New ride

Well, I made the plunge after driving it. 0-60 in about 12 seconds Its just so friggin much fun to drive, I am making excuses to go out... It feels and goes off road like a Hummer. My front yard is all tire tracks as I refuse to drive out the driveway anymore I usually dont say much about this sort of thing here, but I do love this truck. Its a 2006 H3 if you were wondering, the new, smaller, more gas friendly Hummer.

 

Never really took to the Hummer, but that version I do like, any pics of the front view Tim?

Hahahahhaa no doubt your back yard will be an off roader playground will hills and water obsticles in a few weeks and that nice white paint job will be a bit MUDDY

Have fun and enjoy as it looks a blast to drive.

 

Im working on a review as I was in the same boat as you searching for reviews and getting confused as reviews and owners info did not match up. Reviewers complained about things that owners did not and owners had some complaints reviewers never mentioned. I have a lot more to do on it yet, but heres a preview:


Seeing so many reviews on the net, and having asked so many questions myself before buying, I thought I would
write down my thoughts after owning an H3 for a couple of weeks now. Hopefully this review will help others
who might be on the fence about purchasing an H3. Hopefully someone at GM will read this and address the natural
first year mistakes, while not changing what makes this vehicle great. This vehicle is a 2006 H3 with both the
Adventure and Luxury packages. It is almost fully loaded, as far as I know it is missing only the factory trailer
hitch and navigation.

My first experience, besides looking at it in dealer parking lots, was at a local auto show. Here is where
the trouble began. As soon as I climbed in, I was hooked. I came back and sat in it again. This H3 had
leather and was as comfortable and attractive as any SUV I have sat in. More importantly, you knew you
were in a Hummer. Having been in friends H1's many times (and listening to him diss any Hummer that isnt an H1)
as well as having driven an H2 for a couple of weeks, there is no mistaking your sitting in a Hummer. I came
back and sat in it again for roughly 10 minutes and knew I had to drive one.

Off to the local dealership, with the primary concern, having briefly owned a Colorado and read many H3 reviews,
was if the I5 engine could pull the Hummer around. My first move was to take off from a stop in the H3 as I would
in any other vehicle. I immediately looked at the salesman and wondered aloud what the reviewers were talking about.
The horsepower was adequate. I then went to a highway on ramp that went uphill to climb into traffic as many reviews
said this required extra planning. The H3 obliged and I was easily doing 70 MPH when I merged in. On the highway,
I had read you need to prepare in advance for passing and once again, I do not have to drive the H3 any differently
then any other vehicle. Obviously, no one will argue that the H3 could use more horsepower. I think the main reasons
would be for pulling someone out of a ditch, or towing. I feel another 50 horsepower would be perfect, but this does
not change the fact that the I5 engine is capable of pulling the H3 around. As someone mentioned to me, it is adequete.
The H3 has another surprise in store. Turning radius. I have not had an SUV that can do a circle in as short a space
as the H3. The first time you make a u-turn, be prepared for a surprise. It is fun to watch the look on a passengers
face when you do a u-turn. In a few spots, the visibility can be a bit limited. If you are first to a traffic
light, for example, you can't get too close or you will need the sunroof to see the light because of the H3
signature windshield that seems to go straight up defying all aerodynamics principles of most vehicles. With the
adventure package and 33" tires you can expect a bit of tire noise at higher speeds. Occasionally the H3 feels a
little top heavy, or floaty as some people might call it, but with the high suspension and large tires, I
expected it and rarely notice it at all. It is most noticeable if you yank the wheel back and forth or hit some large
bumps or potholes at 30 mph or more. I have gone through some turns fairly quickly and the H3 feels competent.
The ride, even with the stiffer suspension is comfortable. Coming from a guy with a bad back, the comfortable seats
help a lot and the ride is comfortable. One problem you might find is the irresistible urge to yank the wheel and go
off road. You know your in a Hummer and you always want to get off the street and rip through some mud.

The interior is more then you might expect. In my case, I have both the adventure and luxury package. It
includes leather, OnStar (I missed that), Monsoon sound with sub (Wow, Monsoon sounds good now), Homelink, XM Radio,
and more. Because it has the adventure package, it also has a stiffer suspension and larger (33") tires).
It has a large power sunroof that is probably the largest piece of glass in the H3. The window controls were
poorly placed. Unless your 6' 2" or so and have the seat all the way back, you have to twist, or reach back
and look for the window controls. Speaking of which, the whole center console could use a redesign. There is not
enough room to store CD's and the usual stuff I take with me. What is there works, it just could have been better. I
can see there is limited space here, so this will not bve easy to accomplish. For example, you could kill two birds
with one stone by making the center storage a bit deeper, taller and longer, with a angle at the end.
This could house all the window controls as well as a change pocket. Drive any Lincoln, BMW, etc. to see this.
Backing up is always fun. Because of the H3 signature windows, view can be obstructed. A little preplanning is
required in this area. I usually park a bit outside of everyone else anyway or look for a spot that I can drive
through and be facing out when I return. The rear seats will seat 3 and the one seat on the passenger side can
fold down to store long items (lumber) while still carrying four people. There are a few other features like a
pop up cup holder. The rear storage area was what I was looking for. It is all plastic and looks like you could
throw dirt in there and wash it down. There are storage pockets as well. The rear tailgate swings open easily with
a strut and requires a tad more effort to close. The big tire makes the tailgate heavier, but no one I have had try
closing it really seemed to notice. The rear window wiper only covers part of the window making it appear to be
not working correctly. From the rear view, it basically clears between 3 and 11 o'clock, when it should be between 3
and 9 o'clock. With visibility being poor to begin with, this can be a nuisance. There is a grab handle on the passenger
side, but not the driver side. The passenger side handle, or as I call them "Oh Shit" handles, are placed towards the
rear of the window. I am used to seeing them forward more.

Bottom line: Take it from a guy who has had an Aviator, Colorado and Trailblazer in the past year alone, this ain’t your
standard SUV. If you just want to take the kids to soccer games and get groceries, this is not the vehicle for you.
But, if your a fan of the Hummer 1 or 2 and don't like the size and gas mileage, this warrants a look. There is no
mistaking your driving a Hummer. Toyota, Ford, Chevy and everyone else make a much friendlier, street driving, daily
use SUV. The H3 is a Hummer. Period. GM had a job to do in creating this vehicle. Staying true to the Hummer name. To
create a more friendly street use vehicle would have compromised the Hummer line and I feel GM totally captured the Hummer
feel and experience, especially considering it is a first year vehicle, something many have come to expect shortcomings from.
I look for excuses to drive the H3 somewhere. My wife has been trying to take it to work to show her co-workers who want
to see it, and I obliged today. I think she is making excuses to drive it as well I have a one word response to anyone
that asks me how I like the H3, so I end this with that word; FUN!

 

I do have one so far....

 

I dont recall anything about free tires. Considering it has 33" tires, I wish! Might be cheaper to trade it in for another then buy 4 new tires.... Yeah, thats my excuse next year

 

Cheers Tim, I like it.... much better than the other Hummers I have seen, that one I could see on UK roads the other versions are that wide they would take all of our road width up!

 

That was my problem. I loved the H2 but it had huge flaws for the average daily driver.

Bad fuel mileage
Wont fit in most; car washes, home and parking garages, parking spaces, fills most driving lanes
Cost just way too much

Obviously the H3 is great off-road, but not as good as the H1 or 2, but they addressed all these problems, which is what I wanted. I knew 2 years ago if they made it look like the H2, I would get one... Until I had a Colorado, I was not going to get one because of the wimpy i-5 engine. Then I read on some forums and noticed that 95% of the owners loved it beyond anything you would expect. My K&N filter and 89 octane fuel makes a nice difference in response. If you liked the H2, this warrants a test drive.

Ill be near you in Charlotte next week (well a lot closer then usual) had I known, I would have driven it down and let you drive it, but decided to rent a car to avoid putting extra mileage on it

 

SO... MA you gonna pimp ya ride?


nice set of wheels > http://www.oasiswheels.com/vehicle_images/hummer_1a.jpg


Personally it looks great as it is, but I if the tires on my car are when needing changing costing the equiv of $227 each corner I would hate to know what those 33" are??

 

oh bum.... typo its $227 or £130 to you and me... but yes I have to shop around, tires are one of those things you forget about and they bite you in the wallet.

MAs got me in the mood for test driving a few cars out this week, just a pitty their are no Hummer dealers locally

Now just need to see a nice pic of the Hummer next to the Viper and Harley? would make nifty desktop wallpaper!

 

To answer a few.....

I cant put the MG logo on it. I tried to buy an H2 with the deal being it was a write-off. My account laughed at me

Those tires wouldnt last here, I am going off road.

Mileage (I am still writing my review) on the second tank was 13.8 mpg average. Im expecting better in a few tankfuls once I go synthetic and the engine is broken in more. Acceleration is improving.

They are a bit blocky, its a niche truck. I mentioned at the end there are better daily driver SUV's for sure To buy one and not go off road is stupid (see Florida and California for examples) I never liked the H1, but loved the H2 look. My old partner has had a handful of them and I never understood how something so big could seat only 4 people.

Harley is gone, I quit riding. I almost go the H3 in almost the exact same color as the Viper.

Matacumbie, would love to have a drink with you, I am going unplanned to scope the area out to maybe move to some day. Ill be all over the area, but not any further south. Too bad you werent coming with your bro, id hook up. I would like to see some of Tennessee, but not enough time.

 

Not really. The H3 loaded is 38,000 not at all unreasonable for a SUV. Heck, a minivan can cost that Car payment is pretty high though

 

No argument there, K&N are really for on road only use. The dustier the area, the bigger the problems.