Auto Trends

In 2005, the full-size Hummer H2 released its long awaited pickup version, appropriately called the H2 SUT.

For the Fall of 2009, the H3 is getting the same treatment with its upcoming Hummer H3T.

What is going to be the main differences between the two, besides about $30,000 in price… let’s take a look.

The $60,000 H2 SUT (Sport Utility Truck) is an aging icon most would say (and not particularly aging gracefully with the times). Yes, the H2’s popularity is suffering fierce because of its bulging, bullying, profile to the environment.

Visions of its large dubs tracking over wild flowers and cute little bunnies have gave the H2 somewhat of a bad name. As Edmunds.com so eloquently puts it, “In the beginning, driving a Hummer would produce a thumb’s up—today it could very well elicit another finger entirely.”

Size is one of the more obvious differences of the two. The H2 SUT is a huge “XXL” that make casual city driving a rather uncomfortable chore. The H3T is still plenty large… a healthy “L” we would say, but it is still small enough to maneuver in city traffic without needing to wipe too many Smart Fortwo casualties off your windshield.

The H3T has a five-passenger crew cab and five-foot bed, so the average driver will never miss the lost space of the behemoth H2. And with smaller size of course follows the convenience for less power to produce similar driving characteristics.

The H2 SUT has a large 6.2-liter V8 linked to a sturdy six-speed automatic transmission with manual shifting capability. The V8 was upgraded this year another 68 horsepower, raising the stakes to 393 horsepower and 415 lb-ft of torque. Enough to tow about 8,000 pounds.

The H2 is also claiming better fuel economy to go along with its new found horsepower, but vehicles this size aren’t even bothered to be rated by the EPA. Suffice to say, instead of sucking gas like a blue whale clearing it out its blow hole, it is probably more like a geyser fountain out front of the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas.

The H3T is a marked improvement in comparison. We didn’t get the 300 horsepower 3.5 liter turbocharged five-cylinder that was originally shown at the 2004 LA Auto Show, but a 242 horsepower 242 lb-ft torque 3.7 liter Vortec engine wasn’t a bad compromise.

While you aren’t going to be pulling around 8,000 pounds with the H3T, if you opt for the 5.3 liter small block V-8 with 300 horsepower, 320 lb-ft of torque, you cold at least pull up to 5,900 pounds. Both Hummer’s will have capable off road ability, with 17 inch all-terrain tires for the H2 SUT and 16 inch for the H3T (giving it respectable 10.2 inches of clearance).

All in all, the $30,000 H3T looks like a good compromise of urban assault without all the consumer verbal assault!

Continuing from our list of the best used cars from 1998 and up, we come to the letters T through V of the manufacturers alphabet:

Toyota 4Runner-

Toyota Avalon-

Toyota Camry (except ‘07 V6)-

Toyota Camry Solara-

Toyota Celica-

Toyota Corolla-

Toyota Echo-

Toyota Highlander-

Toyota Land Cruiser-

Toyota Matrix-

Toyota Prius-

Toyota RAV4-

Toyota Sequoia-

Toyota Sienna-

Toyota Tundra (except ‘07 V8 4WD)-

Here’s a good place to drop in a truck as a highlight. The Toyota Tundra is a refined workhorse from its aggressive design, size, and raw muscle (5.7 liter V-8, 381 horsepower). The Tundra is infamous for being the first import full-size truck to step up to the big three American truck giants (Chevrolet, Ford, and Dodge), as they snickered amongst themselves that it was probably just a Camry hiding in a half-ton’s clothing, and offer itself as an actual work capacity truck.

While it was exactly ushered to the front of the line for real hard core truck users, recreational users soon became enamored by the trucks actually respectable capabilities. So maybe it wasn’t quite up to the par of some real heavy duty bruisers the big three offered… but how many consumers really need all that bulk and mass to tow a small boat to the lake for a weekend.

The Tundra couldn’t have debuted at a better time, right smack during the entrance of the new millennium, which left people open to something new. They weren’t exactly taking all that big of a chance, Toyota practically takes up one quarter of this list, because their cars are so darn well put together. The Tundra was refined, smooth, powerful, reliable, and by all sense of the word, practical.

While in its early 2000 stage, the Tundra’s 3.4 liter V-6 (190 horsepower, 220 lb-ft torque) and 4.7 liter V-8 (245 horsepower, 315 lb-ft torque) were certainly smooth running, they were just not exactly powerful. This is where its common misconception formed that the Tundra is nothing more than a moderate recreational vehicle. That all changed in 2004 with the arrival of the double-cab, and then again in 2005 with the unveiling of their all new and improved powertrains, a 245 horsepower 4.0 liter V-6 and 282 horsepower 4.7 liter V-8.

Since then, the 2007 model has optioned the Tundra with a 5.7 liter V-8, with not only 381 horsepower, but also 401 lb-ft of torque. This has placed the Tundra in line with some of the heavier pulling half-tons in its class and has opened the eyes of some of those hard-core users to take a second look at Toyota.

This is a truck that anyone can afford, starting with a 2000 V-6 at around $4,300, on up to a 2007 5.7 V-8 fully loaded at $40,000.

Volvo S60-

The old Volvo S60 standby has become a great used buy in the price range of $8,000 to $20,000. This is one car that is much more recommended as a used vehicle than a new one, just because it hasn’t been redesigned in so long, you really aren’t getting anything worthy of a new car price. Not when there are so many other highly refined decisions out there to choose from.

In 2001, the S60 replaced the Volvo S70, offering a humble 2.4 liter (168 horsepower), a 2.4 Turbo (197 horsepower), and a 2.3 liter 5-cylinder (a.k.a. the T5) with 247 horsepower. 2002 saw the introduction of all-wheel-drive into the 2.4 T S60 as well as traction control and computerized engine management system.

2003 opened quite an impressive bump in performance with the introduction of the Volvo S60 R (pictured above). It featured a sport-tuned adaptive suspension, performance rated tires, 18 inch alloys, xenon lighting, and about 300 horsepower.

The R has since been discontinued, but it would make quite an interesting find for the sports enthusiast looking for that special something a little bit different than your average run of the mill BMW M3…

No, Volvo’s aren’t always ‘Grams’ and ‘Gramps’ cars.. they just sometimes look that way!

There are a record number of advice columns on how to save gas, discussing even the most minuet details that might offer one or two extra droplets at best. Some of us have tried every one of these tips, short of hanging outside the drivers side window holding onto a semi truck while in neutral.

But the cold hard facts are coming in and there is really only a few sure fire ways to save any worthwhile gas amounts and we break them down into nice and simple Do and Don’t rules to live by:

Do’s

• Do Drive at a reasonable constant speed. It has been found that driving 55 not only keeps you alive, but saves you as much as 5 to 10 mpg. Cruise control will prove to be a great ally in this effort.
• Do drive with your window down and air conditioner off when you are cruising at low speeds (20-30 mph) around town. This move is usually good for about 1 mpg.
• Do take those sand bags out of the trunk/truck bed in the summertime. Excessive weight decreases fuel economy.
• Do store items in your vehicle or garage rather than on top of your cargo rack whenever possible. The drag coefficient of items on a rack can drag your fuel economy down anywhere from 1 to 4 mpg.
• Do buy a more economical car. There really is no better way to save on gas, than to buy a vehicle that was made to do just that.

Don’ts

• Don’t bother getting gas in the late evening or early morning. The gas is stored in underground tanks, so there is little to no difference in temperature, which means you really are getting about the same amount of gas any time of the day.
• Don’t accelerate and brake heavily in traffic. This wastes energy and inertia and destroys your fuel economy by as much as 40 percent. Remember, the slow and steady turtle always wins the race when it comes to fuel economy… always!
• Don’t overinflate your tires. There is a limit where your safety outdoes any small amount of gas savings you would achieve from overinflated tires.
• Don’t turn off your air conditioner and role down your windows on the highway (40 mph and above) thinking you are saving gas. The negative effect in aerodynamics from the open window outdoes any of the gas saving effects of turning off your air conditioner.
• Don’t bother over zealously changing your air filter. In reality no matter how dirty your filters get, your fuel economy is always the same. Your vehicles computer compensates for the lack of air by reducing the amount of gas going into the engine. Follow the recommended tune-up procedure laid out by your manufacturer. That is all you should need to maintain your vehicles fuel efficiency.