Jetting Through Life: The "Death" of an American Icon

It's true... The rumours you have heard are right. The ultimate sports utility vehicle is going to be shelved. I'd call it every mans orgasm. Every man that I have ever met while I worked in the automotive industry salavated over this monster on 4 wheels.

The Hummer will now be forever etched into history into every males mind come June 2006. I will now no longer have to hear about I want a Hummer or a Humvee until my ears bleed.

Admittedly, I too will be sad to see this iconic monster to be retired. But the economy is no longer in need of a gas guzzler. The thing with Hummers moreso than any other vehicle, in my opinion, is the status. When one sees a H1, you know they spent approximatley $100,000. When you see a H2, you know that approximatley $60,000 was spent and lastly for a H3 about $40,000. You know with the name Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, Bentley, Audi, etc. you are going to spend a lot for luxury. But with Hummer, you are spending a lot for the ruggedness. I may be doing a bit of female rambling!

On with the article!

GM to end production of hulking, gas-guzzling Hummer H1
Friday May 12, 2006
By DAVID RUNK
Associated Press Writer

DETROIT (AP) The 2006 model year will be the last for the Hummer H1, the hulking, gas-guzzling status symbol that has attracted celebrities and off-road enthusiasts but has drawn the ire of environmentalists.

General Motors Corp. announced plans Friday for the H1, which is the foundation for the automaker's Hummer brand. Based on the military's Humvee, the about 12,000 put on the road since 1992 defined the Hummer name.

"It's a reflection of where we're going with the Hummer brand," Hummer general manager Martin Walsh said of the decision. "The Hummer DNA still resides in the Humvee. ...It will always be the core from where we come."

GM expects the last H1s to be built next month.

Walsh said Hummer plans to focus on models with broader appeal instead of the niche-market H1. Since taking over the Hummer name in 2000, GM has introduced the still hefty H2 and a midsize H3 sport utility vehicle.

The H1 gets about 10 miles per gallon, but Walsh said rising gas prices didn't factor into GM's decision. He noted that H1 buyers typically have been less sensitive about gas prices than most other drivers.

Auto analyst Erich Merkle with the Grand Rapids consulting company IRN Inc. said the decision fits with steps GM has taken to bring the Hummer brand to more mainstream drivers with the H2 and H3.

"They're going to continue moving Hummer in that direction," Merkle said. "It's a great brand. There is a lot that can be done with that in terms of leveraging its ruggedness and toughness."

Merkle added that the kind of drivers who buy the H1 don't worry about things like gas prices.

"It's really one of those over-the-top vehicles," Merkle said. "It doesn't really have much of a place in everyday society. You can't put it in the parking ramps. Parking spaces can't accommodate it."

The H1 attracted well-heeled drivers looking for a military-style vehicle with an intimidating stance. For the 2006 model year, the H1 was offered as a high-performance H1 Alpha that costs about $130,000 to $140,000.

The vehicle first was marketed to the public as the Hummer in 1992 by AM General, which also makes the military version. Under a 1999 deal, GM bought marketing rights to the Hummer name and called the vehicle the Hummer H1.

Hummers often have been associated with celebrities who owned them, such as actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. California's governor was AM General's first civilian customer, buying a custom-made conversion of the military model as well as civilian production models.

Last year, GM sold 374 H1s, down 16 percent from 447 in 2004.

AM General, which builds the H1, H2 and Humvee in Mishawaka, Ind., said in a statement that it doesn't plan to cut any jobs as a result of the decision. GM said workers there were expected to be shifted to military production.