Overview & Reviews

Few vehicles are as instantly recognizable as a Hummer SUV. Unapologetically boxy and impossibly wide, these rugged vehicles were originally built for military use, and it shows. For Hummer aficionados, the fact that these mammoth rock-crawlers are tank-like both in appearance and nature is a selling point, not a flaw. Go to a Hummer dealer and all you'll see are SUVs. There is no such thing as a Hummer car, at least not yet.

The Hummer brand can actually trace its roots back to another military icon -- the Jeep. Designed by the Willys-Overland company in the 1940s, the Jeep became so popular that when Henry J. Kaiser purchased the Willys-Overland company in 1953, the name was changed to Kaiser-Jeep. In 1970, American Motors bought Kaiser-Jeep and renamed it the Jeep Corporation. At that point, Jeep was producing vehicles through two divisions: the Commercial Products division in Toledo, Ohio, and the Government Products division in South Bend, Indiana.

A year later, the Government Products division was spun off as a wholly owned subsidiary known as AM General. In the early 1980s, the company, now owned by the LTV Corporation, designed a vehicle to compete for a contract offered by the U.S. Army. Called the High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, or Humvee, as it came to be known), it was designed to serve as the military's main light tactical vehicle. AM General won a 1983 production contract (the first of many with the U.S. Army) that required the delivery of 55,000 vehicles over a five-year period.

AM General's Humvees distinguished themselves in active duty during the Persian Gulf War in the early '90s. The vehicle's wartime prowess garnered a great deal of positive publicity, and not just within military circles. As a result, AM General (now under the ownership of the Renco Group) decided to introduce a civilian version of the Humvee, dubbed the Hummer, in 1992. In 1999, General Motors bought the rights to the Hummer brand name and became responsible for the development, marketing and distribution of future Hummer SUVs.

The original Hummer, called the H1, was sold for a few years as the brand's flagship vehicle. Production ended after 2006, but Hummer has been expanding its vehicle lineup to include vehicles that still possess the Hummer bravado but with more civilized road manners.

User Reviews:

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  Yellow Lemon - 2004 Hummer H2
  By just me - April 6 - 1:50 am

  Love to drive my HUMMER when it is not in the shop. All repairs have been minor fixes, but major irritations. I am now on my fifth TV/DVD replacement! Numerous problems with 12 volt outlets, and other electrical type problems. This vehicle has been in the shop more than 15 times and to top it off the entertainment system went out again and I am told that this model is no longer made and cannot be replaced. Now after 3 "repairs" it still only works 2-3 weeks after each repair.

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  Not Happy! - 2006 Hummer H3
  By Not Happy !!!!!! - January 24 - 1:42 pm

  Ive had my H3 now for 19 months and it has been in the shop 4 times. TV monitor went out, heated seats quit working. Ive had it in 3 times just for the 5 speed manual. It wont go into 1st, 2nd or reverse gears..I have to almost brake the gear shift to get it to go into gear. I get stuck at lights and traffic with people blowing their horns because I cant get it into gear. I took it in twice and they said it was fine, they couldnt find anything wrong until I went for a test drive with a mechanic and he said they would replace the stick shift. It worked great for 2 weeks and now Im back to not being able to get it into gear. Doors lock & unlock by themselves now, eletrical problem.

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  not so good hummer - 2006 Hummer H3
  By cb123 - October 20 - 10:34 pm

  got it for my 25th anniversary....1 year ago...battery burned up horrible smell, fuel injection problems, 14 miles to a gallon,without air conditioning, ever sat in middle seat in back...horrible.....sun roof so loud and constantly stuck...4500 towing...im towing 4000 and dieing...now its not shifting out of 2nd gear....never buy a car because its cute....should have kept my excursion......never a problem, im looking at other larger faster options!

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  Not so fun anymore - 2007 Hummer H3
  By Ness - August 22 - 12:32 pm

  Purchased my 2007 Hummer in February. I loved this vehicle in the beginning.Since my purchase it has had numerous issues. The dealer has been excellent in trying to remedy the problems. It had a terrible lean on the drivers side. The tortion bar has been replaced, the shackles adjusted and the leaf spring replaced and it is leaning again. The heated seats were stuck in the on position which required panel and switch replacement. Add to the frustration I went to start it this morning and it was dead. Only the battery they say! Hummers customer service had decided not to buy back or trade this vehicle without having rectified the problems. This is the high end luxury pkg - upside down 13,000 Would love to take it off road but afraid what might happen! Maybe this one is just a lemon :( Buyer beware!!!!!!!!!

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  Gm swings and misses - 2006 Hummer H3
  By Car lover - June 12 - 8:06 am

  Owned the the car for 3/4 of a month. She looks good and rides as comfortable as my gramps caddy. But the onstar never worked!!!! She is a slow as a snail!! I understand the idea was mileage, but 0-60 is only .2 seconds faster than my 1995 ford explorer. Also the cargo room is horrible! When your in colledge 55ft aint cuttin it! Further more my salite radio broke recently, Yet GM is still makin me pay for it. It seems to me that until GM can get its costs down and build things right you should look but dont buy!!!!!!! Until these GM reliabilty/build quality issue have proven themselves fixed I am questioning the thought of buying that corvette I was thinking about.

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  What a joke? - 2006 Hummer H3
  By spdrmanus - May 23 - 6:45 pm

  I bought this so called Hummer and within 3 months sold it. It is totally lacking enough power for the weight ratio. Had it stuck on numerous occasions all because it did not have the power necessary to pull out. Traded it in on the H2, spend the few extra dollars and get the real thing not the wannabe.

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  U can keep it !!!!! - 2007 Hummer H3
  By Tommie 2 tone - February 12 - 9:42 am

  Well after 16 months of ownership A couple of things . First, If I were to rate the ride from 0-10 10 being the best, It would be 4, A LOT of wind noise you feel EVERY bump in the road , The $1,200 sound system dont waste your money, Gas mileage If I were lucky about 15 MPG Hway. Only thing it is a head turner . other than that You can keep it .

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  my post repair review - 2006 Hummer H3
  By Car lover - September 4 - 9:56 pm

  Last time I wrote I was annoyed at some technogly issues. The Hummer sevice people fixed them. Now I will objectively state the pros and cons of the H3 based on mine.The are pros good gas mileage for an SUV, show stopping looks , nice interior for GM , decent handling characteristics , roomy back seat, and the ride comfort of (I have ridden in both of these cars) a Lincoln Town Car and Cadillac Deville/DTS . The cons are not enough horse power and torque for sporty driving , getting to highway speeds easily, or towing, poor rearward visablity , and poor cargo room. I consider eather waiting for the SRT8 Jeep(45k). If you can afford it the Range Rover Supercharged(90k)the best SUV in the world

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  Serious engine ping fixed for 2007! - 2006 Hummer H3
  By Thomas - July 8 - 11:44 am

  I really love my H3 but have had quite a time trying to solve the engine ping, even the dealer is having a tough time. Upon doing a google did I learn 2007 model H3 will have a upgraded engine to remedy this. What do we do for the 2006 models?

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  Nice, if youre a 14 year-old kid - 2005 Hummer H2
  By Biffster - April 3 - 12:07 pm

  I was looking for a full-size SUV and it came down to either this, the H1, or the Escalade ESV. The H1 was both too pricey -- if Im going to spend $140k on a car its going to be a Porsche Turbo -- and too "trucky." The Escalade interior was JUNK and I knew it was going to be replaced soon. So that left me with the H2. I shouldve waited for the 2007 Escalade. The H2s build quality -- especially in the UGLY interior -- is very plasticky and of dubious craftsmanship. There really isnt a lot of "useful" space in the truck either. Its "boy toy" looks get a lot of comments -- from 13-year-old boys. Every adult I know (myself included) scratches their head and asks "Why?"