History of Hummer
Clinton Portis, Denver Bronco, struts his stuff alongside the HUMMER H2 SUT at the General Motors Denver Date Drive which paired Denver's hottest singles with GM's coolest cars to raise more than $47,775 for charities.
History of Hummer
By William Berg
All the Hummer cars originate from a military vehicle – the M998 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV). Since HMMWV is quite of a hassle to pronounce, the soldiers began to call their vehicles Humvee’s. When AM General began to produce similar cars for the civilian market, they used the name Hummer. Today, Hummer is a protected name owned by General Motors. AM General sold the name to General Motors in 1999, but continued to manufacture the Hummer, while General Motors became responsible for selling the vehicles on the market.
The military M998 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles were developed to replace jeeps and lighter trucks. As early as the 1970s, the jeeps and lighter trucks had begun to show signs of inadequacy during military missions in rough terrain and a new and improved type of vehicle was much sought after. In 1979, the U.S. Military lay out the requirements for a High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, and in 1980 the first prototype was finished. The prototype was called M998 and had been produced by AM General. The U.S. Military liked the prototype and AM General begun to produce a series of different High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle prototypes. Eventually, the U.S. Military ordered 55,000 HMMWV’s from AM General. Today, you will find more than 15 different types of Humvees in the United States armed forces. They are used a cargo carriers, troop carriers, ambulances, automatic weapons platforms, missile carriers, surface-to-air missile platforms and much more. Fording 0.762 meters is possible with a standard Humvee, and with a deep-water fording kit you can ford up to 1.5 meters.
The first civilian High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, the Hummer, entered the market in 1991 and soon grew immensely popular. It was initially promoted by a race in 1990 where two Hummers traversed the rough terrain between London, UK and Beijing, China. A majority of the trip took place on the coarse roads of central Soviet Union. The drive was broadcasted in the United States, and the Hummer received a lot of publicity before even being launched. One of the first civilian owners of a Hummer was Arnold Schwarzenegger, which naturally also gave the vehicle additional publicity. What made the Humvee’s really famous was however the 1991 Operation: Desert Storm in the Middle East. During this war, soldiers driving the various Humvee’s were frequently seen on the news in America.
In 2003, the Hummer H2 – a smaller version of the Hummer H1 – entered the market. Even though it is not as big as a Hummer H1, it still has room for five passengers. It is considered a capable multipurpose vehicle and the Hummer H2 is used in large cities as well as in off-road conditions. The Hummer H2 Sport Utility Truck (SUT) is a pick-up truck variety of the standard Hummer H2. In 2005, the next Hummer was released. The Hummer H3 is even smaller than the Hummer H2 and marketed as a midsized SUV. It weighs no more than 8500 lb. Hummers are also available in limousine versions. The Hummer limousine is a popular party vehicle since it can comfortably fit a large group of people and has an exclusive interior.
2008 Hummer H3 Alpha
Read more about Hummer limousine or the latest Hummer model is the family friendly Hummer 3.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Berg
Photos Copyright GM Corp.
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October 5th, 2006 at 2:56 pm
The hummer is really booming, and buyers can’t get enough of it. You first had your off-road buffs then it was a thing for a lot of guys to take up, and now they are marketing to women. A lot of women find the Hummer to be “their” next ride, and it is being marketed very thoroughly. I have even seen pink hummers, and to think it began as a military vehicle.
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:20 am
The H2 is marketed as both a general purpose vehicle and as an off-road vehicle. Because of mass marketing by GM, it is primarily used as a passenger vehicle on typical roads. Along with the Ford Excursion, the H2 is also a very common vehicle for a limousine conversion.
February 13th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
The history Of the HUMMER begins in 1979 with competition for the development of a vehicle to meet the Army’s highest standards in a High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV). As that development race began, Teledyne and Chrysler Defense (later sold to General Dynamics) already had designs on their drawing boards. The proposed Chrysler vehicle was an adapted version of the Saluki desert design. while its Teledyne counterpart sprang from the design of a vehicle known as the Cheetah. Though AM General appeared to be well behind the others, the company moved into this competition with no preconceived design notions, rolled up its sleeves, and soon created an original — the HUMMER.
AM General’s prototype HUMMER went to test in the Nevada desert in July 1980 — only eleven months from its design board beginnings. This was the first of many breakthroughs that demonstrated the company’s know-how and leadership. The Army now had three serious competitors with vehicles under test.
The Army’s formal procurement of test vehicles began in February 1981. Six proposals came in from industry and were evaluated against the Army’s HMMWV specifications. The three most responsive designs were selected, and in June 1981 contracts were awarded to General Dynamics, Teledyne and AM General. The test vehicles to be acquired from each company included TOW Carriers, Cargo Troop Carriers and Mini and Maxi Ambulance variant
May 1st, 2008 at 6:44 pm
The limousine hummer is something fantastic. If you ever get a chance to get a limousine service then ask for the hummer limo if its available. It is quite a treat and you wont be disappointed at all. I have sat in a few limos in my time but the hummer limo was the best by far.
After reading the history of the hummer on this site, I now have a greater appreciation of the hummer vehicle. Even though most people would not consider buying it in todays time due to the high gasoline prices, it is one the most luxurious and well built machines by mankind.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:55 am
I love Hummer is one the best vehicles made, but I need to know why Hummer is called Hummer jeep. Is there a brand of Hummer that is called Hummer jeep? I know Jeep is a brand from Chrysler.
January 6th, 2010 at 8:17 am
That is a good observation, Rita. Hummer and Jeep are both sport utility vehicles (SUV), but they are sometimes described as jeeps instead of an SUV.
Jeep is a brand name owned by Chrysler as you said, with Hummer currently owned by General Motors (GM) with a pending sale to a Chinese company in the works to transfer ownership.
Sometimes people call vehicles like the Toyota Land Cruiser, Land Rovers, and Hummer “jeeps” even though they are made by someone else. In this case they mean a type of vehicle not a brand.
January 30th, 2010 at 3:52 am
The H1 hummer seems too rugged looking for the younger generation. With respect to limousines, the H2 and H3 are quite popular.
January 30th, 2010 at 7:29 am
The ruggedness is the Hummer’s appeal. Too bad that they didn’t get a chance to produce the Hummer H4 as that vehicle has the size and look of the Jeep Wrangler. Maybe the new owners will build that concept after all.
February 11th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
my God, i thought you were going to chip in with some decisive insght at the end there, not leave it with ‘we leave it to you to decide’.