Hummer Owners are you happy?

[Stevh0]

Are you happy with your H3 purchase?

How do you find the power? Sluggish, suffiecent?

How does the vehicle tow?

Whats the fuel economy?

comfortable open road cruising speed?


Whats the prefered model to purchase? Basic/Adventure/Lux?

[Uys]

Good luck getting reply here on Hummer issues!

[Stevh0]

clearly!

[Apocalypse]

is the H3 the one with 28" chrome rims, black windows that never go off road?

looks a bit like a Jeep... try asking about those and you'll get a million replies!!!!

[Jeep Luvva]

What's a Hummer?

[Apocalypse]

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!!!

and it's the H1!!!

the rest are NOT hummers...

[Dookie]

If you are happy whilst driving a Hummer, you can Hummmm...........

[Stevh0]

Haha I opened a can of worms...

[Apocalypse]

you bought a Hummer?!?!??!?!!!

[Stevh0]

luckily... not.

[Apocalypse]

good.

now go and get a Wrangler..

[Fabfender]

This is a 4x4 forum, why would you ask such a question here?

[dph]

Swambo's BIL owns a H2. LH drive, with a sticker from some American garage on the back. He got it in via Angola. I don't think it sees too much action, but it is shod with some nice 33" BFG A/T's.

OT - He then bought a G4 RRS, complete with MTR's and ever since the H2 has been standing idle. As a consequence of the RRS I think he now holds the unofficial record for the quickest time between Cape Town and Karasburg. That thing SHIFTS.

/OT

[RooiPiet]

Okay... allow me to really rock the boat ...

I owned over the past few years a '96 Isuzu KB280TD 4x4 LWB, '70 Land Rover Defender SIIA, '03 Range Rover 4.4 V8, '06 Toyota Prado 4.0 VX, and now since Nov'09 proudly my red H3 3.7 Adventure. It came with Low Range and dual diff locks fitted as standard items.

Reason I sold the Isuzu: Not enough seats, could never really get the canopy properly dustproof, and never again a mobile oilburner.

Reason I sold the Landy: Useless, but lovable (4km/lt and 90km/h max - 16hrs Pta to Margate and that’s when not even towing a trailer!)

Reason I sold the Prado: New model released just after I sold mine - more and more electronic gizmoz bound to break down eventually and leave you stranded somewhere far from a help.

Reason I sold the Range Rover - Beautiful blue expensive lemon (so it seems true of almost all Land Rovers), with rip-off LR dealer repairs!

When I finally got rid of the Range Rover, I decided to test drive new different 4WD SUVs which are competent off-road, and also has as few as possible critical electronics, NO air suspension, nor depend on only fancy electronic off-road traction control systems. This obviously ruled out the major popular models like Pajero & Prado etc. Don’t get me wrong, the Prado was awesome off-road, but things were starting to breakdown more and more.


I have to tow my Xplorer, and need a ‘daily driver’ 4x4 SUV that can tow the Xplorer into dark Africa and back without our own spinal columns being shaken out of alignment as with the Wranglers. I wanted a 4x4 that has low range and also double diff-lock as standard items, and above all, it must be reliable and well known/not Chinese nor Eastern Block built . read BUILT - not owned.

Some might differ, but I believe in the ‘Keep It Simple’ philosophy when it comes to 4WD/off road long distance driving. Not surprising to see that there aren't many of these well known brands/models available. That’s why I eventually decided to buy my HUMMER H3 3.7 Adventure. I just returned from a 5 week holiday to Moz and back, and I am more than happy with my HUMMER’s performance.

Go test drive a Hummer H3 and leave the ‘little boy HUMMER super hero’ admiration at home. You’ll actually realise that it a very capable 4WD SUV, and is very comfortable, even when doing long distance trips.
The Hummer sold in South Africa is NOT the H1, nor the H2, and was built to offer poor mortals like us the opportunity to affordably own a well balanced and also very capable 4x4 SUV.

You cannot buy a H1 for the same price as the H3. Also do not compare these 2 vehicles side by side, and think that they are the same. The H1 is a truck requiring a code 10 licence and is built on a completely different chassis than the H3. Idiots who love to do this, also want to compare the (cheap by comparison) Mercedes C200 Kompressor to the big brother flagship E63 AMG, and then are dumbstruck when they don’t get all the same features and performance as the E63 in the C200!


Yes, the majority of popular 4x4s like the Hummer H3 and Range Rover are pimped to the point of ridiculous insanity (like a 3,0lt Ford 4x4 if you’re from Brakpan). This does not change the fact that they were actually built to be competent 4WD recreational vehicles.

Remember that the H3 Hummer was never designed nor aimed to be military assault vehicles like the H1. Love it or hate it, you just can’t ignore the fact that the HUMMER H1 reputation and image is now synonymous with the entire HUMMER brand.

So for each one of you not driving a HUMMER (and most probably never drove one, nor even did any research on them) I ask you to please realise that the ‘Little Boy HUMMER Superhero’ admiration, is bound to be disappointed when you realise that the HUMMER H3 is just another very capable 4WD vehicle like most other.


So I have bad news for you; NO, the H3 can’t levitate, nor do other magic tricks, but is unfortunately also bound by the laws of physics, just like all other (more expensive) 4x4 SUVs. It’s very funny, looking at the majority of the replies to this thread, that it’s obvious that there are a lot of guys out there that hasn’t realised this yet.

Yes, this means that I will also have to go to Safari Centre to have a OME suspension lift kit, long range tank, roof rack and other safari goodies fitted... just like all the other Toyos and whatevers... If all this is a terrible disappointment to some of you, then I won’t tell you about Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy I promise...

[wulfe]

Originally Posted by RooiPiet

Okay... allow me to really rock the boat ...

Glad you enjoy your H3. Did you get the manual or the auto? One thing you have to realise is that when you drive something out of the norm you are going to get flack for it. I get some interesting comments because I actually use my Range Rover off road, scratches and all, and constantly have to hear about its speculated weaknesses. Luckily I didn't get a lemon

I had the manual H3 Adventure for a month or so in the US (think it was about 3-4 years ago), was only one of 3 manuals at that stage in California which meant great price as they couldn't get it sold. The thing I did like was that it feels solid and secure drive. I just wasn't too impressed with the build quality, especially after a bit of gravel/rocks things would start rattling and coming loose. The gearbox was also not my favorite, would definitely go for auto above manual. Also not the most practical of family vehicles and I couldn't get very comfortable to drive it for longer distances. Think a big issue with the Hummer is GM's handling of it and then off course the new unknown Chinese owners. IMO they waited way too long to add the H3 to the line up to offer some more practical and fuel efficient options. It was almost a case of trying too much in a too short time to try and save the brand.

But anyway, hope you have many trouble free miles.

[RooiPiet]

Hi Wulfe

Yep, I also thoroughly enjoyed my RR, and also took it off-roading and into our neighbouring countries on a few occasions. I just couldn't take the frequent electronic sensor breakdowns throughout the vehicle, which forced the RR to 'limp' home once to often. And once bitten...

My H3 is the auto version (Range Rover made me lazy I guess ) and is a massive benefit in our Pta - Jhb traffic.

I bought the extended factory warranty, as well as extended full factory maintenance plan, so if rattles and the like develop, they can be sorted out until I eventually decide to trade in the H3 some day. Luckily I haven't noticed any build issues in my H3, so I'm very happy with mine.

Hopefully HUMMER's new Chinese owners want to protect and improve their investment, and keep the brand afloat like Tata does for Land Rover.

[LowRange]

Originally Posted by Stevh0

Are you happy with your H3 purchase?

How do you find the power? Sluggish, suffiecent?

How does the vehicle tow?

Whats the fuel economy?

comfortable open road cruising speed?


Whats the prefered model to purchase? Basic/Adventure/Lux?

Piet, you haven't answered the questions yet!

Is yours still the 6 Cyl?

Johan

[Stevh0]

lowrange, i believe they are 5 cylinders

[DesertLeon]

Piet, I think my reply might make you a happy man! I bought one of the first H3's that was released in Dubai. It is a 3.5, straight five with auto gearbox. The only ever mod I made to the car was to replace the standard tyres with 285/70/16 BFG's. What an amazing vehicle. I am an avid off roader and the Hummer was put through its paces EVERY weekend. The UAE is primarily a desert and the H3 was as happy as anything in very serious sand. We often took the vehicles to the Empty Quarter, where it is not uncommon to have 200 to 300 foot drop offs! The Hummer could climb those dunes like few other vehicles and once you learn to understand the engine it would take you anywhere you wanted to go. I also used the H3 to commute and did about 240km's on weekdays for about a year.

To add a bit of salt to the wounds of those that doubt the capability of the H3... I also used to Marshall on one of the world circuit rallies. The last time I did this I was working as part of the forward sweep team which meant that I carried the medical team with me and we actually had to drive in the race. We would normally get going immediately after the bikes and quads but before the trucks and cars. Our task was to drive as quickly as possible so as to get to accidents as quickly as possible and to arrange casevac with choppers in the event of serious accidents. The race covered about 2000km's over five days and as you can imagine EXTREME hard driving. Imagine going flat out in first and second gear (occasionally 3rd gear for 6 to 8 hours a day). Fuel consumption was about 2.7km per liter given the speed we were driving. The intensity of the drive through those dunes were such that if you were to take your eyes off the sand for 2 seconds to adjust your radio you would be guaranteed to wipe out!

So, here is the bottom line. I never had any breakdown on the H3. I once hit a dune so hard that the control buttons popped out the radio, but NO visible damage to the nose. Show me any other production 4x4 that could claim that and I would salute whoever does that.

The baby Humvee recovered too many other vehicles too count. In fact, I recovered Giniel de Villiiers after his Nissan stripped a diff during the race.

I recently bought a JK Wrangler and am getting to know the vehicle at the moment. No complaints thus far.

However, more to the point, if have also driven many 4x4's over the years. (see elsewhere in one of my posts) My conclusion is that anyone criticizing the H3 just doesn’t know any better and has probably never owned one.

My brother now owns this H3 and he is having a ball with it. The vehicle now has just over 100,000 k's on the clock and is going strong.

Talk about speed and comfort; see what happens on the open road if you put your foot down when the engine is spinning over 4000 rpm. The gearbox kicks back and there is power in the five cylinder that would surprise you. In no time you will see 160 km/h on the clock and the car is comfortable and stable at speed.

To me, there are few vehicles that have such an awesome appeal. Select in low range and after the customary jump when it engages hear the magnificent whine of the gearbox in low range going through its paces. Pure pleasure!!!

Enjoy your amazing H3!

Herewith a pic or two...

[Kilo Bravo]

Might be a bit OT but...

Some of you might have seen this driving around in Gauteng - can't think of any other 4x4 that you can do this with ... maybe Range Rover ? ... but the Hummer has more bling



http://www.limousinehire.co.za/index...=3&category=29