UK rejoice! You’ll be able to import right-hand drive Hummer EVs this summer

Are all of the large SUVs available in Britain a little on the small side for you? Worry not, because you’ll be able to import a right-hand drive GMC Hummer EV into the UK this summer if you’re willing to part with between £185k and £190k. Expensive, yes, but is there a more bombastic way of telling people you’ve got all of two brain cells, given the width of our streets? Probably not.

The steering wheel switch is being carried out by Autogroup International out of its facility in Sri Lanka, where it manages the conversion of around 500 vehicles at present after building its reputation over the last 30 years. Sri Lanka sounds wonderful right now, after a glance out of the window…

If somehow you’ve not figured it out for yourself, the biggest changes are found in the cabin, given the complexities involved with right-hand conversion. This is bloated further by the sheer number of electrical components in the Humvee, which even dwarfs (excuse the pun) the army of plastic bags your parents have no doubt stockpiled.

Beginning with the dashboard, Autogroup’s folk in long white coats reverse engineer the entire section with 3D printing and plastic moulding, before using fibreglass to manufacture the new parts. They then focus their efforts on the air conditioning unit, steering column, window controls, and wiring loom before standing back and admiring their work.

The powertrain remains unchanged, but the standard (and quite ridiculous) 1,000bhp and 1,200 torques provided by its triumvirate of electric motors should prove plentiful. Especially since this moving mountain can give a modern BMW M3 a run for its money. Likewise, the 205kWh battery remains and offers around 300 miles of real-world range.

We caught up with Rob Hill, CEO of Autogroup International, to understand just why he chose the Hummer EV as his latest venture: “When the H2 and H3 Hummers were 'new', we were the largest converter of them to right-hand drive with hundreds of our Hummers still being used worldwide today. The Hummer is an iconic vehicle that has a strong place in popular culture, and after its decade-long absence from the market, the EV variant was always going to be in demand.  

“The iconic, muscular stature of the 2024 Hummer combined with the startling performance of the tri-motor EV is breathtaking. Autogroup International has the proven experience to take on the right-hand drive conversion for the Hummer EV SUV. And also, I wanted one. There is just something about the Hummer EV SUV that makes it special."

Copy that. We wish we had the means of converting whatever we wanted into right-hand drive too - our list is… long. 

“For the past 18 months or so, many high-end US vehicles have been selling for well over the MSRP price," he continues. "The Hummer EV sat for a long time at $100,000 over the MSRP - it has been bonkers. We’ve waited until now to bring them into production as they’ve come down to a reasonable $30,000 above MSRP - the demand vs production volume is completely out of balance.”

It will be fascinating to see just how the Hummer EV sells in the UK. The reality is that it will never be purchased for use as an actual working SUV. Not for people with more than two brain cells, at least. There is, however, a growing market for cars purchased for the sole purpose of screaming ‘LOOK AT ME’. In this respect, it could be the perfect machine to take into battle on the streets of central London after midnight. If you can squeeze it through a width restrictor, that is.