It's not everyday we get to see the fruits of our labor make the rounds on big-time internet websites that make a living revealing and discussing all aspects of the auto industry. But that's exactly what happened when auto enthusiast websites Jelopnik.com and autoblog.com tag-teamed (that's a polite way of saying body slammed) Truck Trend Magazine for a story we're running in our current issue, March/April 2008.
At issue are some photos we printed on the coming and cool Hummer H3T pickup truck. We've been waiting a long time for his baby and we even got a chance to ride along with some Hummer engineers while they did some extreme trail testing on the Rubicon Trail in the Sierra Nevada mountain range this past summer. All those vehicles on the test were heavily camoed to protect them from any wayward photographers, but we got access to few non-camoed images as well, that we printed in the same story to give readers a clear view of just how well done this new Hummer is.
However, when we heard about some subscribers getting their copies before they were suppose to (almost 10 days before) and they told two friends, then they told two friends, then they told two friends with websites, and before we knew it, word was out that our Hummer pictures were circulating around the internet much earlier than Hummer was hoping for. Set to be revealed at next week's Chicago Auto Show, General Motors was hoping to keep this a secret until the actual press conference.
Unfortunately, it looks like we were the ones who screwed up the whole thing and became the talk of the internet, and no doubt the subject of a few heated conversations at General Motors too. On the one hand, the fact that there's so much energy and attention being burned on this new truck should be a strong indicator to GM about how the vehicle will likely do in the marketplace. If it's getting this much attention before it even hits the ground, imagine what the reaction will be when real truck guys and real Hummer guys get a chance to drive it when it gets to Hummer dealerships later this Fall.
We thought this was a great idea when we saw the Hummer H3T concept almost five years ago, and the fact that it looks like an even more capable pickup truck now isn't going to hurt it one bit. Whether or not we'll get a chance to drive the new Hummer anytime soon remains to be seen, or whether or not we keep getting picked on by "the big boys" remains to be seen as well. Regardless, we're hoping to see more trucks headed our way.
Click here to see photos of the Hummer H3t Concept from its first debut in 2004 New York Auto Show.