We gave a pretty detailed write-up last summer on GM's new light-duty diesel V-8 that will premiere in 2009. The new engine was specifically designed to fit within the same package dimensions as the long-running small-block V-8. As such, the diesel can potentially be installed in any GM vehicle that currently carries the V-8. GM has announced that the new 4.5L engine will have output of 310hp and 520lb-ft of torque. The Duramax 4500 will also provided a 25 percent reduction in fuel consumption compared to the similarly powerful gasoline engines. That puts it on a par (when comparing combined city/highway numbers) with the two-mode hybrid system when it debuts in the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups next year.
When the engine debuts for the 2010 model year it will be the first GM diesel to use selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to reduce NOx emissions. SCR is also known as urea injection. Vehicles with this engine will meet Tier 2 Bin 5 standards and be fifty-state legal. In order to fit the dual overhead engine in the space of the cam-in-block small-block, GM engineers reduced the angle of the block and reversed the intake and exhaust flow through the cylinder heads. The intake valves are now on the outside of the heads and the manifold feeds air in from the top. The exhaust manifolds are now in the valley of the block along with the turbocharger. Previously, GM has also indicated that this engine would also go into the Hummer H2 which would do a lot to improve that vehicle's mileage.
Although none of the Hummer models are really all that worse than any other body-on-frame SUV powered by a large engine, the ex-military marque is considered by many to be the anti-green brand. If that's how you feel, you'll likely be glad to hear that Hummer models are languishing on dealer lots all over the country. Hummer spokeswoman Joanne Krell suggests that the downturn in sales is directly related to the upturn in fuel prices. That makes sense, now doesn't it? Maybe not... Acura is the only brand that has seen similar drops in new registrations with nary a V8 engine in sight. All of this raises a few questions: Is the Hummer brand is just plain falling out of favor? If so, would flex-fuel engine options help their cause?
On an episode of her Mob Logic.TV called "Hybrid Hullabaloo" the lovely Lindsay Campbell (pictured right) had the opportunity to ask an owner of the iconic super-sized Tonka toy something she has been wanting to ask for a long time.
While interviewing random people in the parking lot of a "big box" store about hybrids and why they aren't driving them, she spots a man returning to his king-sized ride and runs to confront him. With mic in hand and cameraman in tow she starts, "Tell me seriously, I've always wanted to talk with a Hummer owner and find out what the hell you were thinking when you bought this car" Find out his reaction after the jump.
As our brothers at Autoblog like to say, it's "officially official." GM has confirmed their plans to offer all Hummers with biofuel-capable engine options. According to Automotive News, a Hummer official has said that the 2009 H2 and H2 SUT will be equipped with flex-fuel engines capable on running on gasoline or ethanol, making them the first such Hummers available. The 2010 Hummer H3 will be offered with a flex-fuel version of GM's direct injection 3.6L V-6 and we've heard plenty of rumblings regarding diesel Hummers too. Currently, the Hummer H3 is offered with a five-cylinder gasoline engine and a 5.3 liter small-block V8, both of which struggle to get fuel mileage in the mid-to-high teens. The H2 is available only with a larger 6.2 liter V8, which, as you can probably surmise, offers dismal fuel economy, and it would use even more fuel if it were running on ethanol. Emissions would probably be improved, but we're still talking about lots of fuel being burned here. We'll be on the lookout for more information on the biofuel capabilities of the Hummer brand, but we remain firmly in the bandaid-on-a-broken-arm camp on this particular announcement.
The erroneous contention that a Hummer is more efficient and earth-friendly than a Prius over the vehicles' lifetime has sailed across the net for months. The argument defies common sense, and has been debunked repeatedly. The "studies" were flawed by design, but they served the purpose of sowing confusion and doubt. The point by point rebuttal to this nonsense can be found here and here. To take just one point, it is presumed that a Hummer will drive more miles than a Prius, thus spreading out its environmental impact over a longer period of time. Huh?
So, when we saw the picture to the right, we had to wonder: is this Hummer a rolling advertisement for bad science or just a twisted sense of humor?
During a first drive event for the new HUMMER H3T in Moab, Utah, Mike Levine of PickupTruck.com got confirmation of an engine change coming to the H3 lineup. When the H3 debuted it was saddled with the 3.7L inline five cylinder from the Chevy Colorado pickup it was derived from. Unfortunately, that engine struggled mightily with the H3's 4,700lb mass. That meant it worked hard all the time and got notoriously lousy fuel economy. When a V-8 engine option was added last year, it got the same fuel economy as the five because it wasn't working so hard.
At the Detroit Auto Show HUMMER showed the HX concept with a flex-fuel version of GM's direct injection 3.6L V-6. Thanks to Mike, we now know that engine will move into the H3. Although Mike wasn't given a timeline, GM has previously said that all HUMMERs would be biofuel capable by 2010. The DI V-6 is both more powerful and more fuel efficient than the five cylinder, meaning it doesn't have to strain as hard and with cellulosic ethanol hopefully coming on stream in the next few year, the ethanol option should get more palatable as well. Now if most of the people who drive these things could just come to grips with the fact that they don't actually need such a vehicle in the first place we'd be all set.
Apparently, someone has turned an actual Hummer H3 into a remote control vehicle. That someone is Engineer Dr James Brighton from Cranfield University, who spent a month adapting the iconic vehicle into something you can control from your hands. What's the green angle here? In a few years, H3s running on biofuel and diesel will be available. Sure, we knew this already, but now any of you who are interested in having the largest RC on the block can imagine it filling up your toy at the local biodiesel co-op. Hehe.
I double-checked, and there isn't an April 1 embargo date on this story. The Mischief PR agency put the release out and, for what it's worth, they claim to be "the most straight talking agency in the industry."
Leading presidential candidate Barack Obama earmarked $1 million for research on turning Hummers into hybrids. The earmark money will go to the Illinois Institute of Technology (Obama just happens to be the senator from Illinois) for the development of a cost-effective hybrid conversion kit. These kits could turn the army's gas guzzling Humvees into fuel efficient hybrids and would be a real endorsement for hybrid conversion in general.
The anti-icon of the green transportation movement is about to lose a sales outlet in the home of the American high-tech industry. With sales of HUMMERs down 22 percent in 2007 and gas prices well on their way to $4/gallon and more it's understandable that a dealer might be reluctant to spend several million dollars on a new showroom and off-road test track. Ron Battistella, owner of Silicon Valley HUMMER, stopped selling new vehicles early this month and will shut down the service department at the end of March after GM decided to take back his franchise. Even though Battistella won't be selling the big SUVs anymore, the area likely won't be without their military poseur fix for long. There are several other GM dealers in the area, one of whom will likely take over the franchise soon. The question is will any other dealer be willing to invest the money in the kind of dealership that GM wants.
Meet the Zero Emission Hummer. Yeah, it's a little bit smaller than your average Hummer, but hey, it's an EV and it's apparently officially licensed from GM. Actually, this is really just a golf cart dressed up to look like a Hummer. With a chrome grill and Hummer wheels (smaller than normal, naturally), this thing has the look down. Powered by lead acid Trojan T-875 batteries and featuring cup holders, this is the perfect toy for people with very little imagination. Word of caution: Don't go off-roading too far from the green. Thanks to Jamie for the tip!
California bill SB 1374, if passed and signed into a law, would allow any car to join the HOV sticker program as long as that vehicle is carbon neutral. This would mean someone driving alone in a Hummer could legally be allowed into the HOV lane, if the Hummer's emissions were offset. Senator Jim Battin officially proposed the legislation but his press release - which includes lines like "every owner of a polluting, flashy, fuel sucking car" - makes me think he is not serious. The law is starting to grow on me anyway. Why shouldn't a carbon neutral car - even a Hummer - be allowed in the HOV lane?
In today's USA Today there is an article about how sad it is that people don't understand just how utilitarian a Hummer is. I mean, listen to Mark LaNeve, vice president of sales, service and marketing for GM North America, who said, and I'm serious, that, "No one criticizes a bulldozer for its gas mileage. That's because it's built to do a job."
Wow. I bet he said that line with a straight face, too.
I mean, how could anyone possibly think that a Hummer H3 was an image vehicle instead of something we only use for work? Just watch the GM ads for this totally serious work vehicle below the fold. Can't you see all of the work going on in these commercials. I swear, there are hard hats everywhere. C'mon people, it's obvious. Geez.
/sarcasm
I think theres a saying about making beds and then the requirement to lay in them. If GM doesn't want to take a bunch of crap for building Hummers, there are two things they can do: One, make them get like 30+ mpg or, two, stop building them. A biofuel Hummer HX concept here and there isn't going to cut it. Until one of these things happens, you can bet the "Hummer salute" will remain in vogue.
We had a post up here recently about the possibility of a GM producing a HUMMER H2 using the Two-Mode hybrid system that they are putting into many of their full-size trucks. The idea was that the the H2 is based off the same platform as the Chevy Tahoe/GMC Yukon which are now available with the hybrid powertrain. Unfortunately this isn't entirely accurate. The H2 was derived from the GMT800 platform which formed the basis of the previous generation of GM full-sized trucks. The current trucks which are being hybridized are on the new GMT900 platform which has many under-the-skin differences including mechanical and electrical upgrades. As a relatively low volume vehicle, the H2 doesn't seem set to get a full-on redesign anytime soon and adapting the two-mode system to the H2 platform is not currently part of the plan. What the H2 will be getting in the next couple of model years is a flex-fuel version of the 6.2L V-8 as well as GM's new 4.5L diesel V-8. HUMMER officials have made it clear that by 2010 all of their vehicles will be capable of running on biofuels, but no hybrid activity appears to be going on within the brand at this time.
Like the visualization of a young boy's nightmare, the Hummer scooter has arrived. An ungraceful mashup of Hummer styling (see the gas cap) and two wheels, this concept drawing from motorcycle artist Oberdan Bezzi certainly looks like a Hummer, but in a way that makes the folks at Autoblog heads hurt. The idea is that this scooter would have a 450 cc powerplant under the distinctive body panels. As we know, the Hummer/scooter debate has been going on for a while now. I wonder how they'll solve this. I, for one, am having a hard time imagining the type of person who would want one of these things.
Boston Legal is an ABC TV series about a law firm. In the episodeGreen Christmas (first aired Dec. 18, 2007), the law firm, Crane Poole and Schmidt, is sued by a group called "Green People" for fraud because they said they were green but actually were not. In the court case, a board member of Green People is asked which car he drives? He says a hybrid, to which the Boston Legal firm's lawyer Katie responds saying a Hummer is greener because of the way batteries are made. On top of that, she says hybrids reduce the cost of driving which encourages more driving and in the end more pollution. You can watch the video above. Here's exactly what Katie says:
Hybrid batteries contain nickel that is mined and smelted in a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. A plant that has caused so much environmental damage and acid rain that NASA uses the so-called dead zone around the plant to test its moon rovers. ... That nickel then has to be shipped via massive containers to a refinery in Europe. Then off to China to be made into nickel foam, then to Japan to be manufactured, then finally all the way back to America. All that, just to put a single hybrid battery into a car. When you combine all the energy it takes to built and drive a hybrid it adds up to almost fifty percent more that it does to build and drive a Hummer.
A few comments to my posts on the hybrid in the Knight Rider TV movie, said things like like "spare me." Yes, the Knight Rider TV movie is a remake of a cheesy '80s TV show, but it might inspire Ford to make a hybrid Mustang. Boston Legal's 10 million viewers probably believed the statements about hybrid batteries. My point is: Culture matters. It's probably more important than things like politics, technology, brand or anything. It really does not matter that the hybrid Hummer/Prius study has been discredited (many, manytimes) or that this argument is just stupid for the simple reason that batteries are recycled by law. If it's repeated on shows like Boston Legal, it's "fact."
On an episode of her Mob Logic.TV called "Hybrid Hullabaloo" the lovely Lindsay Campbell (pictured right) had the opportunity to ask an owner of the iconic super-sized Tonka toy something she has been wanting to ask for a long time.
The erroneous contention that a Hummer is more efficient and earth-friendly than a Prius over the vehicles' lifetime has sailed across the net for months. The argument defies common sense, and has been debunked repeatedly. The "studies" were flawed by design, but they served the purpose of sowing confusion and doubt. The point by point rebuttal to this nonsense can be found 
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