What Happened to All the Hummers?
How come there are hardly any articles or advertisements for anything related to Hummer? Even though GM has abandoned us, we are still around on the trails and will be for a long time!
Dan Larson
Watertown, MN
Dude, have you been living in a cave for the last few years? We've been all over Hummers from Day 1 like none of the other off-road mags. We named the H3 Alpha our Four Wheeler of the Year for 2008, and a year later, the H3T won our Pickup Truck of the Year test; both were prominently featured in the magazine over the course of a one-year period. The year after that, we built a way-cool H3 project, "Trailhugger," that turned heads and elicited positive comments wherever it went. There were also two cross-country staff tours-the legendary "Tents & Trails" and "H2our De Force" expeditions-that used Hummers and which were featured prominently throughout the magazine in '06 and '07. Luckily, you can find all of these awesomely Hummerific stories online at fourwheeler.com.
Why there haven't been any Hummer ads in the magazine for awhile? Have you read any newspapers lately?
But we do know that the Hummer faithful are still out there wheeling across America, and we still hold out hope that somebody, somewhere, will decide to resurrect the brand one day.
All-Terrains vs. Mud-Terrains: Better for Mileage?
I have an '03 Wrangler, manual-shift, with a K&N air filter system. I ride on Mickey Thompson 33 M/T's. I don't do much off-roading, but like the look of the tires. If I change to all-terrains instead of mud-terrain tires, how much gas mileage would I save? I'm averaging 12.2 mpg, and am looking for any ways to save gas but keep the looks.
Ron Rivenburgh
Bartlett, TN
All other things being equal, we can't imagine that you'd see any noticeable difference in fuel economy, assuming the tires are the same exact size. The difference in weight between the two types of tires will typically be minimal (and in this particular case, a Baja ATZ actually weighs more than a Baja MTZ), and while the less knobby all-terrain will deliver more adhesion and a smoother ride (and less vibration and rolling resistance) than a mud-terrain, we doubt you'd even see a savings of 1/2 a mile per gallon.
We Love a Man in a Uniform, and Two Are Even Better
I am a reader of your magazine currently deployed to Afghanistan out of Camp Pendleton. I have recently started a project rig that I would like to add to your "project rigs" section. It's a military M1114 gun truck that has been beat down and put away wet, but it is quickly becoming a bad-ass off-road vehicle I call the "FOB Hopper," and I think people would be interested to read about it. Is there a way I can do his without a subscription?
Brian in Afghanistan
I'm a shift supervisor in the powerplants shop at VFA-151, U.S. Navy, stationed in Lemoore, Califonia. We are currently constructing parts bins for our upcoming deployment to store aircraft parts. I'm inquiring to see if you would be willing to send us some sticker packages or anything we could use to dress the bins up a little bit! Thank you in advance for your reply!
Tyler Stolz
Fresno, CA
Sure, you can show off your truck without subscribing to our magazine (though we hope you do, one day). Send photos and information to Four Wheeler Readers' Rigs, 831 S. Douglas St., El Segundo, CA 90245, or via email to fourwheelereditor@sorc.com. Or you can log onto fourwheeler.com, create your own account (don't worry, it's free), and you can post pics of the FOB Hopper online. Either way, we look forward to seeing some pics of it. And thank you both for your service to America.