Hummer Wheels and Tires

Hummer wheels are the foundation of the most unique and intimidating SUV to ever the hit the market. Therefore you would expect hummer tires and hummer rims to be unique and somewhat intimidating as well. And it's often the case, but you would be surprised at some of the horrors I've seen. A pink hummer for instance, and a bright bumble gum pink for that matter. Truly one of the most disturbing things I have witnessed.

It's true that the hummer brand is now defunct but, that's no reason to disrespect it. This vehicle was originally designed for combat and it's still essential in combat operations today. The civilian models were always a bit bulky and designed for extreme luxury. I submit that the death of the civilian form of hummer was due less to the inept management of GM and more to a complete departure of the hummers original purpose.  But we are here to talk wheels. So let's get to it.

Take a good look at the Hummer H1 tires in this photo.  They are doing what this vehicle was originally designed to do.  Go through mud.  Basically go through rough terrain in general.  Remember in "Back to the Future" when Doc turns to Marty McFly and says, "Roads? Where we're going we don't need roads."  Well, the future is now.  Actually the future is 1992 because that's when the Hummer became available to citizens and a lack of roads was no longer an issue.  Look at the Hummer H1 rims below this paragraph.  Completely utilitarian.  Nothing fancy, just built to take a beating.

Now look to the right and witness the beginning of the downfall.  The rough edges are gone and replaced by an over sized, boxy, soccer mom fortress.  The Hummer H2 rims are no longer built for a beating, but instead are flashy and flush with shiny chrome.  The Hummer H2 tires in this photo would be lost and worthless if they ever met any surface other than smooth pavement.  I ask you sir, "Would a solider dare set foot in such a thing?"  I guess if I was rich or wanted to appear so and felt it was important for other people to feel that I was rich, I might consider filling up two lanes of traffic with this ride.  But personally, I would rather roll up some sand dunes.

The H3 was scaled back to a more reasonable size and thankfully eliminated any remaining delusion of this being an off-road vehicle. The soccer mom fortress had been completely accepted by this time but that didn't stop the inevitable bankruptcy from taking place. As you can see the Hummer H3 Rims in the picture would never even smell a dirt or gravel road. And the Hummer H3 tires are clearly made for highway driving. I guess there is nothing wrong with it but for whatever reason it still makes me slightly depressed. Once one of the greatest off-road capable vehicles to ever hit the main stream, it is now just an SUV with bad gas mileage. Someone play Taps so we can mourn properly.