SAR H3

[superbuickguy]

I do Search and Rescue, and by extension, I guess I do expeditions; though generally we use a different name for it (missions)... anyway, my rig (and for those who pay attention, there will be a "was hers" and a "hers" rig also - a Land Rover D2 diesel, and a Jeep JK Rubicon respectively)

I love H3s, to me it was finally GM got smart and took reliable parts from their bin and put it into a vehicle that wasn't some bloated 4 wheel drive minivan. I've owned 2
My first, did nothing but drive it

oh and pull out the occasional stuck semi

My next one.... the first was a 2007 H3 adventure package, I drove an alpha (v8) but wasn't that impressed.... I should have been a prophet

poor thing doesn't know what it's in for. Was a one-owner 86k mile rig owned by a female real estate agent.

first thing I needed was a winch

I didn't like the other winch mounts, so I bought winch plate and installed it myself. As a side note, I'll never own a winch that isn't cordless control again.

Installed - nice part about where it's at - the rope doesn't get direct sunlight... downside - it's not easy to see where the rope is on the spool


so I used it this way with mudder tires for awhile

two things happened on that mission - 1) I scratched the last of the mall off the H3, and 2) I burned up my second air compressor.

so I fixed the air compressor problem by mounting these underneath



then I built myself some rock rails/ side hi-lift jack points


built a roof rack (this was version 2, I'm on version 4 and just a few aluminum bits away from building #5)


like anything else, the lights came out of need - middle of the night missions need light...


upgraded the alternator

added a second battery and controller


and blew up the front differential

which was a great time to add an electric locker to the front differential (rear already had one from the factory). I also rewired the rear and wire the front so that it can be switched on anytime, not just in 4 lo



and a RTT
http://s230.photobucket.com/user/stoneshrink/slideshow/H3

See you at the Rally

SBG

 

[cgalpha08]

Nice to see another familiar name.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

[java]

KCSAR 4x4? I did ESAR for a long time but that was years ago before I had a kid... How long have you been doing SAR?

 

[maytag]

Are you part of the King County 4X4SAR?

(say yes)

Since you are, you get a 5% discount off most products here: Sirennet.com & Sirennet Outback (lots of Offroad and Emergency lighting)

They will apply this to online order too, just put a note about it in the comments section.

 

[chilliwak]

sweet more pics:drool:

 

[superbuickguy]

KCSAR 4x4? I did ESAR for a long time but that was years ago before I had a kid... How long have you been doing SAR?

3 years, Snohomish County, though I've been on a couple King County 4x4 missions as well and worked with King County 4x4 at Oso (neat defender, not so neat, stuck waambulance, and a really nice bunch of guys)

Thanks Maytag - I'll have to check those out.

 

[justcuz]

Are the H3 front housings cast iron? Looks like it in the photo. What size ring gear front and rear? 8.6 in the rear I presume.
Hummers are getting pretty affordable in the market nowadays. I just have trouble with the turret style visibility issues. Guess it would take some getting used to.

 

[superbuickguy]

Are the H3 front housings cast iron? Looks like it in the photo. What size ring gear front and rear? 8.6 in the rear I presume.
Hummers are getting pretty affordable in the market nowadays. I just have trouble with the turret style visibility issues. Guess it would take some getting used to.

2008 Alpha, and 2009 up H3s had cast iron front differentials - they're a 7.6" AAM built differential and they're not well liked because they're not terrible strong. The rear is an 8.6 - one they've put in about everything since 1970 10 bolt

I whine a bit about the side window views - but the front window isn't any better or worse than pretty much everything else, including the Jeep (to be clear, I own a JK, a Land Rover D2, had a bunch of FJ40s, Blazers, Pickups, Suburbans....)

The benefits of the H3, in my opinion, make it far better than anything else out there - cheap parts for fixing, GM reliability since, IFS - which can be weaker in rocks, but for what I do, it's more comfortable, 1/2 the price of a Jeep, 2009 up you can get front and rear lockers stock from the factory.

The cheap bit, prices are actually going up - people are finally getting over the negative press and realizing that they can save big bucks in a more comfortable, stouter rig - when I bought mine, it was about the bottom of the market and paid 18k for it (86k miles, clean history), I know of a 2009 with 52k with the lockers that's listed at 32k....

the only one I'd hesitate to buy is the 2006 because they were slow. When they first came out, I test drove a 5 speed 2006 - and couldn't abide with the speed, I bought a 2007 a couple years later (when GM was giving them away) and loved it - I have a Corvette for racing, so I don't need a sports car - because I thought the power was good for the vehicle. I bought the Alpha because the next, comparable rig was $1,000 more. had been poorly treated and had more miles. And there's where my whine is about this one, I think its fuel economy is terrible - but I run mud tires, 35s, and my commute is 10 miles of all-city driving... eventually, it's going to get a duramax.

 

[evldave]

Hey! Mine is a 2006! I would get totally offended except it is slow lol. Looking forward to meeting you at the rally. If I'm the first Hummer there I'll ask them to set aside a few spot for us. Cheers!

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[superbuickguy]

Hey! Mine is a 2006! I would get totally offended except it is slow lol. Looking forward to meeting you at the rally. If I'm the first Hummer there I'll ask them to set aside a few spot for us. Cheers!

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

yes, but you've more room to grow before you break stuff - so it's all good. I don't know what time I'm sneaking out, but I expect to be there around 7 (though, I'm hoping for 5 pm)

 

[superbuickguy]

did an update
current light bar


bought some plates from G2, then modified them to get the light closer to the windshield and up


in the original configuration, the light was lower and you could see it from the driver's seat..



finished


now I can go back to building the new roof rack - and have less to worry about branches taking my lights off.

 

[superbuickguy]

My new HAM radio has a detachable face, so today's task was putting it into a useful spot


and viola.... much better (now the dog can't turn it on while he's rustling around
​

my name is Buick and I approve the content of this posting

 

[superbuickguy]

I admit to not posting much here... but I'd pretty much finished the build up of this rig before I joined... but with that said
Preview of tomorrow's work... after I move the LC off the lift




I won't buy another Rancho shock, not because their poor ride and quality had anything to do with this damage, but because the front shock has 2" of travel and the rear has 6"... without the shock, the front suspension has 6" travel, and the rear nearly 12"... so cheaper, longer shocks go on tomorrow to repair this damage....

 

[verdesardog]

Nice to see another SAR truck here... mine is basically a stock CTD. I grew up in the Seattle area but now live and do SAR in Central Arizona. The Red Rock area near Sedona.

Maybe you know Darin, Emmons I think is his last name he's a memeber of King County SAR and is their radio guru.

 

[java]

Nice to see another SAR truck here... mine is basically a stock CTD. I grew up in the Seattle area but now live and do SAR in Central Arizona. The Red Rock area near Sedona.

Maybe you know Darin, Emmons I think is his last name he's a memeber of King County SAR and is their radio guru.

Thats funny, I remember him from back in my ESAR days..... Small world.