[ARCHIVED THREAD] - HMMWV (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 12/17/2011 10:21:44 AM EDT
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Does anyone know if these ever show up on the government auction sites? I've noticed around town that local LEO have been driving around in what looks like surplus HMMWV's and I would be interested in purchasing one if possible.
There are a few on Ebay but I've never seen any for sale on the government liquidation sites. |
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Quoted:
Does anyone know if these ever show up on the government auction sites? I've noticed around town that local LEO have been driving around in what looks like surplus HMMWV's and I would be interested in purchasing one if possible. There are a few on Ebay but I've never seen any for sale on the government liquidation sites. Will not be sold except for scrap. They must be cut up on site in such a way that it cost prohibitive to rebuild. Every once in a while some big parts slip through. Check the steelsoldiers hmmwv forum. |
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Quoted: Does anyone know if these ever show up on the government auction sites? I've noticed around town that local LEO have been driving around in what looks like surplus HMMWV's and I would be interested in purchasing one if possible. There are a few on Ebay but I've never seen any for sale on the government liquidation sites. You won't find any newer ECV HMMWVs for sure, but you might be able to find old ratty beat up M998s like the ones they use for all the Hollywood movies. I think Transformers was one of the only movies that used modern up-armored ECV HMMWVs with the latest armor kits. |
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And honestly, that 6.2L N/A V8 is a slug. The turbo 6.5L V8 isn't much better. I know the diesel kool aid drinkers will buzz in and say "torque is what you feel" (195 hp / 400+ ft-lb of torque), well I've driven them and the turbo 6.5L V8 will make me fall asleep on a stripped down shelter carrier. I feel no torque or speed or anything. 0-60 MPH in 20 seconds or more means a 125cc moped will suck the doors off the HMMWV as it flies past you. The Hummer H1's are at least more palatable, and if you pick up a H1 Alpha, you get a more stout Duramax diesel engine. |
| If you're looking for a humvee you don't expect jackrabbit acceleration. Where the 6.2l and 6.5l shine is they're inexpensive, relatively easy to maintain, and deliver good fuel mileage in a heavy vehicle with terrible aerodynamics. They produce enough torque to move the humvee and a trailer over nearly any terrain, despite the piss-poor crawl ratio. And, an overlooked fact is they can rev high enough to let you drive 60+ mph. They're far from perfect, but they're much more than adequate for getting the truck's intended job done. |
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While it's a really nice military truck, Your money will probally be better spent with a regular 1 ton truck.
I looked into the feaseability of trying to fix up an old Humvee or H1, either way, it's way too expensive for the perfomance the truck offers back.  (Unless you're a military unit)
I'd rather go bigger with a larger surplus military truck or a plain old pickup. |
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IMO their 2 main weak points are a crappy crawl ratio - only around 33:1 - and the semi-floating "axles." A better way to do it would be to have Chevy/GMC Dana 60 front spindles & hubs on the geared hub units, so that the "axle shafts" aren't supporting the weight of the truck.
What they have going for them off road is their extremely high ground clearance for such a low vehicle, the width and low center of gravity for stability, and a really good suspension for slow-speed travel over rough terrain or high-speed travel over smoother stuff (desert.) They're the jack of all trades and master of none, of 4x4s. They won't go through deep mud as well as a pickup lifted high enough to run 36" or 37" tires and they're too wide to take on narrower trails without some paint or body damage. |
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If you could drop a new engine in them and narrow them up you'd go a long way towards fixing the more serious issues.
They are that wide because they use a V8. How about an I4 running a driveshaft to a rear transaxle and powering an electric motor up front for 4x4 at under 50 kph. Just a thought. |
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If you could drop a new engine in them and narrow them up you'd go a long way towards fixing the more serious issues. They are that wide because they use a V8. How about an I4 running a driveshaft to a rear transaxle and powering an electric motor up front for 4x4 at under 50 kph. Just a thought. just buy a jeep lol |
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A Jeep can't carry eight people or tow a M119A2. not sure if thats what the OP was going for though. lol will oshkosh truck sell a civilian mrap? or is it under strict military contract? I know civilians can buy Hemtts as converted firetrucks (or its a PLS) Id rather get my hands on a mrap |
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I would have to disagree. Over the past 25 years I've driven a LOT of miles in humvees, in both wooded and desert terrain, and also put a lot of miles in civilian 4WDs ranging from stock CJ7s and TJs to lifted crew cab pickups. What I found is that you can build a civilian vehicle to do ONE thing better than a humvee does, but it'll be lacking in other areas. For example, a pickup built to go through deep mud better than a humvee will be too tall for rock-crawling or high speed desert travel. A vehicle built to excel at high-speed desert travel won't handle mud as well as a humvee. If you want to specialize, building a civilian vehicle will give you much better performance. If you want a vehicle that's adequate for any kind of terrain, a humvee would be a good choice if available. And yes, a lot of people would like one just because it looks cool. You can say that about almost any vehicle, since most people (besides people who tow commercially with pickups, I'd say) never really fully utilize their vehicles.
Personally, I'd love to have a 4-litter armored ambulance to build up as an off-road camper. Regearing to 3.73 and lifting to allow for 40" tires (changing to either 16" or 17" wheels) would give a little better mud performance without too much of an adverse effect on high-speed desert travel. Which really wouldn't bother me much, since deserts are few & far between up here. |
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I, and people in my unit, have SLAUGHTERED Hmmwv's offroad. I know their advantages and disadvantages intimately. They are good trucks, and very capable across a wide variety of terrain, and in a wide configuration of uses. THAT was what they where adopted for. To replace something like 15-20 civilian single purpose vehicles, with one single vehicle. As such it can climb, traverse, carry machine guns, be an ambulance, drive off landing craft across beaches, ford rivers, so on and so forth. Hummers, like the M151 MUTT jeeps, won't get sold to the public because they do not meet highway saftey or EPA standards. Some got out (some always do) but DRMO stuff won't hit the market like it used to. |
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Quoted: If you could drop a new engine in them and narrow them up you'd go a long way towards fixing the more serious issues. They are that wide because they use a V8. How about an I4 running a driveshaft to a rear transaxle and powering an electric motor up front for 4x4 at under 50 kph. Just a thought. Wide because they have a V-8?  Or wide because they are wide ass trucks designed to carry a variety of different configurations and need the stability to traverse? I don't see the engine in this picture necessitating the vehicle HAVING to be wide. |
| I know down here at the Nogales POE, the US Customs guys have two surplus Humvees - both are the newer models with the upgraded suspensions (but not the uparmored); they all look like new (never used) so my guess is that they came from the USAF (Davis-Monthan AFB is close by and Luke AFB is a few hours away). |
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Have you ever seen one all torn down? The driveshaft runs alongside the engine. The engine itself is pushed to the right, which is why the TC has less room than the driver. The driveshaft runs alongside the engine in every 4x4. The engine is only 2 or 3 inches off center. |
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Quoted: Quoted: For $100,000 I could build a much better truck... They originally cost $60k for civilian purchase when produced by AM General. The Hummer H1's were generally in the $100k+ range brand new. The plant in Mishawaka would produce the HMMWVs and H1s, but another plant in Mishawaka produced the Hummer H2 which is based on a commercial platform (Tahoe or something). Like the F150 Raptor, the HMMWV is pretty good offroad. On paved surfaces, they are SLOW and the HMMWV is a rickety piece of junk. I thought it was going to fall apart over rough roads. The geared hubs are also noisy as heck. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: For $100,000 I could build a much better truck... They originally cost $60k for civilian purchase when produced by AM General. The Hummer H1's were generally in the $100k+ range brand new. The plant in Mishawaka would produce the HMMWVs and H1s, but another plant in Mishawaka produced the Hummer H2 which is based on a commercial platform (Tahoe or something). Like the F150 Raptor, the HMMWV is pretty good offroad. On paved surfaces, they are SLOW and the HMMWV is a rickety piece of junk. I thought it was going to fall apart over rough roads. The geared hubs are also noisy as heck. When they where introduced for civilian sale in 92, the base price was $40,500, all options was $54,000 when sold by AM General. They didn't hit $100K until GM took over manufacture and sale and it became the H1 Alpha. I've done 90+ mph in A2 hmmwv's on pavement, which is pretty damn fast for a diesel. As for being a rickety piece of junk? The ones I've used in the military held up VERY well for what they where put through. I can't think of any civilian truks that can routinly get swamped in the ocean, carry 10k lbs of shit, get airborne 2-3 times a week, powerslide trough every dirt road in Camp Pendleton, and keep doing it year after year. Geared hubs noisy? Can't hear shit over the fan anyways.  |
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You make them sound indestructible, and yet mine has had, in the last year, a completely new front end and engine installed, along with sections of wiring, the generator and numerous small parts.
For $54,000 in quantities of thousands you could get one hell of a truck built... One of the problems with the HMMWVs is that there haven't been many upgrades. It's 1980s tech and manufacturing techniques. I have no doubt that we could do better. |
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Quoted: You make them sound indestructible, and yet mine has had, in the last year, a completely new front end and engine installed, along with sections of wiring, the generator and numerous small parts. For $54,000 in quantities of thousands you could get one hell of a truck built... One of the problems with the HMMWVs is that there haven't been many upgrades. It's 1980s tech and manufacturing techniques. I have no doubt that we could do better. The trucks made by AM General, operating within their load limits, where pretty tough. The GM vehicles? maybe not so much anymore. My first gun truck, in late 2000, early 2001 was a hardback that had been used by the Army in Desert storm, then given to the Marines in 29 palms, then given to us in Pendleton. All our a1's were made between 86 and 88. The ONLY reason they where replaced by a2's is that the Motor T Master Guns told us that we would get replacement trucks as the A1's became unserviceable. The amount of abuse the trucks took was STAGGERING. (A1's can take a 6' drop better than a2's fwiw). The only major problems the HUmvee has right now is they are being tasked with supporting more then they where designed to. All they started as is a big boxy 1 1/2 ton pick up truck. Once all the up armor and huge turrets started getting added on, it's enough to kill anything that's not designed for the weight. |
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One thing about military vehicles, it's it's hard to compare them to civilian vehicles. hmmwv's get BEAT HARD for decades. Imagine giving the keys of your 4x4 to an 18 year old who may or may not have any experience driving. Then tell him to get behind the wheel. Give him a set of rules that he's guaranteed not to follow. Now instead of this kid learning the tricks of the trade, and how to be easy and gentle on the car, wait till he has 6 months to a year of experience, then put another brand new driver behind the wheel. Imagine if your daily driver was driven by a succession of new drivers, for 10 years. |
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Quoted: The Range rover Land rovers don't have the capability for multiple uses that the hmmwv does. They also have a bad rap for suffering worse than the hmmwv does with up armoring (can't take the weight). Some of thier military specific vehicles are pretty cool, but are still not the jack of all trades that the hmmwv is intended to be.There are other military vehicles that do OK. Range Rover makes some. Mercedes makes some too. The Mercedes vehicles? I was an IFAV (M1511) driver. They are pretty shitty. Unimogs are cool, and arguably better in certain offroad situations, but much larger than the Hmmwv's as well AFAIK not fitting in C-130's. The Hmmwv does so well in it's intended role, because it was built FOR that role. One platform can be a TOW hardback, or have an Avenger ADA turret on it, or an Ambulance shell, or a Comm van, or a pick up bed. It'll sling under Helo's, and fit in C-130's. It will ford rivers and beaches, and tucks nicely onto LCAC's. |
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If you could drop a new engine in them and narrow them up you'd go a long way towards fixing the more serious issues. They are that wide because they use a V8. How about an I4 running a driveshaft to a rear transaxle and powering an electric motor up front for 4x4 at under 50 kph. Just a thought. 
Uhhhhh, no. |
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Quoted: How many miles are on it, and how much additional weight? Is it an A1 or A2?Quoted: The trucks made by AM General, operating within their load limits, where pretty tough. The GM vehicles? maybe not so much anymore. Mine is a 1994 model. If it's an A1, they are only rated for 2500 lbs of cargo including passengers. 4 guys and all their gear can eat up half of that not counting any additional cargo, weapons, or armor. |
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How many miles are on it, and how much additional weight? Is it an A1 or A2? I'd have to look at the data plate and odometer. It has been refurbished once already. I have one with a hard top and one with a soft top and nothing in the back. Another unit took the tailgate and top. Quoted:
Spur gears will do that every time. If they'd used helical gears the noise would have gone down and there'd be more gear-to-gear contact area as well. 2006 H1As used helical gears. Quoted:
The Hmmwv does so well in it's intended role, because it was built FOR that role. One platform can be a TOW hardback, or have an Avenger ADA turret on it, or an Ambulance shell, or a Comm van, or a pick up bed. It'll sling under Helo's, and fit in C-130's. It will ford rivers and beaches, and tucks nicely onto LCAC's. Good point. |
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2006 H1As used helical gears.
Probably to handle the greatly increased power of the Duramax. I never read much about the H1A, other than to find out that the engine is shoehorned in there so tightly that doing even routine maintenance has to be nearly impossible. Because of that, I'd never buy one even if I had the money and could justify spending it. |
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2006 H1As used helical gears.
Probably to handle the greatly increased power of the Duramax. I never read much about the H1A, other than to find out that the engine is shoehorned in there so tightly that doing even routine maintenance has to be nearly impossible. Because of that, I'd never buy one even if I had the money and could justify spending it. They had to install a 2 inch(?) body lift just to get the Duramax to fit. |
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Quoted: Quoted: If you could drop a new engine in them and narrow them up you'd go a long way towards fixing the more serious issues. They are that wide because they use a V8. How about an I4 running a driveshaft to a rear transaxle and powering an electric motor up front for 4x4 at under 50 kph. Just a thought. Wide because they have a V-8? http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Humvee_maintenance.jpg Or wide because they are wide ass trucks designed to carry a variety of different configurations and need the stability to traverse? I don't see the engine in this picture necessitating the vehicle HAVING to be wide. Fify. lol. All hate aside. I would rock one. |
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Does anyone know if these ever show up on the government auction sites? I've noticed around town that local LEO have been driving around in what looks like surplus HMMWV's and I would be interested in purchasing one if possible. There are a few on Ebay but I've never seen any for sale on the government liquidation sites. I own a 1998 AM General HUMMER, the civilian version. I've owned it for over 4 years and am pretty well versed in HUMMER/HMMWV knowledge. HMMWVs do show up on a few of the gov auction sites, but will not sell to a private party (civilian). The handful of HMMWVs out there that are "transferable" (ie have clean titles) were only available from the first models around 1985 to sometime around 1990/1991 timeframe (IIRC). You can upgrade it all you want to incorporate all the latest features/upgrades (armor, drivetrain, seats, lighting, cooling systems, etc). You can find the privately owned HMMWVs on ebay, or various internet classified sections. There are a few that specialize in HUMMERs/HMMWVs, this would be a good starting point. http://www.hummermarketplace.com/viewforum.php?f=55&sid=2059481c4ad619194b2439a23bc77b71 There's lots to know about the maintenace aspect, you really should be the "mechanical" type and be inclined to fix things yourself. I can definitely point you to some good HMMWV sites. |
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For $100,000 I could build a much better truck... They originally cost $60k for civilian purchase when produced by AM General. The Hummer H1's were generally in the $100k+ range brand new. The plant in Mishawaka would produce the HMMWVs and H1s, but another plant in Mishawaka produced the Hummer H2 which is based on a commercial platform (Tahoe or something). Like the F150 Raptor, the HMMWV is pretty good offroad. On paved surfaces, they are SLOW and the HMMWV is a rickety piece of junk. I thought it was going to fall apart over rough roads. The geared hubs are also noisy as heck. When they where introduced for civilian sale in 92, the base price was $40,500, all options was $54,000 when sold by AM General. They didn't hit $100K until GM took over manufacture and sale and it became the H1 Alpha. I've done 90+ mph in A2 hmmwv's on pavement, which is pretty damn fast for a diesel. As for being a rickety piece of junk? The ones I've used in the military held up VERY well for what they where put through. I can't think of any civilian truks that can routinly get swamped in the ocean, carry 10k lbs of shit, get airborne 2-3 times a week, powerslide trough every dirt road in Camp Pendleton, and keep doing it year after year. Geared hubs noisy? Can't hear shit over the fan anyways.
Close. They became over $100K yes when GM purchased the "HUMMER" name in 2001 or so. My 1998 AM General HUMMER retailed between $70K-$80K. 2002 was the first year of the "H1" since that is when the H2 was conceived. Prior to that the "H1" was just "HUMMER". The H1 Alpha only refers to the 2006 models with the Duramax/Allison drivetrain. There actually are a few 2006 non Alphas out there (fleet models). |
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2006 H1As used helical gears.
Probably to handle the greatly increased power of the Duramax. I never read much about the H1A, other than to find out that the engine is shoehorned in there so tightly that doing even routine maintenance has to be nearly impossible. Because of that, I'd never buy one even if I had the money and could justify spending it. The helical geared hubs were designed to be quieter when decelerating and to reduce the rocking motion as the vehicle comes to a stop. Never heard that it was due to the Duramax power. |