Hi Everyone, been lurking the site around and decided to register!

Looking to buy a hummer this week, found two that I like because of the color (Black) but they are both 2006 models with similar miles:

Cars for Sale: 2006 HUMMER H3 Luxury in Woodside, NY 11377: Sport Utility Details - 320244921 - AutoTrader.com

2006 HUMMER H3 Sport Utility - Cars For Sale North Bergen, NJ

The $15k one seems really tempting for the price, though it has no leather / electric seats which is a big downer for me =/

Any advise?

 

IMO avoid the 2006 model year and opt for a 2007+ with the 3.7L engine and stronger front end.

If you plan to mod the truck for offroad with lift, larger tires, more weight, etc I would save up and opt for the ALPHA edition w/ the V8.

My 2008 H3 with the 3.7L I5 got worse mileage than my 2007 H2 w/ 6.0L V8 because of how hard that poor I5 had to work to move the 35" M/T tires and extra weight from the offroad equipment.

All that said, avoid the 2006 MY - lots of bugs were worked out in 2007+.

 

Don't rush into it. Take your time and look for a '08 or newer Alpha. I had an '07 with the I5 which was a nice truck but after driving the Alpha I wished I'd have waited. I have the Alpha now and love it.
Stay away from the 06 with the 3.5. Way to small a motor.
Good luck and keep us informed.

 

I think if these are your only 2 options I would go with the cheaper one. The more expensive one has 59K, which isn't really low miles for an 06. I realize the luxury has the leather and Monsoon system, but I don't see it being worth that much more.

I had an 08 Luxury and learned that the leather really wasn't as comfortable as the cloth. Also with the vehicle being up so high my wife had to slide out of the seat, which started wearing out the lateral edges of the leather seats. I did really like the electric seats, but I have had no trouble finding a comfortable position without them, they are not worth any extra money in my opinion.

I traded out for an 06 with the cloth. I really couldn't feel a difference in the engines, I figure 20hp doesn't add up to a whole lot in that heavy of a vehicle. The stereo is a little worse, but it still sounds great. It definitely takes some time to learn how to drive such a heavy vehicle with such a small engine. By just changing out the air intake to a K&N and realizing that I am driving a really underpowered vehicle, I am now getting a steady 21.5 on the highway. Just figure you won't be winning ANY races, but if you want a fast car buy a Corvette. The one and only thing I miss about my luxury edition was the sunroof. For the difference in $$, I could live without it and am on the whole much happier with my "new" H3.

I agree with Autumn Walker abouth the ALPHA though, if you don't care about mpg at all...buy the V8, it will definitely drive better in the city.

 

Is the 2006 really that bad? I test drove it and for an SUV it seemed enough. I plan to use it as a weekend car, not really offloading but little bit of everything.

 

Take the time to test drive the Alpha.