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Bret
Yoda
Offline
Ok I’ll admit it – right from the start, I didn’t have high expectations when the guy behind the rental counter told me that they were going to upgrade me to a Hummer H3. But I told myself I wasn’t going to complain too much considering I got to drive such a nice rental over the weekend (Shelby Mustang GT-H).
Walking out to the vehicle it had the now all too familiar looks of it’s big brothers the H1 & H2 (love it or hate it) but knowing that it uses the same platform & drive train that supports the Chevy Colorado and the GMC Canyon Pickups, the H3's the name & cosmetics are about all this SUV has in common with it’s siblings.
About my only real complaint with this vehicle is it’s Inline-5 engine (again same as the Colorado & Canyon) with a less than stellar 220bhp and 225 lb-ft of torque. Especially lacking for a vehicle that’s curb weight tops the scales at a just a tad under 5000lbs. Despite that it seems more than adequate for what the vehicle will most likely see in daily usage with soccer moms and as the family grocery getter. Still I have no doubt that this vehicle wouldn’t flinch at the chance to go into the wild back country where most common SUVs would dare never tread.
But other than that – I thought that the interior ergonomics seemed well thought out. The interior had plenty of room for all my tools & such and still allowed full use of the back seats. Allowing me to pick up my kids from school or take customers to lunch without the need to unload. From the driver’s position I can easily reach the every dial & knob on the center console without having to lean forward or adjusting my seating poison. I thought the fully adjustable (heated) leather seats where comfortable. The sunroof is huge and I really love side opening rear cargo door & padded cargo area (no mouse fur carpet here) that is ruggedly lined. Heck even the rear seats seem to have plenty of leg room for 2 adults or can seat 3 children easily. However my children didn’t like the fact that they didn’t have their own overhead reading lamps like their mother's SUV and my truck has – what can I say they love to read. Other than that the only thing that I would’ve liked to see was some side step rails, as my littlest one couldn’t get up into the vehicle without some help. Oh & did I mention that I liked the gound clearance? :wink:
Worth mentioning is that I really liked the easy to read Gauges cluster & HVAC controls on the center console, as well as the extra 12v power outlets, with one even in the cargo area (great for the DC to AC converter I carry with me). Also while the H3 only had two cup holders up front and two in the rear – rather that the 15-16 commonly found in most SUVs these days. Better still is that the cup holders in this case are actually functional in that an average coffee travel mug (like I always carry with me) doesn’t obstruct access to the shifter like so you see in many other vehicles and stays put even in a turn.
Minor annoyance: the position of the pre-sets on the radio are on top of the display rather than below it like most stereos, but the large easy to recognize buttons sort’a makes up for that.
All in all I’m finding the H3 a more capable than I expected and is the first SUV I’ve driven in a long time that didn’t have many things that I’d change about it. BTW the H3 is hands down much better than the Jeep Commander I drove a couple of weeks ago.
On my daughters Fun Scale from 1-10 they gave it a clear "8" with Sparkles. Told me that lack of a DVD player was the only reason it didn't score higher. :wink:
Walking out to the vehicle it had the now all too familiar looks of it’s big brothers the H1 & H2 (love it or hate it) but knowing that it uses the same platform & drive train that supports the Chevy Colorado and the GMC Canyon Pickups, the H3's the name & cosmetics are about all this SUV has in common with it’s siblings.
About my only real complaint with this vehicle is it’s Inline-5 engine (again same as the Colorado & Canyon) with a less than stellar 220bhp and 225 lb-ft of torque. Especially lacking for a vehicle that’s curb weight tops the scales at a just a tad under 5000lbs. Despite that it seems more than adequate for what the vehicle will most likely see in daily usage with soccer moms and as the family grocery getter. Still I have no doubt that this vehicle wouldn’t flinch at the chance to go into the wild back country where most common SUVs would dare never tread.
But other than that – I thought that the interior ergonomics seemed well thought out. The interior had plenty of room for all my tools & such and still allowed full use of the back seats. Allowing me to pick up my kids from school or take customers to lunch without the need to unload. From the driver’s position I can easily reach the every dial & knob on the center console without having to lean forward or adjusting my seating poison. I thought the fully adjustable (heated) leather seats where comfortable. The sunroof is huge and I really love side opening rear cargo door & padded cargo area (no mouse fur carpet here) that is ruggedly lined. Heck even the rear seats seem to have plenty of leg room for 2 adults or can seat 3 children easily. However my children didn’t like the fact that they didn’t have their own overhead reading lamps like their mother's SUV and my truck has – what can I say they love to read. Other than that the only thing that I would’ve liked to see was some side step rails, as my littlest one couldn’t get up into the vehicle without some help. Oh & did I mention that I liked the gound clearance? :wink:
Worth mentioning is that I really liked the easy to read Gauges cluster & HVAC controls on the center console, as well as the extra 12v power outlets, with one even in the cargo area (great for the DC to AC converter I carry with me). Also while the H3 only had two cup holders up front and two in the rear – rather that the 15-16 commonly found in most SUVs these days. Better still is that the cup holders in this case are actually functional in that an average coffee travel mug (like I always carry with me) doesn’t obstruct access to the shifter like so you see in many other vehicles and stays put even in a turn.
Minor annoyance: the position of the pre-sets on the radio are on top of the display rather than below it like most stereos, but the large easy to recognize buttons sort’a makes up for that.
All in all I’m finding the H3 a more capable than I expected and is the first SUV I’ve driven in a long time that didn’t have many things that I’d change about it. BTW the H3 is hands down much better than the Jeep Commander I drove a couple of weeks ago.
On my daughters Fun Scale from 1-10 they gave it a clear "8" with Sparkles. Told me that lack of a DVD player was the only reason it didn't score higher. :wink: