Why not a Hummer?

[rayra]

I enjoyed driving one (M998) in the Marines, although I only got to really open it up in the desert a few times. I was an Arty Bn Ops Platoon NCO, FireDirectionControlman, RTO, Bn CO's driver, 4 hats in one seat as we used humvees as 'jump team' mobile CPs. So we got to squirrel around in washes and wadis in desert training areas, playing hide and seek. And as said earlier, it was possible to tuck those big things into tight places. Wouldn't want to try it in a heavily forested area, though.

Most of the time I was sucking diesel fumes in convoy as tail end charlie (I had the HF radios). Great clearance, great off-camber performance, great torque and climbing ability. I wouldn't mine having one. I've driven a full size longbed pickup for 35yrs, owned Tahoes and now my Suburban, over the last 20yrs, and I've got my order number for a 4wd / dual motor Cybertruck. So I obviously don't mind driving large vehicles off-road in the Southwest.
H1s definitely need seat upgrades.

H1

 

[Marine]

That almost looks like 29 palms.

 

[RememberTheAyyLmao]

From what I can remember they have a max speed of 55mph and you have to practically scream at your passenger to communicate at that speed. I'm 5'10 and any seat except the driver's is too cramped. Fun off road though.

Yeah 6'3" platoon commander here. 1 week in the field needs a few weeks of recovery for my back lol

Zero interior space.
An outrageously high lift over height.
Can you carry enough fuel to get out of town.
It would be easier to service or repair a 1960 Unimog.
Nor exactly maneuverable.

Did I mention zero interior space ?
The only Hummer with any credibility for family excursions would be an H3.

But yes, an H1 driver would be great fireside company. They are cool if not practical campers.

I somehow manage to fit 4 people in body armor, with weapons, and a week's worth of gear/supplies pretty easily whenever we go train. Wouldn't quite agree on that point lol Also maneuvrable enough to thrash through the back woods of Missouri without too much trouble. Admittedly they aren't going to make it through a ridiculously tight trail, but they aren't much harder to wheel than a 3/4 ton with leafs at all 4 corners.

 

[rayra]

That almost looks like 29 palms.

Too many exercises in that s-hole. Always frying hot or freezing cold. IIRC that pic was from Ft Bliss. Last couple years with 5/14. We blew holes in Ft Carson, Bliss, Camp Blanding FL, Ft Sill OK and the Stumps. Our batteries were in L.A., El Paso and Colorado Springs and the Bn command team got to fly around and do command & control BS with them singly on their home turf, between summer camps.

This is 29 Palms. lower shrubs, whiter sand

All the arty-accommodating ranges all look pretty much the same, though. Not exactly garden spots. And all they grow is rusty shrapnel and commo wire. That excrement is everywhere, getting tangled up in everything.

 

[Marine]

I was with 5/11th Marines spent a lot of time in 29stumps. To this day I'm convinced camp Wilson is the gate way to hell.

 

[billiebob]

So on the space thing, compare an old Suburban vs an H1 vs a JKU.

The H1 is about the same volume as a Suburban with seating space more comparable to a JKU.
Not being critical, like I said, I'd love to be fireside with the guy driving the H1.
But the old Suburban is as classic as the H1.
Love to be fireside with the Suburban guy too.

 

[rayra]

oh yeah, the original seats in an M998 / H1 are probably the same PsOS as a WWII jeep, tiny hard things. That huge central tunnel / platform that gives an H1 all that ground clearance (and basically tucks the fuel tank right up between everyone's hips) doesn't leave a lot of room for seating. I found it cramped, for all the big overall size of the vehicle.

 

[fletcher8969]

So on the space thing, compare an old Suburban vs an H1 vs a JKU.

The H1 is about the same volume as a Suburban with seating space more comparable to a JKU.
Not being critical, like I said, I'd love to be fireside with the guy driving the H1.
But the old Suburban is as classic as the H1.
Love to be fireside with the Suburban guy too.

View attachment 570621

I grew up going on family vacations in that generation of Suburbans. I had one in college. They do have plenty of space and if you need to carry a big family they’re a great option. But you were saying zero space in the H1 and that’s just not the case. H1s do trade interior space for high clearance and get more off road capability from it. But I completely agree, a suburban is a better full size family hauler for sure. I love suburbans and that one looks particularly cool for family camping. But if I said it had zero off road capability that would be like saying H1s have zero space. That’s all I was pointing out. I do get your point. There are reasons more people don’t use Hummers very often. And some of them are the reasons you mentioned... but some of that’s more perception than reality. So I guess we can all hang out by the fire. ?

 

[billiebob]

 

[Buliwyf]

My 17' Ford seats 5 adults and one child. Practical overlanding comfort? Just 4 people.

Same with the burb's or the H1. The burb's extra seats don't count, because it's miserable beyond 4 people IMO.

The H1 has generous room on the trans tunnel to stack gear. And the ambulance models are still available, which might be neat for a camper build. If the H1 is still a little cramped, it's character might make it worth it. I've never met kids that complained about climbing into a cool truck.

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The Land Rover Defenders would be a nice parallel argument. Terrible interior. Uncomfortable. Noisey. Really not that capable, even if they are satisfactorily capable. Absolutely loved by many.

I'd rather go this direction, add a custom built box:

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:

 

[CrazyDrei]

Old Suburbans are just as classic as Humvees, I have seen a few duramax and LS3 and Vortec 8100 swaps into hummers, but has anyone out there swapped a Suburban body onto a Hummer chassis? Or would two such classics just cancel each other out in a dramatic failure?

 

[rayra]

It would be amusing to see someone try.

Or just buy an H2 and have a "Humvee" that's already on a Tahoe chassis.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Count me as another HMMWV driver/passenger who wouldn't be interested in owning one as a civilian.





At 6' 1" I always felt the driver's seat was way too cramped for any kind of comfort. Very capable, no doubt, but for such a big vehicle, not much room inside, even the hard-shell "turtle-back" HMMWVs we had. Noisy as hell, it's almost impossible to have a conversation while driving, not only because of the noise but because the front seat passenger is almost 3' away from the driver. Everybody has to yell and you end up being hoarse after a few hours of that.

Upper picture is at a checkpoint in Croatia and lower is at Taszar AB in Hungary.

 

[polishammer]

I would say that probably the two most common reasons for H1 not being very popular for overlanding is cost to get into one and people being scared of service and reliability.
At 6'2" I'm fairly comfortable in my wagon and when it comes to the interior space, there is plenty to pack whatever you want. So for whoever mentioned there is a zero room inside for the gear, that person most likely never owned or saw one.
Additionally once you add a roof rack to a wagon, you can put a ******** lot of gear or a big ass RTT on it as you end up with 6'+ wide by 9'+ long platform.
As to the reliability, they do have their quirks, but those are fairly easy to solve. If you take care of it, it will take care of you.
Love my H1.

 

[rayra]

2007 AM General M1165 HMMWV 4 Door Soft Top w/Truck Body
ITEM NUMBER2374544
LOCATION
Albany, Georgia, United States. 31705
AUCTION DATE
Mar 11, 09:15 AM - 09:20 AM PDT
STARTING BID
US $6,000
BID INCREMENT
US $100

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