Owners say H2 commands attention
By Janis Mara
BUSINESS WRITER - Oakland Tribune
Sunday, June 01, 2003 - YOU CAN SCOFF at the Hummer H2 all you like, but Todd Barrow will tell you quite clearly why people buy it: "You can't find a bigger ego vehicle than the Hummer."
Barrow, contacted via consumer auto information site Edmunds.com, said he saw the H2 concept car in July 2000 and immediately put down a deposit.
"Eighteen months later, I got my H2. I've been happy with it ever since," he said.
Other owners contacted about their H2's had nothing but rave reviews for their cars.
"It helps my business," said Ron Mosley, who bought his H2 at Hummer of Pleasanton.
Mosley, who is the CEO of RBL Corp., a San Francisco real estate firm, said, "It makes a good impression on clients when you pull up in a car that has the aura of success.
"A million-dollar Realtor doesn't drive up in a jalopy," he said. "Clients are enthused when they see the H2. I have a Bentley, but my H2 is my drive-around car now. It's a conversation piece."
Mosley, who has a green H2, said he also likes the way it handles, though he did say the parking isn't very good in San Francisco.
Colleen Lemmons of Antioch said she and her husband Dennis are happy with the H2 they purchased in October 2002.
The two have not taken their H2
off-road yet "because the weather has been so nasty," she said. There have been a couple of minor problems with the car, "nothing with the engine," and these have been resolved, Lemmons said.
"The gas mileage is no different from other SUVs," Lemmons said.
Lemmons said she and her husband get "a lot of attention" when driving the H2. Also, "the grandkids love it," Lemmons said.
Barrow, a Cypress, Texas, sales manager for a builder, has a black Hummer, the most popular color, according to GM. The carmaker said 26 percent of Hummers are black, with pewter the next most popular and yellow coming in third.
Barrow mostly fits the demographic of H2 early buyers. A study released by GM in the first quarter of 2003 found that 73 percent are male, 77 percent are married, 78 percent are white and 57 percent are college graduates. The median age is 41 (Barrow is 34) and the median income is $215,475 (Barrow declined to give his income).
"People think it's hard to drive, but with the air suspension underneath, it rides smoother than my GMC Yukon XL," he said.
Barrow said he doesn't find parking difficult, though he does park at the far end of the lot. Mostly he drives around town, though he did go off-road once.
His mileage is 10.5 miles per gallon now that he has a roof rack.
"J.D. Powers (the widely cited automobile quality survey) bashed the H2 because of its gas mileage," Barrow said. "Well, you have something with a gross vehicle weight of 8,600 pounds fully loaded and the aerodynamics of a brick. If you expect to get great gas mileage out of it, you're an idiot."
The Lemmons found the vehicle's price competitive with other SUVs they were looking at.
"We liked the look of the H1, but it wasn't practical for driving around town," she said. "Pricewise, the H2 is reasonable compared to other SUVs. The H2 starts at around $50,000 and Range Rovers are around $70,000."
Carla Fillippone of Moraga and her husband Ross purchased their H2 in August. Like the Lemmons, Fillippone said her grandchildren love the car. She also said it's a good mountain car.
"We have a place in Tahoe and sometimes drive through snow," said Fillippone. "We carry chains but seldom have to use them. The tires are big and beefy."
The Fillippones used the car to pull a neighbor's car out of a ditch, she said, and also towed a boat with the H2. For months, Fillippone said, her husband yearned for an H2, but she kept insisting on a Suburban or a Chevy Tahoe. After driving an H2, she finally changed her mind.
"I picked Ross up at the BART station and surprised him," she said. "His jaw just dropped."
"I got major points for that one," said Fillippone, "but now he wants an H-1."
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