Hummer
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- This article is about the Hummer vehicle. For the form of oral sex, see Oral sex#Variants.
Hummer is a marque of vehicles sold by General Motors. For the military vehicles of which the trademark is based see HMMWV.
History
Hummers are built by AM General Corporation, formerly the heavy industries division of American Motors, in its Mishawaka, Indiana assembly plant. AM General had planned to sell a civilian version of the Hummer as far back as the late 1980s. In 1990, two matching white Hummers were driven from London, UK to Beijing, People's Republic of China over the rough roads of the central Soviet Union. The Hummers made the drive with ease, and highlights of this journey were broadcast on ESPN in the United States. The publicity would pale in comparison to the attention that the Hummer received for its service in Operation: Desert Storm the following year.
In 1991, AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) vehicle to the public under the brand name Hummer. In 1999, AM General sold the brand name to General Motors but continued to manufacture the vehicles, which GM then re-sold. In the next few years, GM introduced two new homegrown models, the H2 and H3, and renamed the original vehicle to H1.
Evaluation
The first two Hummer models are large, heavy vehicles with large engines and complex drivelines. The third one, the H3, is smaller and geared more towards people who want an economical SUV for their everyday life. They also feature aggressive styling and advertising, setting them apart from competing models. This has made them a target of criticism, as many people view Hummers as ill-suited for use as a passenger vehicle on public streets. As fuel prices have risen, detractors have also singled out the Hummer as an egregious waster of resources—a charge based largely on the Hummer's image.
Since both the H1 and H2 can weigh over 8,500 lb (GVWR), the United States fuel economy regulations do not apply to them. GM does not disclose their expected fuel economy ratings, and the company is not required to display a Monroney sticker on the vehicles. However, expected mpg ratings can be derived from their fuel capacity and range ratings. These metrics show that the Diesel H1 is expected to reach 16 mpg (U.S.), while the H2 should get 9.6 mpg. Car and Driver magazine observed 12 mpg with their H2 SUV. These ratings are similar to those of other heavy trucks and SUVs.
Models
There are three current and possibly two future models in the Hummer line:
General Motors has announced plans for a type of cologne branded with the Hummer name.
Famous owners
- California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was the first private citizen to own a Hummer and continues to own several.
- Rapper DMX owns a Hummer.
- Soccer player Ronaldinho from FC Barcelona owns a Hummer.
- CSI: Miami (Hummer H2 car of Miami Crime Scene Investigation team)
- Bam Margera owns an H2 (Seen in the MTV show Viva La Bam)
- Neil Young owns a Hummer that has been modified to run on the cleaner-burning biodiesel.