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SEMA Preview: Trio of HUMMER H3s set to invade Vegas

HUMMER's presence at this year's SEMA show will be typified by a trio of tuned H3s, ranging from a mildly modded Alpha to an H3T ready to traverse the desert surrounding Sin City. The most sedate of the three is the warmed-over H3 X Alpha concept, which features new 18-inch wheels shod in 35-inch all-terrain tires, black chrome trim, body-colored bumper extensions and clear turn signal housings. The exterior is coated in Canyon Metallic, while inside, the leather seats, armrests and shift knob all receive contrasting orange stitching along with matching piping and a HUMMER Accessories DVD headrest system. Far more impressive is the H3T Weekend Warrior concept (above), which capitalizes on HUMMER's off-road cred with a series of engine and suspension mods. Output of the 5.3-liter V8 has been increased by around 70 hp through the use of an LS2 cylinder head, high-lift cam and custom 3.5-inch exhaust. Rolling stock is comprised of HUMMER Accessories' 20-inch wheels wrapped in BFGoodrich Baja T/A rubber, suspended by a Light Racing Jounce Shocks and Rod Hall Racing piggyback performance reservoirs, with brakes provided by DBA. Finally, Four Wheeler magazine got its own H3 Alpha to play with, and began by "de-glossing" the Victory Red paint scheme with a PPG flattening agent mixed with clear to give it an incredibly cool satin appearance. The only engine mod is a MagnaFlow cat-back exhaust, but what Four Wheeler didn't spend on motivation it made up for with suspension components. Nitrogen-charged, two-inch Rod Hall Racing performance shocks and Light Racing Jounce Shocks compliment the flat-black 16-inch Simulock wheels coated in BFG Mud-Terrain T/A tires.
posted : 10/22/2008 @11:09:28 PM
GM sends HUMMER sales prospectus to suitors

General Motors is moving full steam ahead on its hopeful sale of HUMMER, moving to make a decision on the SUV marque "as quickly as practical." Shortly after appointing Jim Taylor to the head of the brand, the automaker has contacted interested parties with a full sales prospectus. By now, you're surely aware that sales of the gargantuan 'utes are very slow, posting declines of over 50-percent so far this year. No surprise then that the General would be anxious to get the former military-spec brand off its books. Though GM claims it is not necessarily committed to selling the marque, we're not so sure they have many other options. An entire revamp of the HUMMER line would use up precious resources that would surely be better spent on more fuel efficient, forward thinking products like the Chevy Volt, Cruze and Orlando. In any case, look for an announcement regarding the brand's future in short order.
posted : 10/18/2008 @7:48:46 PM
HUMMER with wooden wheels called "art"

We're not sure what's so artistic about a HUMMER H3 with wooden wagon-style wheels, but apparently someone with a higher aptitude than ourselves has created just such an exhibit. It's parked outside the Royal Academy of Arts in London and was created by an artist named Matthew Harrison. According to the press release, he "has combined the legendary off-road vehicle with 'Wild West' wooden wheels to create a sculpture that is a mixture of art, engineering and motoring. For Harrison, "the crux of the 'Hummer' is formed by both its 'being' and its afterlife." We couldn't have sarcastically come up with a better line than that, so we'll just leave it as is. If you'd like to see this rolling sculpture in person, you can do so starting October 17 and it will be parked until the 20th. Enjoy.
posted : 10/17/2008 @5:22:05 PM
Cadillac manager appointed HUMMER CEOGeneral Motors seems pretty anxious to see its HUMMER division go away. In fact, it's called the sale "urgent," and recent actions appear to bolster that claim. James E. Taylor, the man who had formerly been helping lead Cadillac back to its "standard of the world" past-glory, has just been appointed the new CEO of the HUMMER brand. GM says that this upper-management move "marks a progression in the ongoing strategic review process." We read that to mean Taylor will help ready the brand for a quick sale. It also sounds like HUMMER's general manager, Martin Walsh, will attempt to smooth over any issues that the brand's sale will have with its current dealerships. Mark McNabb will oversee Taylor on his new assignment and will also shoulder the burden that's left at Caddy now that the brand has lost the man who had been at the helm. We've pasted the press release after the break if you'd like to try and decipher it for yourself.
posted : 10/16/2008 @6:14:36 PM
Moving Mountains - Toyota Landcruiser vs. Hummer H2

The world's maddest battles usually earn a brief sobriquet: Red vs. Blue, Holyfield-Tyson, Lingerie Bowl. Although the battle we'll describe today isn't finished, the clash of HUMMER vs. Any Decent Off-roader – especially HUMMER vs. Jeep – has made so much noise on Autoblog alone that we decided it was time to investigate. Not having a Jeep at our disposal, we pitted an H2 against the Toyota Landcruiser on three trails in the California desert to find out if either of them had any quit – or if they'd keep going but complain about it.
posted : 10/16/2008 @5:58:57 PM
HUMMER with a side of French factory

HUMMER's up for sale, and General Motors is looking around the house for other items to include in its yard sale. During a presentation to Deutsche Bank, GM's powertrain plant in Strasbourg was added to the For Sale listings by Treasurer walter Borst. Together, the HUMMER brand and the French transmission plant could bring up to $4 billion. GM's likely not done raiding the attic, either. A list of other salable assets is currently being drawn up as The General continues attempts at righting its ship. A selloff of HUMMER probably doesn't mean much for the brand's lineup in the immediate future. A new owner would be purchasing the name moreso than the GM truck-based H2 and H3. New models based off some other architecture will take a considerable amount of time to work up; it'd likely mirror what's going on with Land Rover and Jaguar under Tata's ownership.
posted : 10/3/2008 @7:00:56 PM
Police in Oz hope Hummers will curb "antisocial behavior

Question: What's more intimidating than a group of Australian Police roaming the streets in search of drunken party-goers? Answer: Aussie Police driving Hummer H3s with the same intent... supposedly. The Hummers in question were provided by the General in all-black before getting custom livery from the authorities, complete with a blue-and-red flashing light bar on top. Police hope to be a bit more conspicuous in the SUVs, which will be prowling the nightclub districts in Melbourne. There may be a few problems with this scheme, as there will only be five such vehicles making the rounds and they are only equipped with the standard five-cylinder powerplant. We think the Police should have visited another side of the General and raided the Holden parts bin for flat-black Mad Max-style Police cars made from the HSV W427. For added attention, a straight-through set of true duals with Cherry Bombs would surely make these mean machines stand out from the crowd much more than a few Hummers with their measly inline-five engines. Seriously, which would you rather meet in a drunken state after a night out partying?
posted : 9/24/2008 @9:59:53 PM
Vegas HUMMER dealer switching to SMART

If this doesn't strike you as a sign of the times, you may need to get your eyes checked. The only HUMMER dealership in Las Vegas, the city that invented excess and bling, is shutting its doors. Towbin HUMMER is actually one of the largest HUMMER dealerships in America. So what will they be selling instead? Well, you already know because you saw the headline at the top of this post: SMART cars. Talk about one extreme to the other. Dan Towbin owns several dealerships in Sin City, where he sells Bentleys, Rolls-Royces, Infinitis and Dodges. He says he'll bring in another GM dealership alongside the SMART store to replace the HUMMERs, which have been selling slow on account of high gas prices and increasing environmental conscience among consumers. Towbin's will be the eighth HUMMER dealership to close this year so far, a trend which may make it even harder for the General to sell off the brand.
posted : 9/23/2008 @9:53:19 PM
First HUMMER, now Prius: Hybrids targeted by vandals, tooVandals who mess with other people's cars are scum -- bottom-feeders who are beneath contempt. It doesn't matter what the vehicle being damaged is. Cars are a major purchase, there's often an emotional connection to them, and most importantly, they generally represent the owner's primary source of mobility -- getting him or her to work, to the store, to pick up the kids, and so on. SUV owners know the deal, and it sucks. Stories of drivers (and dealers) finding trucks partially or completely trashed in the name of saving Mother Earth are nothing new, and now it seems that Prius owners are getting their own taste of this nonsense. Inside Line reports that a recent Los Angeles case in which one of the Toyotas was burned to the ground has been determined to be the result of arson. In Petaluma, CA, meanwhile, seven Priuses were vandalized over a two-week period in April. One poor woman had her car attacked twice, and then when it was in for repairs, the Prius rental she had also got worked over. The conventional wisdom suggests that the Prius is a juicy target because it's a poster child for the environmental movement. And seriously, is this at all surprising? Some sort of anti-eco blowback like this was probably inevitable. People get fed up, so just as the HUMMER and other SUVs are targeted by greens looking to send a message, it was only a matter of time before the anti-HUMMER started getting the same kind of attention from the other direction. What's it all prove? Nothing, except that asshats are readily found on both sides of every issue. If you don't like a particular car or truck, feel free to talk as much trash as you want (it's practically a sport in the comments section around here). Think the HUMMER represents some sort of rolling apocalypse? Fine. Ditto if you feel that the Prius is nothing but a snob capsule for tree huggers. Just don't turn those thoughts in to actions, because when you willfully screw with another person's car or truck, you're just another stupid criminal, and whatever message you think you're advancing just falls on deaf (and angry) ears.
posted : 9/22/2008 @10:26:29 PM
HUMMER Driving Academy launches in the Sahara

The Dakar rally may have packed up and left North Africa following threats from al-Qaeda, but bands of roving terrorists aren't about to scare off HUMMER. The go-anywhere GM division has set up a driving academy smack in the middle of the Sahara desert to give participants a hands-on training program for off-road driving through some of the harshest terrain Mother Earth has to offer. The inaugural session will kick off this coming November, taking 28 participants in 14 vehicles – each with alternating pilot and co-pilot – on an 800-mile, five-day journey through the Moroccan Sahara. The 14 HUMMER H3s used in the course are equipped with survival gear, sand tires and GPS equipment, but are otherwise stock. The program costs nearly $6,000 per two-man team and includes luxury accommodations at each stop along the way in addition to tutelage in driving and navigation techniques. The experience promises to bring participants closer to the elements, and the brand closer to potential buyers. Follow the link to the academy's dedicated website for more information in testing your limits behind the wheel of HUMMER.
posted : 9/14/2008 @6:07:00 AM
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