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Back Seat Driver: Hummer is looking for a job

You know when you go to the zoo and check out groups of animals – parakeets, for example – there’s always one with a bald head? Animals (and that includes us) seem to bond by picking on the weakest in the group.

So it’s ironic that of all the vehicles on the road today, the one with the bald head is that bad boy, General Motor’s Hummer.

As sentiment has moved from SUVs toward smaller vehicles in recent years due to concern about rising fuel prices and the environment, Hummer’s reputation as the embodiment of gas guzzling macho has grown.

Even though the newer, smaller versions of the Hummer – the H2 and H3 – are about as fuel efficient as any other big SUV, its mean demeanor gets it the raspberries.

So GM is trying a new marketing strategy, according to USA Today, to present the Hummer as a working vehicle rather than a suburban tank. One GM executive complained that no one criticizes a bulldozer for being a gas guzzler.

Well, no. But the problem with the Hummer, unlike the Jeep, is that it has yet to make the transition from its military heritage. The H2 and H3 may be smaller than the original H1 let alone the Army’s HUMVEE, but they still look aggressive.

The Jeep transformed itself into an iconic recreational vehicle while the Land Rover, which was originally based on the Jeep, is known as both a working vehicle and suburban status symbol.

Now the Hummer, with its limited appeal to the laid-back recreational market and a mixed reputation as a status symbol, is looking for a job.

- Peter C. T. Elsworth

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 11:15 AM to commentary | Permalink | Comments 0