2008 HUMMER H3

Review

Honestly, I never took the H3 seriously when it hit the market. Sure I was biased.

After all, I'd driven the H1 when it was still simply referred to as the Hummer (or Hum-Vee), and was just wrapping my head around the premise of a heavy-duty pickup truck-based H2 when GM's premium SUV division invited me to Durango, Colorado to test drive its newest models.

I'd been in an H3 before, and remember being most impressed with its interior, and not because it was particularly better than any of its competitors, which are all pretty impressive, but mostly because Hummer's interiors had been less than ideal up to that point. The H3 set the tone for all future Hummers, with high-quality switchgear and even some soft-touch plastics here and there, giving the ute a pricier presence than the more expensive H2 of the time. Now the H2 is much improved and taken its place as the rightful number one (the H1 is no longer sold to Joe Public), as it should be, but the H3 is still quite nice.

The first H3 I drove wasn't just nicely finished inside, but it delivered a fairly good ride for a trail ready 4x4, and handling was more than acceptable even at high speed. And I have to admit to finding this especially surprising, because like the H2, the smaller Hummer is based on a pickup truck, and nothing as sophisticated as GM's full-size model, but rather its long-in-the-tooth Canyon/Colorado compact truck.

The unfortunate reality of this donor platform, mind you, was its powertrain. Not that the inline-five is a bad engine or anything; quite the contrary actually. It was smooth and reliable, but just a bit underpowered. In the heavyweight H3,

of course, this lack of oomph was even more apparent, especially after handing in the keys to a similarly equipped Nissan Xterra on the same day that I picked up the little Hummer. The Xterra was a rocket ship in comparison.

Having received its fair share of criticism on this subject, Hummer bumped up the displacement of its five-cylinder from 3.5 liters to 3.7, resulting in an increase of 22 horsepower plus 17 extra lb-ft of torque for maximum twist that matches its horsepower rating of 242. While that was enough for most people, some just don't respect anything that doesn't rumble like a V8. To satisfy such adrenaline addicts

Hummer's engineers worked tirelessly to incorporate one of the General's most popular eight-cylinder engines beneath the little SUV's muscular hood, and now a 300-horsepower 5.3-liter V8 with 320 lb-ft of stump-pulling torque transforms the sheepish H3 into the alpha male of the pack.

In Hummer-speak, Alpha refers to the top-line trim level for any given model, the designation having previously been used to denote the best equipped H1, which ended up being the final H1. So far there is no H2 Alpha, and unless something gets announced at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next month, or shortly thereafter in Chicago or New York, the H3 Alpha will remain the sole model to use this designation, at least for now. The differences

are immediately obvious, starting with an exclusive chrome “ALPHA” badge on the back liftgate that is also mirrored on the steering wheel hub, and then, sans chrome it gets embroidered into the high-grade leather seatbacks. That leather is standard, although a luxury equipment package can be added, as can the Chrome appearance package and chrome alloy wheels. Not so obvious is its up-rated 4.10 rear axle ratio, ideally suited to the Alpha's V8 engine transplant. And what a difference a V8 makes.

Having started my day off driving the new H2 from Durango to the Aztec, New Mexico trailhead and then up, down, over and around the naturally formed obstacle course that made up the 4x4 route, I only got into an H3 Alpha after lunch. So rather than the usual fully paved city and highway stint as a forerunner to going off-road, I jumped right out of the larger Hummer into the lesser variant, and headed back up the mountain. Those who read my review of the H2 will know that the chosen trail was hardly remedial, even causing my seasoned off-roading frame to quake a little due to the verticals being attempted. My concern the second time through the rocky course wasn't whether or not the terrain was even scalable, but rather, whether the lighter duty H3 could even handle what it's larger brother made seem easy. As it turned out it didn't even break a sweat, despite the 120-degree temperature.

Yes it was brutally hot on the side of the rock face, especially when jumping in and out of

the SUV and then up and down steep grades to snap photos. I'm happy with the way they turned out, but there were a few moments after climbing back inside that had me leaning my head on the steering wheel trying to regain equilibrium. Yes, being from the Wet Coast, weathering desert heat isn't exactly my forte. Other than a few times when I needed to shut off the H3's air conditioning in order to take the load off the overtaxed engine, not an unusual situation for a 4x4 experiencing intense heat to find itself in due to the slow speeds and therefore lack of wind to cool things off, the smallest Hummer took to its off-road tasks better than I. Its ultra-short overhangs make for optimal approach angle of 39.4 degrees and departure angles at 36.5 degrees (with the 33-inch tires), and tall ground clearance of 9.1 inches plus shorter wheelbase (than the H2) of 111.9 inches make for a 25.0-degree breakover angle, assuring it won't hang up on protruding rocks or stumps. Of course, there weren't any of the latter up on this rocky outcrop, but most of my previous experience off-road has had me trudging off through the woods, so I can appreciate how well it would do if thrown into such situations.

I'm not only a big fan of traditional 4x4 features like solid rear axles and part-time four-wheel drive systems with locking differentials, etc, all of which the top-line H3 incorporates into its design, but I've really started to appreciate some of the newer electronic aids originally purposed towards keeping SUVs like this Hummer upright when traveling at high-speed on paved roads and highways. Electronic traction control can be helpful when taking off in slippery conditions, whether on a slick roadway or buried in mud or sand,

while ABS and stability control are probably even more important due to their ability to bring a wayward vehicle back on track when its front or rear tires lose traction, correcting a skid that might otherwise result in an accident.

In my experience, the best surface to test stability control is on a nicely graded, wide gravel road that allows for higher speeds than a regular 4x4 trail, and the access roads that connected the off-road segment of our day's drive to the highway were ideal. After making sure your vehicle has stability control (traction control will not help you in this situation), get a little speed behind you (not too much at first) and then turn into a curve. The SUV will want to drift its rear wheels outward, which is not a very comforting feeling. Your vehicle's stability control will catch the car's rear end and, by using the vehicle's ABS system, pull its rear wheels back on track, keeping you headed in the direction you were hoping to go. It's really quite magical, and I recommend a little conservative “playtime” so that you get a feel for how it works before you need it. GM's StabiliTrak, as applied to the H3, worked flawlessly, as expected, finishing off a perfect day of off-roading.

Getting out on the highway there was no opportunity for such testing, as the pavement probably hadn't seen rain in months. The subtle grades and winding two-lane roadway was exactly what was needed to experience the H3 in conditions it would more often than not live through on a daily basis. The route back to Durango, Colorado saw us through four-lane highways too, as well as multiple towns with “big city” traffic congestion. OK, so none of the towns are particularly big in this part of the world, but there was ample opportunity to experience the new H3 Alpha in Durango's streets amid rustic, Wild

West themes that even include a narrow gauge railway running parallel to the main street with a steam-powered train that comes through regularly. It's a quaint little city that should be on everyone's Colorado road trip schedule, and the newest H3 made a fine inner-city escort, not too harsh over uneven pavement and small enough to be maneuverable, benefiting from fairly direct power assisted rack-and-pinion steering and an 37-foot turning circle.

One aspect of the H3 Alpha that I would have loved to test first hand, but opportunity did not permit, is its 33-percent improved towing capacity of 6,000 lbs, mostly thanks to that beefy V8. Helping it feel rock solid when under load is the SUV's substantial 4,854 pounds curb weight (although it's a lightweight compared to the H2), which contrarily might not be the best for fuel economy. EnerGuide rates it at 13 mpg in the city and 16 on the highway (about the same as the larger H2 in the city), which isn't going to win it any government rebates (although the engine is 90-percent cleaner than the 5.3-liter V8 of a decade ago thanks to cast iron exhaust manifolds combined with close-coupled catalytic converters for reducing cold-start emissions). Hopefully Hummer will integrate GM's new 4.5-liter diesel into its H3 platform as well as the H2 it's already scheduled for, which would improve fuel economy while lowering emissions and enhancing on- and off-road performance. One of the H3's main rivals, Jeep's Grand Cherokee, benefits from a 3.0L six-cylinder diesel, and it's a much friendlier SUV to live with than its V8-powered sibling. A quicker way to reduce emissions would be to swap the ruggedly dependable but hardly efficient Hydra-Matic 4L60 four-speed automatic transmission with the new six-speed unit in the H2.

Speaking

of friendly, the new H3 is fully equipped with passive safety features to go along with its full load of active ones already mentioned. Its array of airbags include two up front, of course, plus head-curtain side airbags for all window seats, plus a tire pressure monitoring system is in place to make sure the H3 stays upright in the first place. Of course, if in an accident its taller right height is optimal, although GM has engineered vehicle-to-vehicle crash compatibility so that occupants of smaller, lower vehicles will be protected from impact as much as possible. The Alpha also comes with GM's excellent rear-vision camera system, helpful when backing up in residential neighborhoods, and OnStar is standard with its unique Turn-by-Turn navigation (ideal for finding your way around complicated one-way inner-city streets) available.

Then again, if you're spending all of your time in the city and never venturing out of bounds, you might be better served with one of GM's crossover styling utilities. If you're serious about off-roading, mind you, the H3 is worthy of your time, especially when dressed up in Alpha trim. It looks great, is nicely finished inside, climbs over just about anything and delivers a solid punch off the line, unlike anything else in the compact to midsize SUV range. I suppose it only makes sense that this SUV would be different. After all, it is a Hummer.