General Motors to End Hummer H1 Production

The 2006 model year will be the last for the Hummer H1, the hulking, gas-guzzling status symbol that has attracted celebrities and off-road enthusiasts but has drawn the ire of environmentalists.

General Motors Corp. announced its plans Friday for the H1, the foundation for the automaker’s Hummer brand. Based on the military’s Humvee, the 12,000 put on the road since 1992 defined the Hummer name.

“It’s a reflection of where we’re going with the Hummer brand,” Hummer general manager Martin Walsh said of the decision. “The Hummer DNA still resides in the Humvee.... It will always be the core from where we come.”

GM expects the last H1s to be built next month.

Walsh said the Hummer division planned to focus on models with broader appeal instead of the niche-market H1. Since taking over the Hummer name in 2000, GM has introduced the still hefty H2 and the mid-size H3 sport utility vehicle.

The H1 gets about 10 miles per gallon, but Walsh said rising gas prices didn’t factor into GM’s decision.

He noted that H1 buyers typically had been less sensitive about gas prices than most other drivers.

Auto analyst Erich Merkle at consulting company IRN Inc. in Grand Rapids, Mich., said the decision fit with steps GM had taken to bring the Hummer brand to more mainstream drivers with the H2 and H3.

Drivers who buy the H1 don’t worry about things like gas prices, Merkle said. “It’s really one of those over-the-top vehicles. It doesn’t really have much of a place in everyday society. You can’t put it in the parking ramps. Parking spaces can’t accommodate it.”

The H1 attracted well-heeled drivers looking for a military-style vehicle with an intimidating stance. For the 2006 model year, the H1 was offered as a high-performance H1 Alpha that costs about $130,000 to $140,000.