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Looking to buy an H1. Found This locally. Please help put a value on it.

C

coffeespecial

Member
Messages
15
Location
california
Hey Everyone, Im new to these forums and came across this Hummer H1 in an Estate sale, but I was hoping you guys can help me determine how much this thing is worth. It has a bunch of expedition style mods done to it, which I love. The guy that owns it is an older gentleman in his 70's. He has owned it from day one. He told me to make him an offer. It has been california owned for the life of the vehicle. Also been stored in warehouse when not in use. it only has 50k miles on the diesel engine. I took all these pictures and posted them on a hosting site. please see link to pictures and share any thoughts as to what I should be looking for. Much appreciated...This is the VIN# 137ZA8435TE169819

https://www.icloud.com/photostream/#A8G6XBubJrCK4A
 
3

3Hummers

Super Moderator
Staff member
Messages
10,401
Location
Central Texas
Wow. That is a tough one. That truck has so many aftermarket items added it is both hard to tell what all it has, how much of it works and what it might be worth. Personally I like it but value can be determined by what someone else would pay for it or what it is worth to you. If all of the added items are things you would want and would add to the truck then it will be more valuable to you. You have a 4 seat truck that is now a two seat truck with no rear cargo area. You have a truck that weighs a lot more than a standard wagon and cannot be wheeled like some like to do. It does have lots of interesting features though. Has the block been replaced? It is in the serial # range for a possible #8 cylinder issue. A 96 wagon with 50K miles is worth 35-40K. If it has upgraded AC add 3K. To some the add ons will add some $$ and for some they will subtract $$. Not much help I know.
 
C

coffeespecial

Member
Messages
15
Location
california
Thank you for your feedback, it is well received and greatly appreciated. If I don't buy it and anybody is interested. Pm me, I can give you contact info. As far as I could tell from driving it and studying it over, everything was working great. It has water tanks and a hot water shower that gets heated via heat exchanger unit mounted in the engine compartment. Refrigerator and freezer take up the back seating area, with batteries and water tanks underneath. He did a very nice job with the drawers in the back. He was a crafty guy, as it seems everything electrical is extremely well designed and installed. The wagon FIRED RIGHT UP. It has upgraded wheels and two spare wheels/tires. too much to list. Any other opinions are greatly appreciated.




3Hummers said:
Wow. That is a tough one. That truck has so many aftermarket items added it is both hard to tell what all it has, how much of it works and what it might be worth. Personally I like it but value can be determined by what someone else would pay for it or what it is worth to you. If all of the added items are things you would want and would add to the truck then it will be more valuable to you. You have a 4 seat truck that is now a two seat truck with no rear cargo area. You have a truck that weighs a lot more than a standard wagon and cannot be wheeled like some like to do. It does have lots of interesting features though. Has the block been replaced? It is in the serial # range for a possible #8 cylinder issue. A 96 wagon with 50K miles is worth 35-40K. If it has upgraded AC add 3K. To some the add ons will add some $$ and for some they will subtract $$. Not much help I know.
Click to expand...
 
Paranormal

Paranormal

Well-Known Member
Messages
128
Location
Suffolk County, New York
That is a very unique truck. It has a ton of add ons that if you try to do it yourself it is going to cost you several thousand dollars. If he is the original owner, get the service records to see what maintenance and repairs have been done. If that is what kind of stuff you like on your truck, make him an offer of what a typical 1996 H1 would sell for. On the other side of the coin, all these add ons can pose as future problems. It is hard enough to find a knowledgable H1 mechanic that can work on a "plain" truck. You have lost all the use of space pretty much from the back of the front seats to the rear. Those shelves are good for a person who may use it as a working truck. If you are looking to purchase this truck and leave it as it is, triple check the electrical work and the cylinder #8 cracking issue. If you are looking to take it apart, or resell it, don't do it. You will be opening up a can of worms when you start taking all that stuff apart and you will be spending a lot more money to restore back to semi original. Selling this would be a hard sell due to the uniqueness of the mods. It would have to be someone that specifically is looking for all that stuff. Good luck with your choice.
 
Kurt

Kurt

Well-Known Member
Messages
957
Location
Orange County, CA
The only trucks I've seen close to that were the DEA lab trucks which were K12 series fleet 2 door H1's. They had a standup shell in the back, with a data center rack, Patrol rifle storage, a drop down rear hatch with HAZMAT showers, water tanks and benches for lap equipment, plus lots of roll out shelves.

I saw two of the configured the same way, and they sold back in 2012 for around $80,000 back then. They must have ran close to $250-300,000 originally. Google for DEA lab trucks to get an idea about it. I have pictures somewhere. I think I saw one of those resold for closer to 90k later. Mike S. Had them in his shop over at Tustin GMC at one point.

How the aftermarket stuff was added would be a factor, it does look like a quality job, the owner paid a lot of money for that work to be done, RV grade inverters, roll out coolers, good quality storage options. That's a plus for some and a minus for others.

It's a tough call. It's like Audio/Video gear on trucks, yeah someone "INVESTED" $20,000 in a crazy custom speaker setup, but to the next owner the value of that would be zero. So its a matter of finding the right buyer.

I agree with Davids/3Hummers assessment.
 
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Kurt

Kurt

Well-Known Member
Messages
957
Location
Orange County, CA
I found a few pictures of the Lab truck:

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3

3Hummers

Super Moderator
Staff member
Messages
10,401
Location
Central Texas
I saw those lab trucks too. I think they were more flexible in what you could do with them than this truck. I like this truck because it looks like it was well thought out and executed but it is not something I would ever buy.
 
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C

coffeespecial

Member
Messages
15
Location
california
After having another look, this rig is a camping/expedition beast. It has everything you would need to be out in the boonies for weeks. 3 diesel tanks, 2 water tanks, even a pull out shower room from the roof rack. Gun safe, power inverters,4 aux batteries, custom plumbing control panel, and electrical panel. The roof rack is a beast! The air conditioner was upgraded due to the recall. Never any issues with #8 CYL. The owner is an electronics engineer. He said all the maintenance has been done by a guy named Terry in San Diego Area and a guy named Mike S. in Tustin. This may be a posting for one of the expedition style forums.






Paranormal said:
That is a very unique truck. It has a ton of add ons that if you try to do it yourself it is going to cost you several thousand dollars. If he is the original owner, get the service records to see what maintenance and repairs have been done. If that is what kind of stuff you like on your truck, make him an offer of what a typical 1996 H1 would sell for. On the other side of the coin, all these add ons can pose as future problems. It is hard enough to find a knowledgable H1 mechanic that can work on a "plain" truck. You have lost all the use of space pretty much from the back of the front seats to the rear. Those shelves are good for a person who may use it as a working truck. If you are looking to purchase this truck and leave it as it is, triple check the electrical work and the cylinder #8 cracking issue. If you are looking to take it apart, or resell it, don't do it. You will be opening up a can of worms when you start taking all that stuff apart and you will be spending a lot more money to restore back to semi original. Selling this would be a hard sell due to the uniqueness of the mods. It would have to be someone that specifically is looking for all that stuff. Good luck with your choice.
Click to expand...
 
3

3Hummers

Super Moderator
Staff member
Messages
10,401
Location
Central Texas
Terry and Mike are the two best probably in SoCal for Hummers. If I was an expedition type guy I would be very interested in that truck, depending on what he would sell it for. Owner being an EE explains a lot.
 
Kurt

Kurt

Well-Known Member
Messages
957
Location
Orange County, CA
Yeah. The truck is in good hands then maintenance wise.

There's another big expedition truck out there, red wagon with an extendable hard roof, owner of Surefire owns it I think. Recently had a duramax conversion.
 
3

3Hummers

Super Moderator
Staff member
Messages
10,401
Location
Central Texas
1 - Made in USA
3 - AM General is MFG
7 - Commercial vehicle
Z- 6.5 GM TD
A - Automatic Trans
84 - HMCS/wagon
3 - 10001-14000#
5 - check digit
T - 96 model year
E - Mishakawa - plant where made
169819 - Serial#
 
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