Requiem for the H3: one of the nation's largest Hummer dealer will close tonight

With sales run aground by soaring gas prices, General Motors is scrambling to sell the ailing Hummer division before year's end. Yet the process of courting buyers is bound to get worse with today's news.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Towbin Hummer of Las Vegas, Nevada - the nation's largest Hummer dealer — will shut its doors for good tonight.

Some may remember the Towbin name from short-lived reality show "King of Cars" on A&E.

By staking his claim as the biggest and best dealer in town, dealer and brand aficionado Dan Towbin capitalized on the Sin City market to become one of the nation's largest Hummer dealers. During the dealer's best year, Towbin Hummer sold five percent of all Hummers in the nation.

But now, Sin City has shunned the rolling testament to excess, leaving Towbin to stop selling the lumbering 12-mpg leviathans and start selling diminutive Smart ForTwos.

While Towbin isn't the first dealer to close, it is by far the largest — and thus, the most problematic for GM. Now that the capital of conspicuous consumption has passed on the Hummer for smaller fare, it is clear that twilight draws near for the brand.

Listen to the bell, HUMMER... it tolls for thee.

[WSJ.com]