disappointment... then a question!

[JaKaL]

For months i have been wheelin' with my friends out in the jersey pine barrens with my H3 on 35x12.5 baja claws. Why is it that in sticky situations I have been getting out wheeled by a wrangler on 35x12.5 procomps? Just on pure weight i would imagine, but to be honest i was expecting a little more from something baring the HUMMER name. The wrangler, with ease gooes through mud that my h3 just sinks horribly in seconds in. When i get out there, people expect me to be in the lead, because its a hummer... then to realize its just like any other 6k lbs truck on 35s. Anyone else feel that this truck should have gone through a little more time on the drawing board? Should have went fully independent like the H1.

And now for a question...
Whats the best set up for mud...
4,4h,4L Locker- locked or unlocked Trac Control- On or Off?
What do you guys think before I trade this thing in for an H1? hah

[justforfun]

I normally use Low range 2 (or 3), stabilitrack off... still on the crappy Goodyear Wrangler 32's and goes through no problem....

[blindzebra]

opperator error I'd say. Granted we are a little heavy, but never have I had a problem going through mud. Most likely if you are getting stuck alot, You need to pick up your speed, and keep a high RPM so you have plenty of balls to keep your momentum steady.

[NEOCON1]

air down and momentum up

[Sewie]

The truck isn't the problem.......

[JaKaL]

Originally Posted by Sewie

The truck isn't the problem.......

In all fairness, i have been wheelin for almost 10 years, From Greensboro, NC to Ft. Lauderdale, FL to now the Wharton state forrest in NJ. In the ruts that the jeeps coast across, my h3 just sinks to the skid plates. I have gotten a good bit of speed, but take in mind, these arent flat straight mud pits, these are bumpy, ditched, mud ruts, to much speed and theres a good chance of destroying the whole front suspension. All that Im saying is, I just expected more from this truck...

Anyone in the S. jersey area is more then welcome to come and test thier might with this truck!

[RuggedH2]

I realize that conditions are all different from place to place, but I have run mud with Jeeps (with deep rutted tracks), and my 3 never did any worse than the Jeeps I run with all the time. I get that you have done all this for years, I just don't know what to tell ya other than momentum is key, and if you are hanging up on the frame, sooner or later you are going to get stuck

The Jeeps I wheel with are not stock, all of them have at least 35's on and so does my H3.

Those Toyo M/T's kick ass in mud. I have the Pro Comp AT's now on my H2. I haven't put those in the mud yet, it's 95 degrees everyday and there is no mud to be found close to here. Good Luck, I don't think it's just the weight of the rig.

[blindzebra]

you're totally right. If the truck isn't up to your specs, get something else. No harm no foul

[RuggedH2]

This hillbilly video always cracks me up.

That H2 is heavier than any H3 I know of, seems to go pretty good in those ruts though. It's always fun to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOUBUH7EyOc

[JaKaL]

Thanks for the feedback, just seein what everyone else's thoughts are on the subject, nice Vid too! I'll tryin hittin the mud a little harder and see what happens tomorrow! Got a full day of wheelin.

One more question, when the truck does get stuck i seem to have one wheel up front always not moving! What happened to this "as long as one wheel is on the ground you can move the truck" mumbo jumbo!?

[RazM]

Proof of ownership, please...

Seriously, you're talking a lot of **** for someone who's supposedly been wheeling for such a long time.

If you're doing so much offroading, figure it out yourself, that's what we've all done. There's not THAT much to try before you get used to the rig and see what works best.

Or go buy a Jeep and wonder how to fit 35's on without a lift

And one more thing, I see 13 posts, and majority are bitching. If you think i'm being an ass, well that's the reason.

[hummerabia]

We dont see a lot of mud over here, mostly sand so its not quite the same as you are facing. However while in the dunes 4Hi locked with Stab Sys off usually tackles most things, 4 Lo locked with diff locked for the tricky bits. Pretty fundamental stuff there IMO. The top and bottom is that the club I belong to has pretty well all brands of 4x4 represented but a lot of Jeeps, while the H3 will not comfortably sideslope a dune that a modded wrangler can I have never (well rarely anyway) found myself in a situation where I have been outdone by one, ie the H3 has always reached the top of the dune somehow I may not have taken the same route but this is where experience tells me I am not going to get 2 1/2 tons of truck through a particular way.
The Jeepers over here held the H3 in the "its firkin sh1te" bracket for a long while until they saw first hand what it could do on the dunes. STOCK!
The advantage I have over them is the H3's distinct comfort on the way home from a long day in the dunes.

[RuggedH2]

Originally Posted by JaKaL

Thanks for the feedback, just seein what everyone else's thoughts are on the subject, nice Vid too! I'll tryin hittin the mud a little harder and see what happens tomorrow! Got a full day of wheelin.

One more question, when the truck does get stuck i seem to have one wheel up front always not moving! What happened to this "as long as one wheel is on the ground you can move the truck" mumbo jumbo!?

Listen Jakal, you have been wheeling for years but you're still new here, you have stated that you're disappointed with the performance of the rig. Understand that you are not just insulting your own rig (and HUMMER), but everybody else here that drives the same truck (people will get pissed at ya). Every truck is gonna be a little different than others, you have to learn to drive this particular rig well. This truck is much more capable than most.

A good, experienced driver of a less capable rig - many times can outperform a more capable rig (look at the Hummer bashing videos of inexperienced drivers in their H1's, bested by Jeeps). Obviously, that doesn't mean a Jeep will always outperform an H1.

There is a video out there of a Jeep Liberty running the Z turn on Moab Rim (4+ obstacle). The guy driving it walks it and makes it look easy. That certainly doesn't mean that every Jeep Liberty can make this run, matter of fact, most - can't, period. That driver has made that run dozens of times in several different rigs- he knows where to put the truck.

There is no substitute for experience - most wheelers learn by doing. They can't be afraid to fail a few times. Extreme conditions require the knowledge of how far you can push it without breaking it. Most people can't know this without a little perspective. If you're getting stuck in mud and nothing is broken, give it some more throttle (incrementally).

As far as the Mumbo Jumbo- the wheel on the ground still has to have traction to move the vehicle, even slipping in mud requires some traction to move.

[marin8703]

Originally Posted by JaKaL

Thanks for the feedback, just seein what everyone else's thoughts are on the subject, nice Vid too! I'll tryin hittin the mud a little harder and see what happens tomorrow! Got a full day of wheelin.

One more question, when the truck does get stuck i seem to have one wheel up front always not moving! What happened to this "as long as one wheel is on the ground you can move the truck" mumbo jumbo!?

well dont know if its mumbo jumbo but here it is. since the wheel is not moving, tht means it has traction, at least more than the ones that are moving. But that means nothing, because in an open diff power always goes to the wheels with least traction. to move teh wheel with most traction you need to have a locker, which will divide the power evenly.

you dont have a locker in the front. in order for any truck to be true 4x4 it needs to have front rear and center lockers, and they must all be engaged. This is not good on pavement.

oh and btw, if you are hung up on the frame or skids, and you are in all locked front, rear, center (true 4x4) that still doesnt gaurantee it will move. As you apply more power that one wheel not slipping might start to slip, or you will break something

[RuggedH2]

Originally Posted by JaKaL

when the truck does get stuck i seem to have one wheel up front always not moving! What happened to this "as long as one wheel is on the ground you can move the truck" mumbo jumbo!?

I think he's referring to the traction control system. But to expect that system to move the entire truck through heavy mud, with three wheels spinning, through the open front end.......isn't realistic.

[JaKaL]

Originally Posted by RazM

Proof of ownership, please...

Seriously, you're talking a lot of **** for someone who's supposedly been wheeling for such a long time.

If you're doing so much offroading, figure it out yourself, that's what we've all done. There's not THAT much to try before you get used to the rig and see what works best.

Or go buy a Jeep and wonder how to fit 35's on without a lift

And one more thing, I see 13 posts, and majority are bitching. If you think i'm being an ass, well that's the reason.

First off let me say, Raz, please clean the sand out of your vagina and stop acting like a 12 year old school girl... Goof Ball...

Secondly, let me explain more in depth what this post is about so people with apparent complexes can attempt to understand and not be offended. I have realized that the H3 seems to hold quite a record when it comes to the MOAB or any type of mountainous terrain, but this was about if anyone else was dissapointed with its capabilities in the mud.

03H3, This was not an insult to my rig or anyone elses. I was just expecting more from a HUMMER. I will file this under driver error for now!

I have been wheelin' for years, but yes, I am new to this forum, as well as to the HUMMER world. I bought my H3 in april, and since then have been trying to learn the truck. The whole reason I joined this forum is to ask people who have more experience with this particular truck questions, in hopes that i would recieve some type of an educated answer about how others feel or find is the best way to do something, so that I dont break the truck attempting something i shouldn't be. So far most of you have been kind and mature about my questions, or "b*tching", but I guess there are always going to be people who can't, at the very least, act intelligent.

[Field Scout]

I haven't done a lot of muddin with my H3 but I did pull a stuck F150 through a spot a Wrangler had been stuck 30 min prior. I think alot has to do with weight of vehicle, depth of mud, type of mud. since you state you and buddies running same size tire maybe you are sinking more and they are getting more flotation and moving on top of the mud where your extra weight is bogging you down and the mud depth is too deep for your tires to find anything to grip or they are contacting solid bottom but it is slick clay so no traction. when I drove where the Wrangler got stuck that problem was he had wide flotation tires und the mud was like oatmeal so he just churned the mud where my tires and weight cut through to traction on solid ground in the soup.

[RazM]

Originally Posted by JaKaL

First off let me say, Raz, please clean the sand out of your vagina and stop acting like a 12 year old school girl... Goof Ball...

Give me your girlfriend's number, she might be able to advise me on how to continue best with that.

Secondly, let me explain more in depth what this post is about so people with apparent complexes can attempt to understand and not be offended. I have realized that the H3 seems to hold quite a record when it comes to the MOAB or any type of mountainous terrain, but this was about if anyone else was dissapointed with its capabilities in the mud.

Well, I can understand some people have trouble expressing themselves. Go back, re-read everything you wrote about 25 times, then re-write it, WITHOUT the mindless jabs at the H3. It works best that way.

03H3, This was not an insult to my rig or anyone elses. I was just expecting more from a HUMMER. I will file this under driver error for now!

Funny, for someone who's been wheeling 10 years, I was expecting more knowledge and less ignorance. They should really go back to the drawing board with you.

See, another jab, it's like you're a jeeper at heart and you can't let it go. I hear Chrysler has some great deals, maybe they're more to your liking.

I have been wheelin' for years, but yes, I am new to this forum, as well as to the HUMMER world. I bought my H3 in april, and since then have been trying to learn the truck. The whole reason I joined this forum is to ask people who have more experience with this particular truck questions, in hopes that i would recieve some type of an educated answer about how others feel or find is the best way to do something, so that I dont break the truck attempting something i shouldn't be. So far most of you have been kind and mature about my questions, or "b*tching", but I guess there are always going to be people who can't, at the very least, act intelligent.

If intelligence is talking smack with a side of question, then I certainly hope I don't fall into your conception of intelligence.

[RuggedH2]

Originally Posted by RazM

Funny, for someone who's been wheeling 10 years, I was expecting more knowledge and less ignorance. They should really go back to the drawing board with you.

Whaaa?

Did RazM insult me now, or not?

I think Sewie said essentially the same thing I did, with about 500 less words.

Damn It's hard to be nice here.

[JaKaL]

Well since this just turned into a 10th grade lunch period, I'm ending this thread. Thanks to the few that actually had something interesting to say.

As for you Raz... its ok, you're canadian... its not your fault, We forgive you.