Driver's Notebook: IAC Hummer H2
October 1, 2003
The international armoring Corp. (IAC) says its Hummer H2 is “lightly armored.” To that end, IAC technicians have equipped the roof, doors, floor, and body panels with Armormax 300 ballistic armor; replaced the windows with 21mm ballistic glass; and reinforced the pillar posts, firewall, and door overlaps with 4.8 millimeters of ballistic steel. The manufacturer claims the finished product protects drivers and passengers from all types of handgun attacks: drive-by shootings, carjackings, and kidnappings.
Like all Hummers, IAC’s H2 looks sufficiently butch to deter all but the most deranged or determined attacker. Unlike its civilian cousins, the armored version can withstand a barrage of bullets fired from handguns up to a .44 Magnum. So you might think IAC’s armored H2 is the ideal vehicle for wary urban execs and high-profile soccer moms—but not according to Anthony Ricci.
“I don’t recommend any SUV for an urban environment,” says Ricci, the president of Advanced Driving & Security Inc. “They’re top-heavy.” It is hard to argue the point—especially when Ricci is trying to thread the IAC H2 through a series of cones on an abandoned runway (representing a kidnapper’s roadblock). “Feel that?” Ricci asks as the vehicle’s weight lurches sideways. “It’s about to roll.” The instructor manages to keep the Hummer upright, but not before it plows over a rubber cone. After a gut-wrenching array of antiterrorist driving maneuvers—emergency lane changes, driving backwards at 40 mph, a three-point turn, alternating between tarmac and grass—Ricci delivers his verdict: “It gets sloppy real quick.”
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No surprise there. Like any proper off-roader, the Hummer H2’s suspension gives it a genetic tendency to react to high lateral forces by tipping over. While the IAC H2 makes extensive use of low-weight antiballistic materials, the armoring adds over 450 pounds to the SUV’s already considerable 6,400-pound curb weight. Ricci welcomes the extra protection, but warns that the extra weight degrades the H2’s already dubious high-speed stability.
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