OT! Anybody looking for a Hummer?, No! Not from your wife or girlfriend! Options

[silver2.0]

Man you guys are harsh. I would think you would at least lay off after he bought it. I am not a huge fan, but what the hell if he likes it why not. They are plenty off road capable, and were never meant to compete against it's big brother. They get bad gas milage, but so do alot of vehicles. For some reason they never get flipped off though. Maybe it's the name... If he said he just bought a big block Dodge charger, you would give him a thumbs up, even though he would be getting even worse gas milage, it's not about the mileage. As for the mormon comment.... WTF?

[Rgreen914]

I test drove an H2 earlier this year; it has NO HEADROOM...NONE, and I'm only 6'1"!!! I was thinking about buying one but it's a lot like driving my '99, 3/4 ton, 4X4 Suburban only without the headroom or the big block (454)! I do believe that GM now owns the Hummer brand so they can call them whatever they want. They have been supplying the engines/trannies since the beginning so in essence, they were Chevies from birth! Wait 'til the new "Alpha" versions of the H1 and H2 hit the streets; this new H1 will finally be powered by the Duramax diesel and Allison transmission! Not sure what's in store for the H2; if it was up to me...the 8.1 (496 cu. in.) big block would be under the hood (the front half of the H2's frame comes from a 3/4 ton pick-up so the 8.1 should/would bolt right in). Small block/"Mouse motors" are nice but once you get used to the torque of a big block/"Rat motor", nothing else will do (Whipple Superchargers claims their blower/intercooler kit will produce over 800 ft.lbs. when installed on an 8.1)!!! Personally, I'm thinking of a 3/4 ton, 4X4 Avalanche. Yeah, it's ugly...but I'm thinking of the beauty (8.1) under the hood...then I could dream of a trip to Fresno (Whipple).

Ron

[Scott S]

I had a 94 and then a 97 H1 as company vehicles. We had lots of problems with axle seals blowing, but I loved the trucks. The 94 was the stock diesel, the 97 was a fully loaded (run flat, welder, killer stereo, leather) turbo diesel. After putting 40k a year on these trucks, I felt I knew them pretty well. We also spent one week a year up in south bend at the test track. It was amaizing what those in the know (the designer/engineer types) could do with those trucks. I was really dissapointed after driving an H2. As far as capabilities go, I feel they are mini vans compared to the original. I even have a hard time calling them over dressed Suburbans - as I like the Surburban! The below pic was taken at winterpark - I was actually driving down from the top of the ski area. We would release the air from all four tires and the thing would climb right up the hill. We would then have a demo day (I was with Volant). At night, we would wait until the patrol cleared the area and creep back down. We would then hit the button to re-inflate the tires and be on our way. That truck held 45 pair of mounted skis, a 10x10 easy-up tent and all my tools and such - including my Swix bench. (We removed the rear seats and built in very cool racks - and I had a Thule box on the roof). They were great trucks. This is a pic of the 94.....

[GTeener]

I had a 94 and then a 97 H1 as company vehicles. We had lots of problems with axle seals blowing, but I loved the trucks. The 94 was the stock diesel, the 97 was a fully loaded (run flat, welder, killer stereo, leather) turbo diesel. After putting 40k a year on these trucks, I felt I knew them pretty well. We also spent one week a year up in south bend at the test track. It was amaizing what those in the know (the designer/engineer types) could do with those trucks. I was really dissapointed after driving an H2. As far as capabilities go, I feel they are mini vans compared to the original. I even have a hard time calling them over dressed Suburbans - as I like the Surburban! The below pic was taken at winterpark - I was actually driving down from the top of the ski area. We would release the air from all four tires and the thing would climb right up the hill. We would then have a demo day (I was with Volant). At night, we would wait until the patrol cleared the area and creep back down. We would then hit the button to re-inflate the tires and be on our way. That truck held 45 pair of mounted skis, a 10x10 easy-up tent and all my tools and such - including my Swix bench. (We removed the rear seats and built in very cool racks - and I had a Thule box on the roof). They were great trucks. This is a pic of the 94.....

Nice picture Scott! The original H1 is the way to go if you have use for one.

[Rhodes71/914]

Scott that is a very cool pic, fun driving in snow when it is bumber height.
Are you still in the ski industry?

[Scott S]

Nope - I left in 2001 after nearly 20 years being involved either as an athlete or on the corporate side. Volant was sold to *gulp* HUFFY - then to Atomic.
It is a very fake industry, an industry that likes to pretend it's very important, and likes thumbing it's nose to it's "lesser" customers. It's basically a barter system at every level, designed to create an image, nobody pays for anything. It is very sad - especially when the real point of being involved usually starts simply with a love of the sport. It is also very incestual - everyone is married to, divorced from, dating or simply sleeping with everbody else. A lot of weight is put on past achievments within the industry - usually based on racing (no matter how young you were when you miraculously(sp) beat Tomba). There is a ton of name dropping and lots of comparing knee surgery scars (you know, the one that kept you from going to the olympics/pro/beating AJ/etc...). I would almost go as far as saying it is it's own culture.

Sorry for the rant - I could go on for pages. I'll just say that I can't tell you how nice it is to go skiing these past few years without any sort of logo embroidered on my back. It's fun again.

[Rhodes71/914]

Hijack continuing:

So let us know how you really feel. I've heard similar from friends and relatives in the industry.

So are you a long time Colorado person? Just curious I have a couple of cousins that are from Summit County and were ski racers- Brett and Casey Snyder. Know em?.

[Scott S]

Wow - those names sound really familiar. What age are they? I am 36, my last FIS race was in 1988. I was with Volant from 1990 to 2001. Our family has a house in Dillon (Keystone ski area), which is in the heart of Summit County. I cant imagine our paths havent crossed at some point. I'll bet you a buck that they know Annie Black and Heinz Streicher. Also throw out Jim Diness and Schultz Greenburg.

DO you visit out here much? If so PM me, we can go play in the snow and talk about rusty cars! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

I have been here since 81.