This 1994 Hummer H1 is the first American-built, American-driven vehicle to finish the grueling Dakar rally. This truck competed in the 1996 event, which started in Granada, and finished 67th of the 71 vehicles that were able to complete the race. The truck is fully prepared for racing with tied-in engine, cabin and bed cages, extensively upgraded suspension, and its original spare wheels, toolkits, and even a portable welder. This truck is very well prepared, with a proven track record of motorsports success. The truck now shows 8,449 miles, most of which were accrued during the race. The truck was acquired from the original owner/driver by the selling dealer, who is now offering it with a clean Illinois title.

The chronicle of this truck’s experience at the 1996 Dakar rally is well documented by a lengthy special feature in the Chicago Tribune entitled “Rough Riders.” The truck was intended to be run for charity under the banner of the U.S. Charities racing team, though sponsors were hard to find on short notice and the bulk of the money to prepare and run the two trucks came directly from owner and driver Tom Wamberg.

The truck now wears relatively few sponsorship decals. Pre-Runner bumpers guard the front and rear ends, while polycarbonate mud deflectors protect the underside.

The roof has been cut and is fitted with a pair of polycarbonate skylights in roughly T-Top style. The original graphics are still present, including the driver and co-driver’s name, as well as the sponsor decals. Some of the livery items show some wear and tear, but nothing appears to be missing when comparing the truck to period photos.

A pair of spare beadlock wheels with tires are fitted at the rear of the bed, and are flanked by a pair of recovery boards. Other equipment includes a toolkit, jack, spare driveshaft, and even a portable welder for effecting repairs while on the course.

The interior has been stripped, leaving only the essentials needed for racing. The substantial roll cage wraps through and around the remaining portion of the stock dash, and the transmission tunnel is bare save the gear selector for the 4-speed automatic transmission.

Apart from normal wear on the floors and cage, the interior appears nicely preserved

The 6.5L turbodiesel V8 has been fitted with a turbocharger for a boost in power, as the naturally aspirated diesel was the only available engine in 1994. The Chicago Tribune article notes a 170 horsepower power figure, though this seems consistent with the naturally aspirated motor and the real figure might be different. For safety and durability the truck is equipped with a front engine cage, dual transmission coolers with electric fans, and an auxilliary NASCAR-spec diesel tank. A pinhole leak is present in the auxilliary tank, though the truck is said to work well when run from the stock fuel tank.

The suspension is fairly sophisticated, and includes reinforced lower control arms with limiter traps, Sway-Away triple bypass shocks, and King Coil coilover remote reservoir shocks. Per the Chicago Tribune article the ride was, “comfortable for a truck, with big, soft body motions. The Hummers are also fairly friendly to drive, despite a lot of weight in the back that encourages the tail to slide.”

The underside shows well, with some corrosion present on the substantial suspension members and floors where the paint was sandblasted away.

This truck’s Dakar performance is an impressive piece of American motorsports history, and is especially notable as American teams are not historically successful in international rallying. The 67th place finish, and its sister truck’s 68th place finish, were the first successful Dakar finishes for the Hummer, but they would not be the last.