Hummer H2

From The Driver's Seat

This reviewer recruited a neighbor named Hank to help critique the H2.

Not only has Hank owned several GM-built cars and trucks, he has a pretty fierce eye for flaws and high points; he also uses his GMC truck for work, so he tends to think of vehicles like the H2 as tools, a perfect mindset.

And Hank has one even more solid attribute than a critical eye and broad knowledge of GM ephemera---he has a big, snowy backyard that he volunteered to us as "proving grounds."

But before we tell you how driving around that yard went, we should say that one of the first things Hank noticed when he climbed aboard the H2 was how similar the cockpit was to his current GMC Sierra truck. Besides the chrome shifter mounted at the base of the center console and a few Hummer labels scattered about, you could easily be sitting at the helm of many other GM trucks or SUVs. That may be seen as an attribute.

Since it's based on the very rigid Chevy Tahoe platform (the H2 sits three inches taller and is two inches wider; it's about ten inches shorter than the Tahoe, however), the H2 isn't likely to develop a whole passel of faults because of short development time. The Tahoe is a proven product, why not harness its capabilities?

Fair enough. But for the $52,510 sticker (with options) of our tester, we think you should get a more distinctive interior. There are tumbled leather seats that aren't GM stock, and the dash is anchored with real hexagonal bolt heads, but it doesn't add up to a cohesive Hummer brand. Only the sheet metal (and the vehicle's capabilities) do that. Maybe GM is too busy spending its dough on improving Cadillac interiors, but they should be careful to nurture other product lines as well. Hummer could be huge for them, but these products need beauty beyond their imposing musculature.

On the bright side, the H2's seats are very comfortable and a bit beefy, so you get the support you need for off-roading. And three adult passengers can sit in the second row very comfortably (although the center seat sorely needs a head restraint for safety reasons). We threw another friend in the third row seat next to the massive spare tire that eats up half the cargo space (a more elegant solution is to get an aftermarket tire carrier for the back of the H2) and even though he's about six feet tall he fit fine. In fact, the overall headroom in the H2 is better than that of the Tahoe, and at least in the two front rows of seats the shoulder and hip room in the H2 also beat those of the Tahoe. In sum, these are darned roomy quarters.

Getting aboard could be easier, however. If you get running boards it's a two-step process of literally stepping up, then up again into the cab. If you get rocker rails instead--rigid steel beams that protect the sides of the H2 from boulders--you have to reach up for a grab handle and hoist yourself inside. Hint: young boys love doing this.

Young boys (and men who are still boys at heart) also like very much the multiple buttons residing on the dash that let you do the following:

• Switch from four-wheel high (standard all-wheel drive) to four-wheel low range. This functionally reduces the gear ratios, enabling the Hummer to achieve higher revs at lower speeds, getting the 6.0-liter V-8 closer to its torque peak of 360 foot-pounds at 4,000 rpm. That's key: You need torque to climb very steep terrain, and with a 6,400-pound curb weight, the H2 needs all the torque it can get to stay moving.
• Lock the front/rear power split to 50/50 to achieve maximum balance of torque between the two axles.
• Lock the front and rear axle split between each side of the H2 so that all four wheels will spin at equal speeds. This is especially handy in deep mud or snow, when spinning the wheels is necessary to continue forward momentum.
• Reduce the sensitivity of the anti-lock braking system and traction control. Because spinning wheels are required in some off-roading circumstances, ABS/TC would interfere with the wheels and bring you to a stop. So the H2 comes with a less-sensitive setting for both, enabling more sliding and wheel spin.

In practice, all these devices are fairly critical to the performance of the H2 off-road. Last summer we drove an H2 over thoroughly muddy, tortured terrain and dropped the vehicle so deep into a ravine it actually lifted one side (and then the other side) of the truck off the ground. But the ability to lock both the fore-aft power split and the side-to-side split of the axles enabled us to continue moving. Provided you didn't want to navigate a very narrow, rock- or tree-sided road, there's very little terrain the H2 can't conquer.

However, the electronic/mechanical differential controls are really critical to the H2's performance in deep snow--and for reasons you might not initially expect.

Plowing around Hank's snow-covered, steeply tilted yard (with an ice-covered pond at the bottom that we sorely wanted to avoid), low range was necessary even though we achieved speeds above 25 mph. That's because of the high torque peak of the 6.0-liter engine.

A diesel, such as the 6.6-liter Duramax featured as an option in the GMC Sierra, would be a far better motor for the H2, although it's not an offering provided by GM currently. Why is it needed? Not only does the Duramax deliver a massive 520 foot-pounds of torque, it does so at a barely churning 1800 rpm. That would enable H2 owners to drive more slowly and in better control through tight, rutted terrain because there'd still be plenty of torque on hand at minimal throttle.

Also, the Duramax achieves about 30% to 35% better fuel economy than the abysmal ten mpg to 12 mpg estimated for the H2. Estimated, because the H2, like the Ford Excursion, is so heavy and features such a high gross vehicle weight that the EPA doesn't even bother to test its fuel efficiency.

The point is, the H2 can really go just about anywhere now, but might do so more easily--and even more adeptly--with an engine that delivers better torque at lower revs.

Meanwhile, the on-road performance of the H2 is really quite civilized. You sit higher than even the average full-size pickup, which might seem disconcerting, but because the H2 is so darn wide, it doesn't feel half as tippy in the wind as, say, the Mercedes-Benz G500, although it is nearly as noisy at freeway speeds thanks to a drag-inducing profile.

In traffic, steering is light and passing acceleration isn't electrifying--but strong enough; getting used to driving the H2 takes no time at all.

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