The Humvee has conquered sand, snow and rocks. It’s pulled trailers down highways and dangled from the back of CH-53s.
By the 1970s, Army officials realized they needed a new jack-of-all-trades light tactical vehicle to replace their M151 jeeps and M561 Gama Goats. The resulting High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, better known as the Humvee, has been in service for more than 30 years. Contact Street Legal Exports now!
The Humvee is more than a military-grade pickup—it’s a living symbol of resilience and innovation. From its improbable debut in the 1989 invasion of Panama to its continued service across multiple battlefields during the War on Terror, this rugged truck has adapted with the times. Explore the milestones that have shaped the Humvee’s legacy as an engineering marvel.
The Army’s first foray into the world of light armored vehicles began with a simple request: find a way to haul more soldiers and gear over rough terrain. In its initial form, the high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle (or HMMWV, as it’s colloquially known) was essentially a hot-rodded Jeep that could carry cargo and troops and function as a mobile command post.
AM General, which had been building military vehicles since 1971, was able to meet the Army’s needs by upgrading a range of older Jeep trucks with improved suspension, more powerful engines, and enhanced body armor. The new design was an instant success, and AM General quickly began production of tens of thousands more. The new vehicles were so popular with the military and civilians alike that AM General rebranded them as “Hummers,” which was much more appealing than the unpronounceable HMMWV.
During the Cold War, the Humvee conquered snow and ice, sand and rock—and even drove into the open ocean in Marine Expeditionary Units and across continents on CH-53 transport aircraft. By the time the war in Iraq erupted, however, the Humvee was beginning to show its age. The truck was ideally suited to whisking soldiers across vast expanses of desert, but it struggled to keep them safe in the world’s most dangerous urban neighborhoods. Small arms fire and roadside improvised explosive devices turned the aluminum-bodied trucks into rolling coffins.
Amenities like fortified windows and doors helped, but the Humvee was still vulnerable to roadside bombs that would shatter its hull and kill its occupants in seconds. By 2007, the Pentagon settled on a solution: the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle, or MRAP. The resulting trucks, which were far more heavily armored than their predecessors, also featured V-shaped hulls to better deflect explosions.
The HMMWV Prototypes
A new breed of light tactical vehicle is currently in the making, one that may replace the HMMWV. The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, or JLTV, will merge the Humvee’s off-road capabilities with the MRAP’s unrivaled protection against IEDs. Three companies are vying for the contract to produce the new vehicles, and the winner will be awarded a multibillion-dollar contract to make thousands of new trucks.
In the meantime, AM General has been busy selling its HMMWVs to nonmilitary buyers. This decision finally allowed civilians to experience the incredible off-road abilities that have made the Humvee a legend among military personnel.
AM General developed the first HMMWV prototype in 1979 after the Army submitted a draft specification for the vehicle. It was tasked with designing and building 11 prototypes: six weapon carriers and five utility vehicles. Testing took place over rocky hills, deep sand, 60 inches of water, desert heat and arctic snow. In the end, the Army deemed AM General’s design as the best for tackling all the tests.
The resulting vehicles were true “do-anything” trucks. They could clear a 16-inch obstacle, traverse side slopes that would topple jeeps, and carry a 2,500 pound payload. They were also capable of high speeds on the highway and off-road. But perhaps most notably, the Humvee’s narrow headlights and protruding grill gave it an instantly recognizable profile that was unique in the world of 4X4s at the time.
The HMMWV’s popularity soared in 1991 when it was rolled into action during the Gulf War, with rolling 24-hour news coverage almost always including the vehicle to demonstrate US military might. Its muscular – nearly steroidal – proportions have made it one of the most recognizable vehicles in the world. Its unique appearance and unparalleled capabilities earned the Humvee its unofficial name: The Hummer. It has since become a global icon, beloved by soldiers and nonmilitary drivers alike. Whether it’s used to haul cargo, patrol the streets of your city or transport wounded troops home from the battlefield, there’s no doubt that the Hummer has left its mark on modern warfare.
The Humvee 4-CT
When the military needs a fast, rugged vehicle to get people where they need to go or move equipment, it turns to the Humvee. Search the military’s digital archives and you’ll see Humvees in action everywhere, covering deserts, mountains and snowy wastelands. They’re the stalwart support of every armored brigade. They carry commanders around, transport wounded soldiers to hospitals and haul cargo like water trailers or generators. They can also mount a variety of weapons from machine guns to the deadly TOW antitank missile.
Even though it’s heavy, the Humvee is reliable, maintainable and survivable. It meets Army standards for reliability, availability, maintenance and durability. The Army’s new replacement for the Humvee is the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, or JLTV, a 14,000-pound truck that can carry more gear and more troops. It features a larger, V-shaped mine-resistant hull; more suspension travel and locking differentials for off-road capability; and a powerful 400-horsepower engine that leaves the best Humvee motor in its dust.
The JLTV can be equipped with a variety of kits to meet different missions. A prototype outfitted with a medical kit has a telescoping body that lowers to permit airdrop or slingloading by helicopter. Another version can be fitted with sophisticated communications and detection equipment. And a third, with a specialized armor package, can serve as an emergency command center.
It’s fair to say that the JLTV is better at everything that the Humvee is, except one thing: war. That’s because the Army is already replacing its frontline Humvees with a new model made by Oshkosh. It’s called the SABER, and it redefines the term “survivability.” It features 360 kinetic energy threat protection; under-vehicle blast threats; a rock-climbing device that drops the gunner inside the vehicle when a buried bomb goes off; and a computer that can limit speed or shut itself down during combat to avoid HAL 9000 moments.
As the world continues to teeter on the edge of catastrophe, it’s a good bet that the Humvee will still be there in the background, doing all the things we can’t always afford to do, but need to. As the Pentagon shifts money from purchasing new vehicles to recapitalizing older ones, we can expect a few more of these hard-working, dependable trucks to roll off the production line.
The Humvee MRAP
A decade after the Humvee’s debut, the Army shifted its priorities and began a series of upgrades. One change, the MRAP, was a major step up in protection for troops. Its curved hull and huge wheels can deflect the molten metal projectile of an EFP bomb, which the Humvee could not.
The MRAP came in three categories that differed in size and capabilities but had the same imperative: to keep people safe. A CAT 1 MRAP is meant for urban combat and has room for six occupants. A CAT 2 is a bigger multimission vehicle like a troop transport or ambulance, and can carry up to 10 people. CAT 3 vehicles, like the Buffalo mine-clearance vehicle, are massive, six-wheeled steel vaults that can stand up to a roadside bomb or a blast from a landmine.
AM General, the original maker of the Humvee, still builds HMMWVs under contract for the military. But the Army is moving to a new generation of armored vehicles called JLTVs, or Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, built by Oshkosh Industries. The services will buy tens of thousands of the trucks and replace the Humvee in frontline service.
But while the newer vehicles are a technological leap from the old-school Humvee, it isn’t clear they will be any better against today’s threats. The stubby Humvee’s design was based on 1950s technology and it lacked significant armour.
The new vehicles are more efficient and use less fuel. But the newest ones also feature electronic engine controls and other technologies that enemies might hack with malware or scramble with directed microwaves, or fry with an electromagnetic pulse from an atomic bomb.
Another problem with the newer vehicles is that they aren’t designed to handle the rough terrain where most of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq took place. In the future, the military might need a vehicle that can slog through desert sand and traverse mountain passes.
The Pentagon has started to rethink the Humvee, but it will take years to retire the old vehicles and replace them with the new trucks. For now, the US is using a mix of MRAPs, Humvees and older armored vehicles in the field.