General Motors Corporation have postponed the début of the Hummer EV due to the pandemic. The re-imagined all-electric version of the iconic 4×4 SUV has been in the works.
General Motors Corporation (GMC) decided to revive the Hummer name, the rights of which they’d retained from over a decade ago when the brand was axed following the financial meltdown. That meltdown saw GM, at the time a major automotive group, drop several brands including Hummer and Saturn, and divest some others.
The new Hummer EV being developed is set to feature an all-electric powertrain more potent than any of the engines in its ancestors.
The HMMWV (High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle) or “Humvee” was originally developed for the United States Armed Forces. It had wide wheel tracks so that it would fit into the tracks left by battle tanks, a 90° windshield so no sun would reflect and give away the location to any aerial patrol units, 16 inches (406 mm) of ground clearance, a sealed driveline to prevent water, slush and muck from entering, a central tyre inflation system to inflate or deflate tyres on the go, a naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V8 diesel engine with – approximately – 190 hp and 515 Nm paired to an automatic transmission and just an on/off switch so soldiers could get in and get going immediately – no keys, and a 15-year service life.
Hummer H1
The Hummer H1 was the first civilian version developed. It had an uprated V8 with 195 hp and 591 Nm. A larger GM Duramax 6.6 then arrived in the H1 Alpha model, in 2006, with 300 hp and 705 Nm. That very engine was tuned by customizers, including Predator Customs, to as much as 800 hp and 1,900 Nm, requiring a tweaked Allison 5 A/T transmission. The H1 Alpha measured 4.69 metres long, 2.2 metres wide and had a wheelbase of 3.3 metres.
Hummer H2
The Hummer H2 that followed was built on the GMC Tahoe platform and featured a V8 petrol engine with 325 hp and 495 Nm with a six-speed automatic and full-time 4×4 drive. It eventually bowed out with a Vortec 6.2-litre engine making 403 hp and 563 Nm. The H2 measured 5.16 metres long, 2.06-metres wide and ran a 3.12-metre wheelbase.
Hummer H3
A smaller H3 was also made with a 3.7-litre in-line five-cylinder petrol engine making 244 hp and 328 Nm, and then a larger 5.3-litre V8 petrol engine with 300 hp and 434 Nm. Both manual and automatic versions were offered. It measured 4.78 metres long, 1.9-metres wide and ran a 2.84-metre wheelbase.
Of course, we’ll see none of those. What we expect to see is a vehicle measuring between the Hummer H2 and H3, so around five metres long. The Hummer EV features a new Quiet Revolution front grille, reminiscent of its ancestry. GMC say the Hummer EV will produce up to 1,000 hp and almost 15,600 Nm at the wheels, with a sprint capability of 0-100 km/h in just three seconds. Even today, it could well be, umm, like nothing else.
