I have to admit I don't share your optimism about the engine. Several factors played in to my choosing another vehicle over the H3 I had ordered (due to arrive next week.)
A big negative for me was the fact that the engine has weak power given its fuel economy. I still very much want a H3 or H?, whatever the next generation offering ends up being. There's no way GM significantly changes the engine for '07, as it would effectively trash the residual of the current H3. I am optimistic for 2008 that they redesign the engine and come up with something better suited to the H3 application. The I5 is a square peg forced into a round hole vis a vis the H3 IMO.
If you like the I5 I think that's swell. A lot of people have no problem with it. If it could get a legit 20 mpg in mixed driving, I would probably have settled for it, fewer questions asked of GM. People I know who have them are getting 15 mpg with mixed driving, heavy city drivers more like 14, and maybe 17.5 on a hwy trip, but not if you want to drive 80 mph. You gotta go slower, less than 70 mph to get 17+. That's just what I get from some other owners, YMMV.
When they have a Hummer that suits my driving style and requirements on AND off road, believe me I will be at the front of the line, foaming at the mouth. It more than meets them off road now, but has a lot to be desired on road, where let's face it, MOST of us do MOST of our driving.
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have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too Hummer wannabe
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