No more new H1s

[DDWH]

Originally Posted by MovinH2

I said it in the H2 Forum and I'll say it here. THIS SUCKS.

X2!! Licks the nads!

[Aubs]

Flash off-road has an interesting bit in their "Rumors and Gossip Section":

The Hummer H1 is Dead 5/18/2006

The story gets better every day. Here's an email I received today:
I just spoke with someone who had just come out of face-to-face meetings with AMG personnel. Apparently, AMG has expected to get screwed by GM all along and has had contingency plans in place. They will continue to produce the H1, just not the Alpha. It will go back to the 6.5L TD. It may take a year or two to re-establish a dealer network and sell them, but they have sufficient fleet orders to produce 600-800 units per year right now. I'm told to expect an announcement or press release from AM General at some time in the future correcting the misinformation that has been coming out of GM.
If you carefully read the AMG press release it only says the Alpha will be discontinued.
On the other hand I also heard this from a Hummer Dealer:
I wanted to at least give some input on the recent bad news. I won't go into a lot of my personal views but most at GM and the dealer body see this as a positive thing for them.

I have talked to AM General and they have told me there will be no H1s for the US civilian market at all in the future. The problem is the EPA. Neither the current Duramax nor the 6.5 meets the '07 EPA standards. They had already discontinued the "K" series with the 6.5 a couple of months ago for this reason. The expense to certify the Duramax or the 6.5 is very high and the sales volume does not justify the expense. Roughly 636 Alphas total were ordered by dealers and this was to cover 2 sales years. There were plans for the '07 model year and at least 1 prototype has been built. Unfortunately dealer orders for the Alpha were disappointing and this is probably what tipped the scales as far as spending any more money. If there are any built in the future they will most likely only be for overseas markets or the U.S. Government (border patrol?). If there is a big enough single order, AM General may leave the door open to such units if they were not required to meet EPA standards. Other than that it looks like it is a done deal. I felt sick when I heard.

Excerpt from the AM General release:
Obviously, we cannot make a business case to put tens of millions of dollars into an all new body to sell a few hundred trucks a year. Therefore, General Motors and AM General, together, have made the decision that now is the time to discontinue production of the H1 Alpha series. So effective with the conclusion of the 2006 production run, which will be sometime this June, production will cease on that wonderful vehicle.

So, is this just reading into the semantics? Personally, since the Duramax is only in the ALPHA models, it's probably been a horrible waste of money for AM General since the rest of fleet production is the 6.5 turbo. I think the EPA thing might be an issue, but I doubt it's that expensive to correct (every other automaker is doing it). And the special interiors have probably been expensive without any real return. And really, do you need an Allision tranny, and some of these other improvements? I think the lockers, and HD steering gear are probably the two most important upgrades since 2003, and I'm guessing maybe the new intercooler and fan assembly and half-shafts. So the in theory less expensive items probably were added out of true off-road improvement, and the engine, tranny, and interior for mass-market sales. Which, ironically, backfired.

What do you think?

[MrAgent007]

Hello Everyone. Just purchased a new 2006 H1 Alpha Wagon. This is by far the perfect Hummer. Anyways, A M General is telling everyone for the record that there will be no more new H1 production with the Duramax/Allison. What they are not saying is that the H1 will be brought back into production with the same drive train set-up prior to the Duramax in (2) years. Someone is trying to save face regarding adding the Duramax/Allison with the much higher selling price that resulted in a major decrease in sales. The old H1 with the 6500 Optimizer will be back in either 08 or 09 with a sale price much lower than the Alpha. Please be patient, the Optimizer equipped H1 is coming back!

[partsguy]

Please tell me you didn't buy a black one! Talk about dirt and dust everywhere!!
Congrats

But next time I drive by you,you better wave!!!or I'll think mean things about you!!

[MrAgent007]

Who are you? Do I know you?

[DennisAJC]

Originally Posted by MrAgent007

Who are you? Do I know you?

Frenzy is a respected somebody here.


You are a soon to be short lived nobody.

[Beastmaster]

Really? And how will they pass Tier 2 Bin 5 Emission standards with the Optimzer 6500? It couldn't pass it now.

Congrats on the Alpha! You'll enjoy it, but I find it very unlikely that the current engine variants will pass the 2010 engine specifications that will be in force. 50% of all engines by 2008 must conform to the stricter ULEV-II emission standards that Tier 2 Bin 5 requires, and that includes the big rigs as well.

-Steve

Originally Posted by MrAgent007

Hello Everyone. Just purchased a new 2006 H1 Alpha Wagon. This is by far the perfect Hummer. Anyways, A M General is telling everyone for the record that there will be no more new H1 production with the Duramax/Allison. What they are not saying is that the H1 will be brought back into production with the same drive train set-up prior to the Duramax in (2) years. Someone is trying to save face regarding adding the Duramax/Allison with the much higher selling price that resulted in a major decrease in sales. The old H1 with the 6500 Optimizer will be back in either 08 or 09 with a sale price much lower than the Alpha. Please be patient, the Optimizer equipped H1 is coming back!

[PARAGON]

Originally Posted by Beastmaster

Really? And how will they pass Tier 2 Bin 5 Emission standards with the Optimzer 6500? It couldn't pass it now.

Congrats on the Alpha! You'll enjoy it, but I find it very unlikely that the current engine variants will pass the 2010 engine specifications that will be in force. 50% of all engines by 2008 must conform to the stricter ULEV-II emission standards that Tier 2 Bin 5 requires, and that includes the big rigs as well.

-Steve

ArvinMeritor to supply ActiveClean to GEP

Jun 1, 2006 12:00 PM


ArvinMeritor and General Engine Products (GEP), a solely owned subsidiary of AM General, jointly announced an agreement under which ArvinMeritor will supply its ActiveClean atomizer technology, as part of the emissions control aftertreatment system for GEP's 2007 Optimizer 6500 V8 TurboDiesel engine line. The aftertreatment system will help the Optimizer engines meet United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) engine emissions regulations that go into effect in 2007.

?ArvinMeritor's atomizer product provides uniform disbursement of diesel fuel into the exhaust stream at the optimal particle size, so that the fuel can provide efficient regeneration of a diesel particulate filter and/or a lean NOx trap,? said Silvio Angori, general manager of ArvinMeritor's Commercial Vehicle Emissions business.

The atomizer is part of a system of aftertreatment components that process diesel engine exhaust to enable engines to meet 2007 EPA emissions regulations. GEP will also use exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), oxidation catalysts, particulate filters, and nitrogen oxide traps to meet the new emissions standards.

[Beastmaster]

Originally Posted by PARAGON

Yes, I have seen that. The entire ArvinMeritor emissions control line comprises of a system that goes between the turbo exhaust outlet and the first stage catalytic converter.

The way I understand it, the new system (that DaimlerChrysler will use in their commercial vehicles come 2007) is made of 3 parts.

1) A Thermal regenerator - it reheats the exhaust gases to burn more completely and reduce soot

2) The Plasma Fuel generator - this is the "ActiveClean" part. It burns diesel fuel into hydrogen gas and carbon monoxide, then injects this modified exhaust into the standard diesel exhaust stream.

3) You have soot traps and selective catalyzation to reduce the nitrogen oxides.

Supposedly, this system is small enough to put it in existing vehicles. It creates a TON of heat however, up to 600 degrees F. I can see the useablility of it in larger vehicles, and I realize that AMG's GEP states that they will use it, but I find it really hard to see how it will fit into an H1 chassis tunnel, working around the transfer case, the frame, and other stuff. If it's the same diameter as the stock exhaust (3.5" diameter at the flares), its possible. The heat issue is what's really going to be a hard thing to overcome.

[EXH1X5]

Originally Posted by MrAgent007

Hello Everyone. Just purchased a new 2006 H1 Alpha Wagon. This is by far the perfect Hummer. Anyways, A M General is telling everyone for the record that there will be no more new H1 production with the Duramax/Allison. What they are not saying is that the H1 will be brought back into production with the same drive train set-up prior to the Duramax in (2) years. Someone is trying to save face regarding adding the Duramax/Allison with the much higher selling price that resulted in a major decrease in sales. The old H1 with the 6500 Optimizer will be back in either 08 or 09 with a sale price much lower than the Alpha. Please be patient, the Optimizer equipped H1 is coming back!

Congrats on your NEW GENUINE HUMMER!!!


Hope no one gets the impression new non-Alpha Genuine HUMMERs will become available to the "GENERAL PUBLIC" in the future.

Most anytime AMG gets orders totaling 600 or more of ANYTHING, they will likely build it!!! Their "nitch-market" has always been going after things that are too SMALL to interest the BIG companies and too BIG for SMALLER companies to handle!

[frenzy1]

Well, the h1 is too wide for belgian roads anyway...

Frenzy
Belgium

[CANTANKEROUSTANK]

I want the H1 back
But I heard ther comin out with the H2 Alpha!
dont know if they are or not but a saw somethin about it in a magazine

[frenzy1]

H2 alpha ? What 's gonna be different than the normal H2 ?? Diesel ?

[DRTYFN]

Originally Posted by MrAgent007

Hello Everyone. Just purchased a new 2006 H1 Alpha Wagon. This is by far the perfect Hummer. Anyways, A M General is telling everyone for the record that there will be no more new H1 production with the Duramax/Allison. What they are not saying is that the H1 will be brought back into production with the same drive train set-up prior to the Duramax in (2) years. Someone is trying to save face regarding adding the Duramax/Allison with the much higher selling price that resulted in a major decrease in sales. The old H1 with the 6500 Optimizer will be back in either 08 or 09 with a sale price much lower than the Alpha. Please be patient, the Optimizer equipped H1 is coming back!

And your post belongs in this thread why exactly?