Raser Technologies develops 100MPG Hummer H3 just to spite Al Gore
By Laura June 
posted Apr 28th 2009 3:01PM
posted Apr 28th 2009 3:01PM
That's right: last week at SAE World Congress, Raser Technologies unveiled a prototype Hummer H3 that gets 100 miles to the gallon. Insane, right? We agree. Raser partnered up with FEV to turn the famously non-environmentally sound gas guzzler around. The prototype boasts an E-REV power train engine, and three lithium ion battery packs under the rear of the vehicle. The batteries provide enough juice for about 40 miles, when the range extender starts up, providing an additional 400 miles -- averaging about 100 MPG -- before it needs to be plugged in again. The company is looking to start up low volume production by 2011, though there is no word on possible pricing at this time. Hey -- who says electric cars have to be small, tasteful affairs? Fierce! One more shot after the break.
[Via Inhabitat, Autoblog Green]
[Via Inhabitat, Autoblog Green]
Now just take those mileage numbers, and put them in a reasonably sized sedan, and you'll have saved the American auto industry!
You have clearly not seen the price. It will be $100k +
Plus, this is totally disingenuous. Gas mileage ≠ energy efficiency.
#1 If they can make a HUMMER get 100mpg, then The escalade, Expedition, Navigator, and every other full sized SUV should to.
#2 Even if a Hummer got 1000 MPG, it wouldn't change the fact it has a tight, cramped interior and its "utility" space pales in comparison to every other full sized SUV on the market.
#3 If a Hummer gets 100MPg, will the ecoterrorists stop attacking them?
1.Yes
2.Yes
3.NO
The H3 is not a full size SUV, it's a mid size. The others you listed are all much bigger than a H3 and have large V8's. Most H3's only have inline 5's.
I really don't understand why the H3 is used to bash only the US auto industry.
A base, AWD, Hummer H3 gets 16mpg on a combined cycle.
A base, AWD, Toyota FJ Cruiser gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Toyota Sequoia gets 14mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Toyota Tundra gets 15mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, VW Touareg gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Nissan Armada gets 14mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Saab 9-7X gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Volvo XC 90 gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
The H3 has a lot of company.
@HunterXI
That's actually the definition of gas mileage... a measure of gas (which has a finite amount of energy per unit) vs distance. It's 100% about efficiency.
@Sully
I think he is referring to the overall energy efficiency, from both gasoline and electrical sources, since it looks like the batteries have to be charged to get the gas mileage figure.
If you want to bash the Hummer you should do it for it's poor handling, crappy visibility, interior quality and features, road comfort and more. Which are standard complaints about US manufacturing. The fact it sucks up gas should be secondary to the fact it's a massively overpriced and under-featured piece of crap compared to other SUVs.
The only good thing about the commercial Hummer is the Torsen differential system but since 99.9% of people who buy them never go off road it's completely fucking wasted.
It's like buying a gold plated Aztec. It may be expensive but it's just a large mobile sign saying "I am such a moron."
What I don't seem to understand is what the obsession is with these things. If you ever had to spend a shit load of time stuck in an actual HMMWV, you would want to be as far from the fucking things as possible.
I still don't get it. The oversized hybrid vehicle left and I was not on the oversized hybrid vehicle.
@Yodaman: In NYC, where I live, it's a common spectacle to see a larger vehicle like the ones you mentioned get stuck trying to go down a side street, causing traffic on that street to stop for a few minutes. Albeit, this usually happens because of improper parking causing the street to be smaller, or the drivers stupidity, but it still happens a lot and is insanely annoying for most drivers, though not for me...
Public transportation FTW!
I still really dislike the Hummer. Gas mileage or not, it's too big and wide to drive on city streets. Even if you weren't on city streets and had plenty of space, there are other much better options out there comparable to the shitty Hummer line.
I think most would agree with you. I see these at grocery stores next to my small car and hope to god I never get next to one when they want to merge. I have one of those really small older cars, almost got ran off the road by a Explorer and even that's like 3 times the size of my car.
When it comes to the H1, although a kick ass vehicle for off-roading, I agree completely on its size in comparison to city streets and parking spaces. However when you look at the size of the more recent models of the Hummer line up in comparison to other SUV's out there, they aren't all that big, they are even smaller in some cases.
na, the newer h2 and h3's have gotten smaller and smaller, the old h1 ya it was massive and the h2 was still big but its not THAT big
This is an H3 which is classified as a mid-size SUV. It is a lot smaller than the H2 and pretty much the same size as an Explorer.
Other things "too big to drive on city streets" that seem to fit just fine: School buses. Transit buses. Delivery vans. Hell, most modern pickups that are just as wide, and longer than, an H2.
Your silly, anti-Hummer prejudice is showing. At least attempt to make a rational argument.
The H3 is much smaller. I went to a Hummer dealership once. They had an H1 in the main room. There actually isn't much up-down room, but man is it wide. in the driver's seat you can barely reach the passenger seat. It even has air compressors that inflate and deflate the tires for different terrain. They also had an H2 with LCDs in the seat backs and a mobile satellite on the roof.
Yodaman, you can't honestly be comparing a poorly designed, over-sized consumer vehicle such as this, that serves no purpose aside from flashiness, to practical commercial vehicles that take commuters to their jobs and kids to school. School buses and transit buses may be too big for city streets but that's because the volume of people in this city demands such large public transportation. Even pick up trucks, most of the time (in NYC) are used for commercial purposes, not for flashy joy riding.
You are correct in that I do have a prejudice against the Hummer series. They weren't a good idea to begin with. I just feel like the first one was the best looking but the most impractical, and the 2 and 3 got progressively uglier, but a bit smaller. Just doesn't make up for the fact that they should not exist in this global economic/environmental climate. They are a token of American inefficiency.
@mvp
I have yet to see a dirty Hummer. Few people use these things for off-roading. Pickups, on the other hand, come into town caked with mud.
Absolutely I am. You said "it's too big and wide to drive on city streets." That's a ridiculous statement, considering all of the bigger, longer, heavier, wider vehicles that operate just fine on city streets. Clearly, Hummers are neither too big nor too wide to drive on city streets. I just want to make sure you understand that. You do, right?
Now you want to amend your statement - it's too big and wide "for personal transportation." I hope you feel the same about limousines, which are often ferrying around a single executive. Lastly, as long as you're talking about inefficiency, I assume you feel the same about other less efficient, "frivolous" forms of transportation: RVs and Boats use substantially more fuel than Hummers. Pickups are often used for personal transportation and use about the same amount of fuel, as do virtually all older V8 powered muscle cars and most modern exotics. As long as you're willing to take all of these items off the market along with the Hummer, then I won't call you a hypocrite.
Hey, I won't argue with you about NYC: I've been there and there's no way in hell I'd own a Hummer there (actually, I doubt I'd own a vehicle at all). However, as great as NYC is (I loved the city and would like to visit again some time), it isn't representative of the vast majority of the United States, which is, by and large, wide open country. You know, the sort of places where the Hummer was created to be.
@BigD145
I don't know about where you live but where I'm from (Rochester, MI) Hummers are a pretty common thing on the road, especially for the teenagers because of the over-protective parents. So when you mix just the slightest bit of mud/dirt/snow with a teenager and their hummer, you end up with dozens of dirty rides throughout town. Hell, even some of the grown-ups get their hands a little muddy.
I still believe your comparison is completely off base. I actually DO feel the same about all forms of travel that are frivolous and flashy. Oh, and by the way, the Hummer was not created to drive around the united states for fun at all. It was designed for off-road military applications. You DO understand that don't you?
The irony of people complaining about the size of H2's and H3's is overwhelming - it's fairly obvious you haven't spent any time really looking at one. The H2 rides on the GMT800 platform, which means it carries the same width and wheel base of (for starters) the Sierra / Silverado, Yukon / Tahoe, Express, etc. The H3 rides on the GMT355, which is the same platform that GM's small trucks (Colorado, Canyon) are based on. So neither of those 2 vehicles is wider / longer than the majority of pickups and SUV's on the road...
@ Carmine - Actually, the HMMWV (High Mobility Multi Wheeled Vehicle) was created for the U.S. military. The Hummer (H2, and H3) is a civilianized model of the HMMWV that was specifically created to be driven on and off civilian roads (though I don't ever think I've seen someone use it for offroading). And your comments sound really communist. If I am doing well for myself, why should I not be able to buy something flashy and powerful? Would you have every last human driving the same high-powered electric go-kart? Don't get me wrong, I love new technology, but until the auto industry puts out an electric Camaro that matches the HP of the IC engine variants, I'll stick with my gas powered beast, thank you very much!
what about those electric card, INIFITE MPG? wonder how much additional you need to pay on your monthly electric bills when you save some on gas.
is it really fair to say it gets '100 mpg' if it needs to be plugged in? i think we need another measure of fuel efficiency for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.
I agree, people have this false impression that if you plug it in, it is like gas for free. You are paying money to charge it, although the electricity will likely cost less than the equivalent gasoline.
A standardized MPG type measure for electric vehicles is exactly what we need. That being said, it'll be postponed until the everyday consumer demands it, which wont be for awhile. Everybody is too engrossed in saying that they're "green" and have an "electric car" to care if its actually costing them more than gas.
@ Dean:
Not when the electric companies decide to gouge prices. You think OPEC is bad? Just wait until electric companies know that you HAVE to use their electricity to get around. Service fees will skyrocket. Just look how much service fees go up in the summer when people run air conditioners. On the other hand, its not like Natural Gas companies are any better. They up their service fees and prices per unit in the winter time as well.
Besides that, the numbers are pure BS. I want to know the mpg AFTER the batteries are dead. All plug-in hybrids should be forced to rate mileage at that point. It's misleading to count the first gas-free 40 miles when making a claim about miles per gallon of gas. You aren't running on gas for those miles, therefore they can't be used to count miles per GALLON.
These vehicles should have two ratings:
1. Miles per kilowatt hour in EV mode.
2. Miles per gallon in series-hybrid mode.
"MPC" = Miles per Charge?
For pure electric vehicles, we can use miles per kilowatt hour.
For plug-in hybrids, it's messy, since there's too many variables.
Perhaps we need to define what a standard charge unit is in kilowatt hours, then say miles per gallon @ standard charge.
i just think thats funny
Ahem... 100mpg = marketing froo froo.
Might want to leave car stuff to car people ;)
"100 MPG" Electric Hummer H3 Doesn't Actually Get 100 MPG"
http://jalopnik.com/5219773/100-mpg-electric-hummer-h3-doesnt-actually-get-100-mpg
too bad the chance of hummers survival is about nil.
hope they didnt spend a lot of money on research and development.
and for those complaining about the size (and the misrepresentation/nisunderstanding from the article)... this is the h3 they are dealing with. not the massive gas guzzling h2. the h3 gets average gas mileage already (19mpg realistically)... so its not exactly difficult to accomplish.
I thought Hummer was going to disappear? Perhaps too late for something like this...
It is as soon as the inventory is exhausted. GM will support for 5 years after that. Same thing for Pontiac and Saturn.
Hummer is gone. Unless this company can persuade GM into keeping it around, they aren't going to have a platform for this. GM has been looking to drop Hummer for over a year (along with Saab and possibly Saturn)
wow guys, you do realize the ENGINE the gas recharger is what their saying gives 100mpg you do realize that right? cause the electric engine on only electric only goes the first 40miles, on a full charge, the other 400 miles are on GAS at 100mpg acording to the report.
These hybrids are smart now because they figured out finally that regular car engines are INEFFICIENT AS HELL, and a small efficient generator powering batteries is a lot more efficient
400 miles at 100MPG...So, it has a 4 gallon gas tank? I'm not sure if you're interpreting things correctly.
No actually, it's not. Read the original link and you can see that they are in fact using the dishonest "math" that everyone pretty much knows they are using. Common sense should be enough to know that you can't get a legitimate 100mpg pushing around that vehicle. Maybe if they figure out how to make the IC-engine part of it better then 100% energy efficient (hint: never).
This issue is confusing enough already, but these companies know exactly what they're doing when they come out with these idiotic claims. All they're doing is throwing away any hope of having a shred of credibility.
Wooot! Gotta get me one of these! "City slickers" have no need for 4WD, but it comes in really handy in deep snow midwest winters
Yeah, and the Honda Insight is actually weaker than a Prius. No way you could drive that in the winter.
Is it peeing on Al Gore's foot, as well?
"The batteries provide enough juice for about 40 miles, when the range extender starts up, providing an additional 400 miles -- averaging about 100 MPG -- before it needs to be plugged in again"
Thats some horrible reporting. It only averages about 100 MPG on a 65mile trip. You'd have to extrapolate the data out past the last data point given "200 miles at 33MPG" to arrive at the actual average for a 440 mile trip.
You had better start having editors screen the articles Engadget, you're starting to lose credibility with your reporting. This isn't the first time I've read the actual source only to find out Engadget had horrible misreported the facts.
It's not engadget's fault (although I think they should have presented this data a little more criticallly), it's the makers of this monstrosity that have made up these numbers out of their asses to make this piece of shit look better on paper...
They might as well say, it gets infinite number of miles per gallon*
(*-only moving downhill)
@Carmine
Hey Carmine - don't knock the H3 - it rides very nice and is so comfortable and a pleasure to drive. The gas mileage is just about the same as every other SUV out there. The H3 is NOT too big to drive on the city streets. Are you nuts? I live in New Haven, CT and it is just fine. Don't talk trash about something you know nothing about. The vehicle is comfortable and smooth and will get us through anything if needed. Also, it has every neat electrical feature and comfort that you could possibly want. My H3 is black with chrome and I keep it sparkling clean. Everywhere we go it gets looks so shut your pie hole.
SC Syndrome?
You're saying you can tout genetalia-derived insecurity, AND be green about it? Yay!
I hope your bandwagon ride stays smooth, you rich CT prick.
Oh, and enjoy the "looks" around town.
Hahahahajajahajajajajajajha! I missed that one the first time around.
"don't talk trash about something you know nothing about" - just because they're looking at you doesn't mean they think you're cool; they're probably thinking the same thing I am:
"Tool."
Thanks for the good laugh man.
This has got to be a troll -- nobody could really be this pompous, right? Regardless, this is the funniest thing I've read all day!
So they're gutting the internals and completely changing everything about the way the car runs and only keeping the shell design. Hmm, sounds like it's not a hummer then. Sounds like they're KIRF
In my book, if it looks like a hummer, and is big, ugly, and wide enough to be a significant inconvenience in the parking lot, then it's a hummer.
The only real Hummer was the H1. H2 and H3 are not Hummers.
Matt: I don't know about the H3 as I haven't looked at them much, but the H2 is most definitely a Hummer. Go look at the off-road reviews when the vehicle was first released in 2003, before all the Hummer-hating greenies started spewing their bullshit. Read reviews from the likes of Car & Driver, Autoweek, etc. The H2 is exceptionally capable off road. As capable as an H1, no. More capable than nearly everything else? Yes.
(And yes, I've seen the videos showing stock Hummers breaking off road while tricked-out Jeeps run circles around 'em. For one, compare stock with stock; for two, for every "Jeep kicks Hummer's ass" video you can find, I can find one with the opposite results. Go read what the professionals have to say. Check this Autoweek article, to start: http://www.lynchhummer.com/h2pages/autoweek.6.10.02.html)
how un-american...
Hahaha! Nice one!
The next post that uses "Fierce!" to describe something other than a tiger or badger will be the last Engadget post I ever read again.
This is not Project Runway.
Did somebody say Badger?
www.badgerbadgerbadger.com
Mushroom! Mushroom!
I think facts are enough to spite Al Gore.
They can fix the mileage, but they can't fix the butt-ugly
So it... only holds 4 gallons?
So very tired of this bucket of bolts getting free press on its MPG lies. How exactly can a Hummer H3 of all beasts get better MPG with a powertrain that follows the same design (electric vehicle + big battery pack + gas range-extending "generator") as a Chevy Volt get more than double its MPG rating? Snake oil at its finest.
And to shoehorn this all into a niche SUV whose brand name personifies the gas-guzzling peak of wasteful American consumerism, will likely very soon disappear into the annals of history and is an abomination that should have never happened.
Look up above and someone posted a link to an article about it that had more information. The engadget article is misleading.
That said, I can tell you why the Hummer as a consumer vehicle came into being. First, someone wanted it. Then, someone made it. Finally, a transaction took place. For a time period, that was what happened till total cost of ownership and guilt tripping by environmentalists rose too high for the average person in the target demographic and sales declined.
But no, you're right, people shouldn't make things some people want because other people don't want them. That's just uncool man.
Cool concept. That said, this isn't practical for production as is, it's TWICE the cost of a normal Hummer, and 0-60 in what, 6 minutes?
I can see Hollywood buying up a ton of these.
"Look, world, I'm green!"
This H3 is a cute little toy. But an electric SUV without a third row of seats seem pointless unless you haul around lots of things all the time. Small electric vehicles are great. But the world needs a practical electric vehicle for people with kids more than anything right now. We only have two little kids, but it would be insanely helpful to have a third row of seats. Here's my idea of the perfect vehicle:
The vehicle would be a FWD rounded wagon shape a little bigger than my WRX wagon. The engine compartment would be made shorter allowing the passenger compartment to be moved forward and include a fold-down third row of seats. The turbocharged boxer engine would be replaced with both a tiny gas engine and an electric motor. Stuff some batteries in the back end and we are in business. Give it a range of 40 miles on battery before the gas engine kicks in. Chevy is right on with the idea that the range does not need to be huge. Do all of this stuff for under $25k.
another problem with these is that if you drive less than 40 miles/day like 75% of people (according to their article), then the gas in the tank will get stale. Say you don't use that gas for a few months, what's going to happen when you finally do? That won't be good for the generator.
That's a good question. Maybe you'd have to get in the habit of not plugging in every once in a while to ensure the gas engine kicks in? I don't know if that'd be feasible; it'd certainly be somewhat inconvenient.
60 days is the longest you'd want to keep it.
Maybe have to use something like this: http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/ast.aspx
It gets 100MPG for the first 65 miles. After that the mpg drops and appears to rest at about 33MPG for an entire trip.
This still does not negate the fact that it is a huge ugly box on wheels, with horrendous reliability and quality, and a nuisance to other drivers with whom you presume to "share" the road. I assure you, people looking at you whilst driving this are not thinking good thoughts.
Projecting your attitudes onto others is rarely a good idea.
When they do that with a Jeep Wrangler I'm in!
Jonyah.
As a person who prides myself on seeing the flaws in things, I'm mad that I didn't think about that stale gas thing.
Perhaps the answer is easy. Make the range 20 miles to cut the battery cost in half while making it use enough gas that you need to replace it a tiny bit more frequently.
For what it's worth, I seldom drive my WRX as I work at home and we save money by driving the wife's Civic. So sometimes I only fill up my gas tank every other month and I've never ran into a stale gas issue.
Uh, Engadget? The H3 is not a "gas guzzler." 18-mpg on the freeway is about the same as other SUVs, pickups, etc. Let's drop the "OMFG IT'S AN EVIL HUMMER" bullshit, OK?
Note what the article says:
"before it needs to be plugged in again."
In other words, this is a PLUG-IN Electric car with Hybrid capabilities. For all we know to get that 400 miles you have to pay $1000 to charge the batteries.
The car is not charging the batteries on the fly like other Hybrids.
In this one you're paying for Gas AND paying for Electricity.
Nice work, Hummer!
Wow. I think you should read the article, as you clearly don't understand a lot of it.
wow!
ad
Other posters have pointed out the number cooking going on to get the "100 mpg" claim.
But really the quick "sniff" test is this: how can a big & heavy car get 100 mpg under any circumstances?
Not impossible but it would entail way way more than a drivetrain swap.
You drive it downhill and push it uphill.
It's the right idea but the wrong way to go about it. The electricity to charge is minimal. Like 1% the cost of gas. What about the electromagnetic field? Could it be dangerous?
http://jamesmsingleton.com
It's pissing me off too.
Why take advantage of this economics crisis to make American vehicles less obnoxious?
The summary isn't entirely correct, and the artiel itself is somewhat misleading.
If you never charge and just use gasoline to recharge the batteries, the fuel efficiency is 33 MPG.
The 100MPG figure comes from driving 65 miles a day, meaning that the first 40 miles is electric only, and you burn less than a gallon of gas to go the other 25 miles, meaning that you covered 65 total miles on about 2/3 a gallon of gas, or 65 miles per .67 gallon of gas, or about 100MPG. This is very misleading, and not accurate. If you are using some other energy source to go 40 miles and not burning gas you cannot just say 100MPG, because the electricity is not free, and not equivalent to gasoline.
The accurate (and non hyperbolic marketing bullshit) way to describe this is: The first 40 miles use energy stored in the battery at about 10 to 15 cents per kWh. Once the battery is exhausted the vehicle consumes gasoline at the rate of 33MPG.
Based on what I've read in the article this thing probably has a 10 kWh, maybe a 15 kWh battery pack, meaning that charging it uses a little over 10 (or 15) kWh in my area that would cost about $1.10 to $1.85, not bad to go 40 miles. Would be nice to know how big the battery pack actually is. Even if it has a 20 kWh pack that only about $2.20, which is still pretty good from a cost per mile perspective.
Plug-in electric hybrid H3 with 100+MPG... Nice. But, what about horse power, off road ability, all that? Keep in mind that the all electric Tesla is gauged for around twice that in MPGs, but if you drive it like a sports car it's more like 50 miles and you're dead out of power. I'm all for it, except that this application in the H3 is rubbish if it robs the vehicle of its intended usefulness.
I really don't understand why you're attacking only the US auto industry.
A base, AWD, Hummer H3 gets 16mpg on a combined cycle.
A base, AWD, Toyota FJ Cruiser gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Toyota Sequoia gets 14mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Toyota Tundra gets 15mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, VW Touareg gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Nissan Armada gets 14mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Saab 9-7X gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
A base, AWD, Volvo XC 90 gets 16mpg on a combined cycle
The H3 has a lot of company.
Ignore this.
It was supposed to be a response to a post earlier on. It makes no sense on it's own.
As others have pointed out, it's ridiculous to claim an MPG number that includes running in full electric vehicle mode. The equivalent MPG calculation for an all-electric vehicle would be infinity.
Great and all, but when it's gonna cost $20,000 to do this then you're NOT SAVING ANY FRICKEN MONEY. You'd have to drive that for 30 years to save any money on gas when you cough up $20,000 at the start. BAD money saving strategy.
Pow-pow-power wheels! Pow-pow-power wheels! Power Wheels! Power makes it go! (TM)
I kinda don't get how any vehicles that are plugged in should have an MPG rating. I mean, doesn't this MPG rating in a vacuum ignore that much of the power come from electricity? How can a genuinely low MPG car (one that is small, aerodynamic, uses regenerative technologies) be compared to one that's heavy, not-at-all-aerodynamic, and only get's its low MPG through it's heavy reliance on electricity?
This does not average 100mpg over 400 miles. Your data is incorrect.
In order to be 100mpg, it would have to use only 4 gallons of gas in those 400 miles. But even though it might use 0 for the first 40 miles, those 4 gallons are going to carry it less than 100 more miles past the first 40.
This thing is probably so gutted it weighs about 1200lbs before they put in the batteries.
They probably just remove the engine and the gastank...
People can't live without their plastic interiors or the cupholders.... and it's definitely still riding on the H3 carcass.
1200#.... !!! Yeah right!!!
I don't understand why these cars need to be "plugged in again." If once the battery is depleted then it goes to gas. Shouldn't that generate enough power to recharge the battery?
Who cares ... GM is jettisoning Hummer anyway. Good riddance.