two door and four door pickup versions are only available in fleet livery.
Five engine types and three automatic transmission types can be found in Hummer H1s. The common engine/transmission combinations are:
* 6.2 L Detroit Diesel V8/GM TH400/3L80 3-speed * 6.5 L Detroit Diesel V8/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 5.7 L Vortec 5700 gasoline V8 TBI/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 6.5 L turbo Detroit Diesel V8/GM 4L80-E 4-speed * 6.6 L Duramax LLY turbo Diesel/Allison 1000 5-speed (model year 2006)
The Hummer H1 shares some common driveline parts with its HMMWV brethren. Items like brakes, differentials, frame and major body panels (hood, tailgate and quarter panels) are identical between the HMMWV and the Hummer H1. All Hummer H1s and HMMWVs come off the same first stage assembly line, and then are separated midway to either become a military HMMWV or a civilian H1.
Hummer H1s are unique in the way they handle off road. They are inherently very stable, thanks to their wide stance. They also can ford 30 inches (76 cm) of water, climb a 22-inch (56 cm) step, have a stock ground clearance of 16 inches (41 cm) (thanks to its design of tucking driveline components inside a channel, which subsequently intrudes into the cabin space of the vehicle), have approach/departure angles of 72/37.5 degrees and most H1s are equipped with Central Tire Inflation System (CTIS), which enables the driver to increase or decrease the tire air pressure at will.
Hummer H1s have many unusual features. They use inboard brakes. They have geared hubs, allowing the drivetrain's half shafts to be up high for greater clearance. The radiator is up high, sloping back over the engine. Rather than using simple runflat tires, aluminum or rubber inserts are an optional feature for runflat ability. A central tire inflation system is available as an option. Chemical warfare resistant paint is available only on the military version.
Price
Price is projected to be around US$129,399 for the open-top, and US$140,796 for the wagon.
The M998 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV or Humvee) is a highly durable military motor vehicle. It has largely supplanted the role formerly served by the Jeep and other light trucks with the United States military, and is also used by a number of other countries and organizations.
Features
There are at least 17 variants of the HMMWV in service with the United States armed forces. HMMWV serve as cargo/troop carriers, automatic weapons platforms, ambulances (four litter patients or eight ambulatory patients), M220 TOW missile carriers, M119 howitzer prime movers, M-1097 Avenger Pedestal Mounted Stinger platforms, MRQ-12 direct air support vehicles, S250 shelter carriers among many others. It is capable of fording 2.5 ft (76 cm) normally, or 5 ft (1.5 m) with the deep-water fording kit installed.
Optional equipment includes a winch (maximum load capacity 6000 lb. (2700 kg)), and supplemental armor. The M1025 and M1043/M1044 armament carriers provide mounting and firing capabilities for the MK19 grenade launcher, the M2 machine gun, the M240G machine gun and M249 SAW. The newly introduced M1114 "up-armored" HMMWV also features a similar weapons mount. Recently, there is also a new type of the HMMWV introduced featuring a CROWS (crew served optical weapons station), which lets the machine gunner operate from inside the vehicle.
History
In the 1970s, the United States Army concluded that the militarized civilian trucks in use no longer satisfied their requirements. In 1977, Lamborghini developed the Cheetah model to attempt to meet Army contract specifications. In 1979, the Army drafted final specifications for a High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, or HMMWV. In July of that year, AM General began preliminary design work, and less than a year later, the first prototype, the M998, was in testing.
In June 1981, the Army awarded AM General a contract for development of several more prototype vehicles to be delivered to the U.S. government for another series of tests, and the company was later awarded the initial production contract for 55,000 HMMWVs to be delivered in 1985. HMMWVs first saw combat in Operation Just Cause, the US invasion of Panama in 1989.
They have become the backbone of U.S. forces around the world. Over 10,000 were used during Operation Iraqi Freedom by U.S. forces as well as some other countries during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
One US Humvee was captured by the Yugoslav Army during the Kosovo war and is currently on display in front of the Military Museum building on Kalemegdan Fortress Park, Belgrade, Serbia.
In Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Humvee has proved vulnerable to IED. As of early 2006, total losses were at 250 Humvees. One Humvee was destroyed in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict killing the three IDF soldiers inside and led up to the two captured IDF soldiers, it was hit by a Hezbollah rocket propelled grenade
Usage in Iraq and political implications
The HMMWV has proven very vulnerable to light infantry weapons as far back as the Somalia intervention; in its defense, it was never designed to offer such protection. With the rise of asymmetric warfare and low-intensity conflicts, the HMMWV has found itself thrust into urban combat roles it was not originally intended for. Although the large variety of HMMWV types is a testament to the vehicle's adaptability to changing mission conditions, it was never designed to be an armored personnel carrier (APC).
As it is not an armored vehicle, HMMWVs are very vulnerable to rocket propelled grenades and offer the troops within little protection from small arms fire. Although there are several armor kits available for the vehicle which afford it greater protection from small-arms fire, these were not provided in great numbers to American forces in Iraq prior to the invasion. As a result of this, American soldiers and Marines often improvise extra armor layers with scrap materials (also known as "hillbilly armor") to improve the safety of the HMMWV. While "hardening" or "up-armoring" their vehicles with sandbags, metal, and plywood does make the vehicles arguably safer, it also slows them down. It has also been argued that hardening simply creates more shrapnel when attacked with an RPG or improvised explosive device. This extra hardening further hampered the ability of the M998 and M1025 due to the addition of excess weight which overloaded the suspension and drivetrain components of these HMMWVs. Performance issues due to the high center of gravity and extra weight of up-armoring kits increase the risk of sway and rollover. Unlike similar-size civilian cargo and tow trucks, which typically have dual rear wheels to reduce sway, the HMMWV has single rear wheels. The independent rear suspension coupled with the body design may preclude "dually" fitment which is the standard for solid-axle trucks of that weight range.
In response to the perceived vulnerability of HMMWVs operating in Iraq, the U.S. Department of Defense contracted AM General to make the M1114 Uparmored HMMWV. The M1114 has been in limited production since 1996 and had seen limited use in the Balkans before deployment to the Middle East. This design has a larger, more powerful engine with a turbocharger, air conditioning and a strengthened suspension and boasts a fully armored passenger area protected by hardened steel and bullet-proof glass. With the increase in direct attacks and guerilla warfare in Iraq AM General has diverted the majority of its manufacturing power to producing these vehicles.
In December 2004, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld came under criticism from U.S. soldiers and their families for not providing better equipped HMMWV. Rumsfeld pointed out that, prior to the war, armor kits were produced only in small numbers per year. As the role of American forces in Iraq changed from fighting the Iraqi Army to suppressing the guerrilla insurgency, armor kits were being manufactured as fast as additional production facilities could be brought online. Armor aggravates the severe inherent performance limitations of a light truck with independent suspension, but it does offer improved protection. Other countries experienced in urban war such as Russia and Israel rely on tracked armored personnel carriers, but the wheeled HMMWV fits current anti-track sentiment among Army senior leadership as exemplified by the Stryker and other wheeled systems.
Weaknesses
As an unarmoured vehicle it is vulnerable to about any weapon capable of hitting it. As a primary threat, RPG's can penetrate and thus completely annihilate an HMMWV. As a secondary threat, AK47-fire reportedly sometimes makes it to the inside, and is still capable of wounding passengers. This is mostly when the 7.62 mm bullets are fired from a short distance, and is also depending where exactly the vehicle is struck. Besides fire from foot-soldiers, it is also very vulnerable to road side bombs (IEDs and land mines), as proven in Iraq. The armor on most up-armored humvees holds up well against lateral (from the side) blasts when the blast is distributed in all different directions, but runs a greater risk of a mobility or catastrophic kill when struck by a blast from beneath. Also the person mounting the machine gun on the top of the vehicle is extremely vunerable to enemy fire.
Replacement
The US government is seeking a replacement for the AM General truck, and the U.S. Army's Tank and Automotive Command is currently refereeing a prototype competition. Navistar International and Lockheed Martin are participating, while AM General has not been selected. The Navistar entry is based on their International CXT line, and this truck has already been prototyped to replace the HMMWV for non-military use by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, and Border Patrol.
The Marine Corps is also looking into replacements for the HMMWV. The Office of Naval Research is funding Georgia Tech's ULTRA AP, a combat concept vehicle based on the F350 chassis, but with a radical "blast bucket" passenger compartment, and Ultra 3T, a project with more advanced (but unproven) technologies.
Humvee replicas
Due to the popularity of the Humvee, there have been kits produced for building a humvee-replica yourself. The kits do not allow you to build a humvee from scratch (kitcar), they do allow you to rebuild a sedan to a humvee-lookalike, alternatively one can also just buy a preconstructed (or turnkey) wombat. Various kits probably exist, but the most famous is the "Wombat" (-or previous HummBug). The former vehicle can be purchased for $18,000.00, considerably cheaper than the actual Humvee ($56,400.00), or Hummer.
