Following is a transcript of the video.
Narrator: You know what it is.
Matt DeBord: Everybody remembers the Hummer. Even though it’s been gone for 10 years now.
Narrator: His rough looks and military experience made him cool right away. And everyone from Mike Tyson to Britney Spears was driving one. Hummers likely existed in the early 2000s. But in 2010, all production and sales stopped. So what happened?
Hummer’s story begins with the US military. The military used the Jeep as its go-to vehicle during the world wars and through the Vietnam War. But around the ’80s, it started looking for something more heavy-duty.
Matt: The Jeep didn’t have much power. The Jeep couldn’t pull much. He couldn’t bring many people. He had no armor.
Narrator: So the Pentagon gave AM General a billion-dollar contract to develop a fleet of High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles. Eventually called Humvees, the bulky vehicles were designed to transport troops and cargo.
Matt: The Humvee didn’t have much armor, however, it was at least a little easier to survive in terms of getting hit or exploding through anything next to it.
Narrator: Humvees have become famous after being seen in action during the Gulf War. They were also used in military processions, which is why they caught the attention of Arnold Schwarzenegger. While filming his movie “Kindergarten Cop” in Oregon, the actor saw Humvees passing by and quickly looked for one. In a 1991 interview with Rolling Stone, Schwarzenegger said it reminded him of his youth driving tanks while serving in the Austrian army. So he contacted AM General to check it out and get one. When it was rejected, the star insisted that a civilian edition be made. And AM General listened.
Matt: Because, you know, everyone, I don’t know, was influenced by Arnold Schwarzenegger at the time.
Narrator: Schwarzenegger, the first civilian to own a specially designed Humvee. AM General even wrote “Terminator” on the model. In 1992, a civilian edition of the Humvee officially went on sale. Called the Hummer, this bulky vehicle costs up to $100,000.
Matt: It’s ridiculous to drive that thing on public roads. I mean, the wheels were too far off the ground. yes, it had air conditioning, airbags, but I mean, you know, to drive it, you’re kind of sitting. So and then they gave you this big, big compartment on top. I mean, not designed for comfort, luxury, or anything like that.
Narrator: The Hummer averaged less than 10 miles a gallon and weighed 10,000 pounds. It was so heavy that owning one meant you could claim a farm equipment tax credit with the IRS. True to its military roots, the Hummer’s original design featured an engine button labeled “Fire” until company lawyers intervened. In 1999, General Motors bought the rights to market and sell Hummers from AM General. Thanks to the booming economy and low gas prices, Hummer’s sales took off. Especially in Hollywood.
OG fan Schwarzenegger quickly amassed a fleet of the war wagons. From 1999 to 2000 alone, Hummers were featured in 32 movies. Which only increased the brand recognition the vehicle already had thanks to its military pedigree. And it was its association with the military that really drove up the Hummer’s popularity in the US.
Matt: So other people first saw its active use in the first Gulf War. And they thought, well, if this can withstand, you know, fighting in the desert, then it could definitely be used for weekend camping trips.
I’m not going with the argument that it involved some kind of warrior mentality or something, but it was definitely a component of his overall DNA. So if you were more of a pro, pro-military, pro-American person, if they were interested in advertising, in how much they supported the troops, in having a Hummer or even an H2 or an H3, because it had that Hummer look, they were advertising it. . They had that mentality.
Narrator: While the first Hummer model was necessarily a carbon copy of its bulky military predecessor, the second model featured a sleeker design and cost around $50,000. Called H2, it has temporarily become Hummer’s best-selling style. And it was followed by the H3, which had a shorter length and value to attract more consumers. Hummer’s total sales peaked in 2006, with just over 70,000 units sold.
Matt: That’s pretty good. It’s not very popular. In fact, that pales in comparison to some of the trucks and other cars that, you know, General Motors was promoting at the time through its divisions. But for a vehicle as original as this one, it’s pretty incredible.
Narrator: Hummers eventually came to embody America’s “supersized” lifestyle and the people who aspired to it.
Matt: You know, they have to do it, they have to come, they have to travel and they go. You know, other people like G-Wagen, Mercedes G-Wagen. And for them, the Hummer was the one that hit 11 or maybe 11,000, you know, it’s like the biggest, the baddest, the stupidest, the nastiest; It was absolutely inappropriate, most impractical in many ways.
Narrator: But while the Hummer’s brilliant quality first attracted consumers, it also temporarily led to its downfall. Hummers have a symbol of unnecessary consumption.
Matt: People just saw him as a symbol of everything that had to do with Detroit. Everything that had to do with our American attitude toward automobiles, it wasn’t all patriotism. Not all was well with the militarization of American society. Everything that had to do with the way we treat the planet.
Narrator: Hummer’s owners had to fend off critics and protesters who saw the Hummers as “polluting machines. “Some owners said they discovered their Hummer with a key, and others said they were looked dirty in parking lots. The “eco-vandals” went even further, smashing windows and digging tires. Throughout 2003, protesters set fire to Hummers at several Los Angeles dealerships.
And ironically, while one war helped make the Hummers popular, another would bring them down. The war in Iraq sent fuel costs soaring. Which made owning a Hummer even more impractical. Then, in 2007, came the monetary recession. And Hummer’s parent brand, General Motors, is in serious trouble.
Matt: So, General Motors, prior to the financial crisis had become a big mess. It had too many brands. It had stopped making money.
Narrator: In 2009, General Motors applied for and abandoned several of its brands.
Matt: Back then they had a lot of brands, a lot more than today. And from those brands he wants marketing support. Each of these brands wants production support. Each of these brands wants studies and development. So they had to take a look at what they had and said, “Well, you know, Hummer is a pretty marginal brand. »
Narrator: In 2010, GM tried to sell the Hummer logo to Tengzhong, a Chinese manufacturer. But the deal fell through and GM stopped all Hummer production and sales. Thus ending the life of their once beloved logo. Today, Hummers are getting noticed. more like relics of a bygone era. No new models have been produced for almost a decade. But will General Motors bring back Hummer?
Matt: So, Americans like big cars; they’ve always liked big cars. They’re always going to like big cars. People in Detroit at the time, because of how dire the situation got around the financial crisis, were completely freaked out about their futures. And they forgot this.
Narrator: But since 2013, the market for giant SUVs and pickups has seen a recovery. And in reaction to customer demand, all luxury car brands, from Rolls-Royce to Lamborghini to Aston Martin, have introduced SUVs.
So for Hummer to return as a sort of difficult luxury platform would probably be a halfway decent idea.
Narrator: General Motors is looking to expand its presence in the electric-vehicle market. And there’s been talk that it might be considering resurrecting Hummer to do just that.
Matt: The business case for it is strong because it’s an iconic brand. Everybody already knows about it.
Narrator: Arnold Schwarzenegger once changed one of his original Hummers to run on electricity. Maybe it will again prepare the ground for the Hummer.
Matt: The good look of the logo is that if you could get rid of all the faulty luggage and update it and make a non-unusual sense of it, you know, you’d still have one of the toughest cars and maybe the longest-lasting car of all time. You may need to keep this running on normal battery settings for decades and decades and decades. We’re fighting global warming right here. Look at this, you know, it’s not just about fighting wars, but also about fighting global warming.
Narrator: So while other people may have once linked the Hummers to everything that happened in America, maybe it’s time for a second chance.
Following is a transcript of the video.
Narrator: You know what it is.
Matt DeBord: Everyone remembers the Hummer. Although it no longer exists for 10 years.
Narrator: His tough looks and military experience made him cool right away. And everyone from Mike Tyson to Britney Spears drove one. Hummers likely existed in the early 2000s. But in 2010, all production and sales stopped. So what happened?
Hummer’s story begins with the U. S. military. The Army used the Jeep as the vehicle of choice in the World Wars and the Vietnam War. But around the 1980s, he started looking for something more robust.
Matt: The Jeep didn’t have a lot of power. The Jeep could not drag many things. I couldn’t transport many people. He had no armor.
Narrator: So the Pentagon gave AM General a billion-dollar contract to develop a fleet of High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles. Eventually called Humvees, the bulky vehicles were designed to transport troops and cargo.
Matt: The Humvee didn’t have a lot of armor, but it was, you know, at least a little bit more difficult in terms of shooting or blowing up anything that was next to it.
Narrator: Humvees have become famous after being seen in action during the Gulf War. They were also used in military processions, so they caught the attention of Arnold Schwarzenegger. While filming his movie “Kindergarten Cop” in Oregon, the actor saw Humvees pass by and quickly searched for one. In a 1991 interview with Rolling Stone, Schwarzenegger said it reminded him of his youth when he drove tanks while serving in the Austrian army. So he contacted AM General to check it out and get one. When it was rejected, the star insisted that a civil edition be made. And AM General listened.
Matt: Because, you know, everyone, I don’t know, was influenced by Arnold Schwarzenegger at that time.
Narrator: Schwarzenegger became the first civilian to own a specially made humvee. AM General even stenciled “Terminator” on the model. In 1992, a civilian version of the Humvee officially went on sale. Named the Hummer, the bulky vehicle cost up to $100,000.
Matt: It’s ridiculous to drive that thing on public roads. I mean, the wheels were too far off the ground. yes, it had air conditioning, airbags, but I mean, you know, to drive it, you’re kind of sitting. So and then they gave you this big, big compartment on top. I mean, not designed for comfort, luxury, or anything like that.
Narrator: The Hummer averaged less than 10 miles a gallon and weighed 10,000 pounds. It was so heavy that owning one meant you could claim a farm equipment tax credit with the IRS. True to its military roots, the Hummer’s original design featured an engine button labeled “Fire” until company lawyers intervened. In 1999, General Motors bought the rights to market and sell Hummers from AM General. Thanks to the booming economy and low gas prices, Hummer’s sales took off. Especially in Hollywood.
Schwarzenegger, an OG fan, temporarily amassed a fleet of war tanks. Between 1999 and 2000 alone, Hummers appeared in 32 movies. Which only increases the notoriety of the logo that the vehicle already had thanks to its military pedigree. And it was his agreement with the military that boosted the popularity of the Hummer in the United States.
Matt: So other folks first saw it in active use the first Gulf War. And they thought, well, if this thing can handle, you know, desert combat, then it may just definitely be used for weekend camping trips.
I’m not going with the argument that it involved some kind of warrior mentality or something, but it was definitely a component of his overall DNA. So if you were more of a pro, pro-military, pro-American person, if they were interested in advertising, in how much they supported the troops, in having a Hummer or even an H2 or an H3, because it had that Hummer look, they were advertising it. . They had that mentality.
Narrator: While the first Hummer model was necessarily a carbon copy of its bulky military predecessor, the second model featured a sleeker design and cost around $50,000. Called H2, it has temporarily become Hummer’s best-selling style. And it was followed by the H3, which had a shorter length and value to attract more consumers. Hummer’s total sales peaked in 2006, with just over 70,000 units sold.
Matt: That’s pretty good. It is not very popular. That’s nothing compared to some of the pickup trucks and other cars that, you know, General Motors was promoting at the time through its divisions. But for a vehicle as original as this, it’s pretty incredible. .
Narrator: The Hummers came here to include America’s “oversized” lifestyle and the other people who aspired to it.
Matt: You know, they gotta, they gotta come, they gotta roll large everywhere they go. You know, the G-Wagen, Mercedes G-Wagen-type people. And for them the Hummer was just that turned up to 11 or maybe 11,000, you know, it’s, like, the biggest, baddest stupidest, most obnoxious — it was completely inappropriate, most impractical in a lot of ways.
Narrator: But while Hummer’s in-your-face quality initially drew consumers in, it soon led to its downfall. Hummers became a symbol of wasteful consumption.
Matt: People just saw it as a symbol of everything that was wrong with Detroit. Everything that was wrong with our American attitude about cars, everything was wrong with patriotism. Everything was wrong with, like, the militarization of American society. Everything that was wrong about the way we treat the planet.
Narrator: Hummer owners found themselves fending off critics and protestors who saw Hummers as “pollution machines.” Some owners reported finding their Hummers keyed, and others said they got dirty looks in parking lots. “Eco-vandals” took things even further, breaking windows and slashing tires.” Throughout 2003, protestors set fire to Hummers at a number of dealerships in Los Angeles.
And ironically, while one war helped make Hummers popular, another would bring it down. The war in Iraq shot up gas prices. Which made owning a Hummer seem even more impractical. Then, in 2007, the financial recession hit. And Hummer’s parent brand, General Motors, was in big trouble.
Matt: So, General Motors, before the currency crisis, had a real disaster. There were too many brands. He had stopped making money.
Narrator: In 2009, General Motors applied for and discontinued several of its brands.
Matt: At that point, they had a bunch of brands, much more than they have now. And each of those brands needs marketing support. Each of those brands need manufacturing support. Each of those brands needs research and development. So they had to look at what they had, and they said, “Well, you know, Hummer is kind of a marginal brand.”
Narrator: In 2010, GM tried to sell the Hummer logo to Tengzhong, a Chinese manufacturer. But the deal fell through, and GM halted all production and sales of Hummers. Thus ending the life of its once beloved logo. Today, Hummers are more noticeable as relics of a bygone era. No new models have been made for nearly a decade. But will General Motors bring Hummer back?
Matt: So Americans like big cars; They liked big cars. They will like big cars. At that time, the other inhabitants of Detroit, due to the seriousness of the scenario after the monetary crisis, were absolutely scared for their future. And they forgot about it.
Narrator: But since 2013, the market for SUVs and giant pickup trucks has seen a recovery. And in reaction to customer demand, all luxury car brands, from Rolls-Royce to Lamborghini and Aston Martin, have introduced SUVs.
Matt: Pretty soon we’re going to have a Ferrari SUV. So for Hummer to come back as kind of a really rough-and-tumble luxury platform would probably be a halfway decent idea.
Narrator: General Motors is looking to expand its presence in the electric vehicle market. And it’s rumored that it could resurrect Hummer to do just that.
Matt: The business case is because it’s an iconic brand. Everyone already knows that.
Narrator: Arnold Schwarzenegger has already converted one of his original Hummers to run on electricity. Perhaps paving the way for Hummer once again.
Matt: The beauty of the brand is if they could get rid of all the bad baggage and replace and transplant good goodness in it, you know, you still have one of the toughest and possibly long-lasting vehicles ever. You might be able to operate that thing with regular battery changes for decades and decades and decades. We’re fighting global warming right here. Look at this thing, you know, so it’s not just fighting wars, it’s fighting global warming too.
Narrator: So while people may have once associated Hummers with everything that was wrong with America, it could be time for a second chance.
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