Two General Motors brands were at opposite ends of consumers shopping lists during 2007, with new sales statistics showing big changes in segment popularity.
GM’s Saturn brand was tied for the greatest jump up in new vehicle registrations per franchise last year, up by 55 over 2006 to a total of 479 registrations. BMW showed the same improvement for the year.
Meanwhile Hummer had a less auspicious sales year, with the average franchise registering just 285 new vehicles in 2007. That number was a drop of 90 from 2006, just beating out American Honda, which recorded a drop of 89 registrations per franchise, for the worst year-over-year performance.
Saturn’s success can be partly attributed to an influx of new vehicles, the brand’s greater fuel economy across the range, and rising fuel costs. Conversely Hummer’s slack sales can be attributed to a general decline in the large SUV segment in the U.S.
(Have a look at the popular Saturn Sky in our gallery below.)
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Hummer is showing off a softer side in its newest H3 commercial, recommending that its drivers head back to nature with the greening onset of spring. The blooming flower themes don’t seem to resonate with the core Hummer brand values as we understand them, but they are awfully pretty.
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In a move that we’re sure will astound and delight true fans of the Hummer brand everywhere, a new coffee-table book designed to truly capture the magnitude of the H2 is headed to American stores this April.
Measuring 17 x 25 inches, and weighing 17 pounds, Hummer H2 – King Size America is a book that faithfully represents the size of the giant SUV it’s written for. In fact, one fold-out section of the Hummer book measures out wider (at 94.5 inches, pictured above) than the H2 itself. The excesses of King Size America don’t end with physical size either, the book is set to be published in an edition of only 999 copies, and costs a massive 999 euros (no U.S. pricing has been announced).
That giant price tag buys readers a sequentially numbered and signed copy of the book, which is filled with 200 glossy pages of unique Hummer photos, and stories from German auto journalist Hans-Juergen Tuecherer. Customers can even request that the tome be personalized with an H2 owner’s name, license plate, and VIN number.
If you’ve got an idea for Question of the Day, a funny photo for Caption It, or just want to share a news tip, let us know at windingroadtips@gmail.com
Rumors are flying around the internet that the Hummer H2 is a dead program. That’s not entirely true according to the PR staff at Hummer. Yes, work on the redesigned H2 has ground to a halt, but that’s to allow the designers, engineers, and everyone else to work on smaller vehicles, like the HX.
This is slightly surprising since the H2 brings in a healthy profit and we heard really good things about the next-gen H2, but the reality of the new CAFE regulations is that there will be fewer vehicles the size of an H2 and there will be an abundance of smaller vehicles sold. In that light, halting work on the next-gen vehicle to concentrate on smaller offerings makes a lot of sense. We do have confirmation that the current-generation H2 will still be sold for the foreseeable future.
There you have it. The H2 will soldier on for an indeterminate amount of time and at some point in the future we’ll get an HX-sized Hummer.
Last week we brought you Consumer Reports’ Top Picks of 2008. Now, we’re letting you in on the worst 11. Chrysler takes a huge hit from Consumer Reports with four out of the bottom 11 belonging to the struggling automaker.
The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited bottoms out on the list, along with the Hummer H3. Both were cited for poor fuel economy and poor reliability. However, keep in mind that Consumer Reports does not take into the off-road ability of the vehicles. The Wrangler and Hummer are both championed as off-road vehicles, so, (maybe?) they didn’t get a fair shake.
UK Mountain Rescue is a volunteer-driven organization that provides emergency assistance for those who have become lost or injured in the mountains, or other hinterlands of England.
As a way of saying “thank you” for Mountain Rescue’s 75 years of service to the public, as well as giving a shot of publicity for its UK launch of the H3, Hummer has committed to helping to support the rescue outfit throughout the year.
Said Andy Simpson of Mountain Rescue, “As we rely entirely on charitable donations to keep going, the Hummer H3 will be a fantastic asset to some of our busiest Mountain Rescue teams in 2008.” (Click through the jump for Hummer’s official press release.)
General Motors wants consumers to rethink their idea of Hummer. A survey by J.D. Power and Associates last year said SUV buyers avoid the Hummer brand because they believe its gas-guzzler image, according to the USA Today.
Jon Osborn, research director at J.D. Power, said, “Hummer has an image of being the big, ponderous vehicles. Really, it gets about the same or as good gas mileage as several other (SUVs). The name Hummer connotes a much more gas-guzzling vehicle than really is on the road today.”
Cards, chocolates, roses, let’s face it; the women of the world have seen them all before. And though many wives, girlfriends, and lovers will put on a stock smile, and give you a warm embrace for such baubles, eBay Motors is the home of what they’re really looking for.
The seller of this pink H3 claims that the sweetheart Hummer has received over $40,000 in “upgrades,” including a custom Louis Vuitton interior, 22-inch Dubbs Dropstar wheels, and of course a $10,000 glitter pink paint job. There is a massively powerful sound system, and a couple of televisions as well, but let’s face it, the ultimate driver of this rosé ride will want it for one reason, and one reason only; it’s a big pink Hummer. Enough said.
Persons wishing to play the role of ‘Ultimate Cupid’ had better be willing to hit the ‘buy it now’ button, and fork over $50,000 (about $15,000 more than a new model off the lot) though. Otherwise you’ll have to wait until well past the big day, and it just won’t be the same. Don’t forget the bow.
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Hummer didn’t bother with a wild press conference to reveal the 2009 H3T. We stumbled upon the truck while the rest of the show goers were waiting to see the live Chevrolet Traverse reveal. The H3T is Hummer’s first production truck. The bed is five-feet-long and seems to be perfect for hauling dirt bikes. H3Ts will be powered by the same engines as the H3 SUV and most of its specs are the same as the SUVs.
Check out our first post on the 2009 Hummer H3T here, and enjoy the two photo galleries below.
Although a number of outlets have slowly leaked information on the H3T, we now can bring you more official information on the new Hummer pickup, which will be revealed to the press corps at next week’s Chicago auto show.
As could be guessed, the H3T is little more than a four-door H3 with a five-foot long pickup bed in lieu of the standard cargo area. That’s approximately the same size as the crew-cab box on the H3T’s platform cousin, the Chevrolet Colorado. Hummer claims the bed is capable of hauling a snowmobile, two dirt bikes or a sheet of plywood; standard adjustable bed-rail tie-downs help secure any cargo out back.
(Click through for a gallery and more on the H3T, including a release from GM)
For the second time, the Hummer brand has ranked number-one in J.D. Power’s semi-annual study on the effectiveness of automaker web sites.
The SUV specialists received a score of 867 points out of a possible 1000, 2-points lower than its previous score, but 2-points higher than the next closest competitor this year, Lincoln. Kia was strong in a third-place finish with 863 points, while Honda and Mazda ranked just below with 862.
The J.D. Power rankings are based on the thoughts and scores of over 11,000 new vehicle shoppers, over a period of two months. Participants are asked to rate manufacturer sits on qualities like appearance, speed, ease of navigation, and content.
Click through the jump to see the full J.D. Power rankings.
Thanks to Mike Levine at PickupTruck.com, who took the incredible photo seen above, we’re able to share this exciting photo of the new Truck Trend issue with a photo of the 2009 Hummer H3T on the cover. The real details can be found over on Mike’s site since we haven’t even got our own set of images and a press release yet.
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