Hummer was a brand of trucks and SUVs marketed since 1992 by AM General when it began selling a civilian version of the M998 Humvee.
In 1998 General Motors purchased the brand name and marketed three vehicles: the original Hummer H1, based on the Humvee, and the Hummer H2 and the Hummer H3 models that were based on other, smaller civilian-market GM platforms.
The business viability of the Hummer brand was under review by GM management since 2008. The brand was not transferred to Motors Liquidation Company as part of the GM bankruptcy in 2009; instead, it was retained by GM in order to investigate selling the brand.
Chinese automaker Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Company announced in 2009 that it would acquire the Hummer brand, pending government approvals. However, the Chinese industrial equipment maker withdrew its bid after failing to win approval from Chinese regulators. According to Reuters, the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China rejected the deal on February 24, 2010, but a spokesperson for ministry denies that it rejected the application that has been stalled for eight months.
At the end of February 2010, General Motors announced it would begin dismantling the Hummer brand. Two days later, the automaker announced it had been approached with new offers for the brand after the deal with Sichuan Tengzhong could not be completed.
By April 2010, any sale of the brand became unlikely as inventory was depleted and Hummer dealerships began shutting down. After filling a rental car fleet order, the last Hummer H3 rolled off line at Shreveport on May 24, 2010.
The original Hummers were first designed and built by AM General Corporation, which was formerly AMC-Jeep’s General Products division, in its Mishawaka, Indiana, assembly plant. The vehicles were created under a contract for the United States armed forces. The first model, the Hum-Vee, was built in a variety of military-based equipment and versions. The US$1.2 billion contract won by AM General in 1983 was to produce 55,000 Humvees by 1985, which was later increased to 15,000 additional units.
AM General had planned to sell a civilian version of the Hum-Vee as far back as the late-1980s. Having the same structure and most mechanical components, the civilian Hummers were finished in automotive gloss paint, adding passenger car enhancements such as air conditioning, sound insulation, upgraded upholstery, stereo systems, wood trim, and convenience packages. The civilian model began in part because of the persistence of Arnold Schwarzenegger, who saw an Army convoy while filming a movie.
In 1990, two matching white Hum-Vees were driven from London to Beijing over the rough roads of central Soviet Union. The Hummers made the trip with ease, for they were built to drive on off-road terrain. The highlights of this journey were broadcast in the United States on ESPN. This publicity would pale in comparison to the attention that the Hum-Vee received for its service in Gulf War Operation: Desert Storm, the following year. Also, a privately-owned Hum-Vee was modified into the first Snow-Vee, including the addition of caterpillar tracks, a new rear compartment and a new engine. This vehicle was designed for use in and just below the Arctic Circle, and the Antarctic.
