The idea of an electric pickup truck might be appealing to some, but for most American buyers, it’s still a pretty niche thing that requires some level of compromise. Recent sales data from Cox Automotive reflects that fact, showing that even as electric vehicles have their best quarter in history, pickup EVs remain just a tiny drop in the bucket of that success.
There are six electrically powered pickup trucks for sale in America right now, with only one of those cars—the F-150 Lightning—breaking the 10,000-unit mark in the third quarter. That’s a big milestone, but it represents just 4% of all F-150 sales (Ford sold over 200,000 examples of its flagship pickup in the past three months).
Out of those six pickups, four saw sales increases versus the same period last year. The other two, meanwhile, saw pretty big decreases.
The Lightning Wins Big (If You Consider These Numbers Big)
The F-150 Lightning’s 10,005-unit quarter is a massive 39.7% increase over the same period in 2024, according to Cox. It’s nearly double the second-biggest EV truck seller, the Tesla Cybertruck. But it’s important to put that number into more context.
It’s easier to compare F-150 Lightning sales to the Toyota Tundra, the worst-selling half-ton pickup on the market right now. The Tundra has outsold the Lightning 4 to 1 this year so far, which should give you an understanding of the exceedingly small scope of the pickup EV market.
The Ford’s price probably has a lot to do with its success amongst its peers. The Lightning is the cheapest EV truck out there right now, with a starting MSRP of $51,975 including destination. It’s also the most normal-looking of the bunch, using much of the same design as the gas-powered F-150. By comparison, its most direct competitor, the Silverado EV, is a roundish, swoopy thing, which could turn off some buyers.
What Happened To The Cybertruck?
Tesla CEO Elon Musk promised big sales for the Cybertruck, touting over 1 million reservations received and the capacity to build up to 250,000 units per year. Except sales have absolutely collapsed this year. The company sold just 5,385 units in the third quarter, compared to 14,416 in the same period in 2024, according to Cox, a drop of 62.6%. Tesla has sold just over 16,000 units this year, a significant drop from the 26,000 units it had sold by this time in 2024.
Out of all of the EV trucks on sale, the Cybertruck carries the most baggage. It had an initial launch date of 2021, but deliveries didn’t start until the end of 2023. When it did eventually go on sale, it was delivered without the promised features, with a far higher pricetag (the cheapest Cybertruck you can buy right now is $82,235, more than double the original promised base price of $39,900). As of this writing, the truck has been hit with eight recalls, the latest relating to a piece of trim that can detach and fly off the car while driving.
The Cybertruck’s monolithic looks are certainly interesting, but they also push the truck further into niche territory, which is not something that benefits volume. Furthermore, the design has become a rolling symbol for Musk, who has become a controversial figure.
Whoever wanted a Cybertruck has already bought one. The result is that now, it’s the second-worst-selling Tesla in the company’s lineup behind the absolutely ancient Model S.
Even without all that baggage, it’s proving tough to sell electric pickups if you’re not from one of the Big Three. Rivian’s R1T came in dead last, with just 5,857 units sold so far this year, according to Cox (down 32.5% versus 2024).
GM Is Making Progress, But It’s Tough Out Here
Three of the six electric pickups on sale, the Silverado EV, the Sierra EV, and the Hummer EV pickup, come from General Motors. The Hummer has been around for a few years now, but the Silverado and the Sierra are fairly new to the game, having just gone on sale in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
Though neither of these trucks has come close to touching the F-150’s sales, there’s at least progress being made. Chevy moved 3,940 Silverado EVs in the third quarter, according to Cox, a massive 97.5% jump over the same time last year. The Sierra faired similarly according to Cox, despite its higher base price, moving 3,374 units. Cox doesn’t break down Hummer sales by pickup and SUV bodystyles, reporting 5,246 combined sales for the quarter.
You could say GM beat Ford in electric pickup sales if you combined all of these numbers together (that’s definitely what I’d be doing if I were presenting these numbers to GM execs, anyway). With the federal tax credit dead, these numbers will likely level out for the time being, barring any drastic changes to pricing.
The Big EREV Question
According to Cox’s data, pickups make up just under 7% of the electric vehicle market. Things like towing and hauling greatly reduce range (see our story EVs Are Just The Wrong Tool For Serious Towing In 2024), and with charging infrastructure the way it is right now, I don’t see attitudes changing drastically any time soon. Range extenders are likely the key to unlocking more volume, at least going by one brand’s data.
Scout, the revived truck brand now owned by Volkswagen, is launching an electric pickup and SUV in 2027. Realizing that EV pickups aren’t exactly flying off shelves, it made the call last year to also offer a version with a gas-powered range extender. That move proved popular with reservation holders, the majority of whom opted for the hybrid model over the purely electric version.
This is perhaps the same reason why Ram decided to cancel its electric 1500 REV altogether, and forge ahead with its highly anticipated Ramcharger, a 1500 EV with a V6-powered range extender. This type of setup just makes sense for the average American buyer. I have a feeling this will be the way forward, at least this decade.
[Update: A previous version of this article claimed the F-150 Lightning outsold the Tundra last quarter, but that wasn’t correct—I misread Toyota’s sales data. The numbers have been updated. My bad! – Brian]
Top graphic image: Ford; DepositPhotos.com
Support our mission of championing car culture by becoming an Official Autopian Member.
The thing about the Lightning is that it’s *almost* worth it for someone who isn’t otherwise in the EV market – but then Ford piles on incentives for the gas F150s that swings the needle back in that direction. At least that’s the impression I got from a coworker who almost pulled the trigger on one a few months ago.
I am thinking about getting a used Lightning and letting someone else take the depreciation hit. There are used 2022 extended range versions for the mid $30k range. One I looked at earlier would still have 5 years or 70,000 miles on the battery warranty. Even if the range craters after the warranty expires it will still have a long useful life as a 3rd vehicle hauling stuff around town. If the front seat was a bench that would let me get 3 across in the front and back it would pretty much be the perfect truck for me.
They’re too damn expensive, full stop. That is and has always been the only problem for EV adoption. Make them price competitive with gas vehicles and we’re talking. I really, really like the look of the Scout Terra, and really like the concept. Would buy one in a millisecond if it was priced similar to regular pickups. But “starting at” $60K is a hard sell for me, and for many others I would guess.
If we stopped subsidizing gas and diesel (extraction, production, transport, all of it), I don’t think the overall cost would be much different after a year or two. But then we also have subsidies for various electricity generation and other mineral/material extration…
Truck buyers tend to be relatively conservative and concerned with towing. Most buyers are going to gravitate towards known tech.
But it is a great market for EREVs – torque + range = tow rig.
That said I’m still pretty sure that the electric Ram was canned because Stellantis couldn’t stop making prototypes start on fire or something. It was delayed so much and Stellantis is… Well it’s Stellantis.
Most Americans don’t need big trucks. They are trying to make a political statement or a statement reaffirming their masculinity to those around them.
Every personal purchase is a statement of some type right down to the toilet paper you buy.
One point for side stepping the issue.
More of putting it in perspective.
Besides. I don’t believe in telling people what they need. It’s your money, buy what you want!
I first read your comment as “sidestepping the tissue” and wanted to give you a star.
Or my favorite, overcompensating for a physical shortcoming. Fight me if you don’t believe it.
The delicious irony of mocking someone for insecurity while playing internet tough guy.
Maybe they could start out-rigging the things with flanged wheels and sell a few to the railroads. According to their early marketing material, the Lightening should work out just fine as a budget yard-switcher.
They don’t want big, EXPENSIVE trucks, no. More reasonably priced or *gasp* cheap big electric trucks? Probably.
The real question is do they want SMALL electric trucks. I imagine yes as long as they are cheap.
User name checks out.
And it always will.
I wonder how many lightning sales are fleet sales as a lot of municipalities, at least in my state, are required to have a certain percentage of electrified vehicles, thus requiring them to buy a bunch of Ford Lightnings.
Around here we did have alternative fuel requirements, not sure if they are still in force, but they could be met with diesels (which meant 3/4 tons replacing 1/2 tons), and FFVs too, but my county definitely has a fair number of Lightnings in the fleet.
Give it time.
In some cities: I see Ford Lightnings all the time as delivery vehicles for small manufacturing business. It’s something well suited for medium load & short distances. They fill a role on this continent that would have been done by van in any other country as a van keeps the cargo both dry & secure.
Cybertrucks, OTOH, seem confined to personal transportation statements. Which, if you ask me, limits their appeal & growth as few reasonable companies would want to wear a political opinion on the side of their business.
Several months ago there was a story about a Cybertruck owner who used it for his business and he claims that he lost business because of that choice. Which I certainly can see as no one wants to see one of those parked in front of their business or home.
When a country has a near 50/50 split on the political spectrum, it’s a risk to alienate half your customer base.
You’d better have a devout following with tasty Chicken or Icecream to pull it off.
The thing is the Cybertruck turns off the Anti-EV red folks and the Anti-Elon blue folks, so in that case it is much worse than that. Which is why Ford was smart in many ways to keep the Lightning a variation of the gas F-150 rather than a hey look at me thing like all the other EV pickups.
Around NYC about half of the Cybertrucks I see are wrapped in advertising for venues, liquor brands, dispensaries, etc. just because they offer high visibility I assume. While I have a negative view of the vehicle I haven’t registered if that passes on to the advertising but I also haven’t gone out to spend money on any of the advertisers either.
Could also be that it deflects the anti-Elon sentiment somewhat, maybe. Making less an Elon ad and more an annoying brand ad.
I live in a very dense urban area, but the overwhelming amount of electric trucks seem to be “fleet vehicles.” They’re absolutely used for hauling (bed, not tow) and job sites, but the absolute upper bound for a given trip is 80 miles, and usually 40.
Need to tow a bobcat or something around? They still have a heavy duty diesel for it.
Though speaking with the contractors, they seem to like the trucks for their use case. Again, they’re not going long distance, so they like using the onboard power for tools, they like having more secure storage in the frunk, and they like that they’re quieter.
I’d expect a different response even 25 miles from where I live, but at least in very dense urban centers, the fleets have started to take them up and are pleased. Again, go outside the heart of the Boston metro and it’d less the case the further out you go.
Agree. I live in western Mass and know many contractors. They looked at EVs (while there were incentives) but decided against them owing to the very limited towing range. Additionally, EV trucks can’t do double-duty, such as plowing in the winter months – – the weight is nice, but they need trucks to be running 15+ hour shifts.
The thing is that it’s a hard sell even then because Ford also sells a hybrid F-150 with the same Pro Power generator capability, which has obscene amounts of HP and doesn’t have the towing range problem.
Honestly, the F-150 hybrid is an underappreciated gem in the truck market, and I say that as someone who drives a Chevy.
I don’t run manage the fleets of the utility vehicles or construction companies. Perhaps there were other incentives on the sale to sweeten the deal, including those from the state? Not sure.
Jeezus. These articles are getting hard to read with the unstoppable ad playing on the right side of the screen. At least let us click to pause it if we cant close it…..
Oops. Apologies, we’ve been tweaking the player to make it work better and… it looks like we turned off the “X” button. Apologies.
Noticed that yesterday. Then I logged in. I appreciate the option of paying for content directly or indirectly (ads).
It’s almost like the people who want big gender-affirming vehicles want big polluting V8’s – and the people who want EVs want medium/small affordable cars (small trucks too) along the lines of what Hyundai/Kia and Chevy are producing – with minimal overlap on that Venn Diagram.
Who could have ever seen that coming?
Not all pick up truck owners need to affirm their gender. Some people simply need a pick up truck.
You can usually tell the difference.
Needed: probably 2WD, Kept stock, some dents, some scratches, maybe some rust,
Affirm: lifted 4×4 with acres of shiny chrome and paint proving it’s never seen dirt.
Frankly every 2WD pickup I see today has the same deck height of the 4WD variants. The only reason I’d want a 2WD pickup over a 4WD pickup is if there is a reliability issue inherent to the 4WD specific drivetrain.
4WD pickups also have much better resale. Always go with the 4WD.
Lifted? Classic Neapolitan complex. Tell why me why you think you can make a better suspension that the engineers who designed it, by raising the COG and making it handle worse? Like you need such a vehicle in the rough and tumble suburbs.
This is ‘Murica. Everybody knows the “experts” don’t know squat.
My opinions are more accurate/worthy/gooder than whatever supposed “facts” some moron with silly letters after his name because he graduated from college and has been working in his chosen field of expertise for how ever many decades thinks he knows.
I watched a podcast episode about it by some otherwise unemployed (and unemployable) influencer, so you have to know I know my stuff.
Now, hold my beer and I’ll fix that for you – no permit required!
(This from a guy that actually does do his own electrical work, but always with a permit and with proper inspections. And I make it a point to research the latest code updates, so I don’t have to redo things after the inspector comes through.)
I can’t imagine you’d do all that replace a broken light switch or outlet. Or even a faulty circuit breaker. But certainly you’d do all that to upgrade the breaker box or to replace in wall wiring from aluminum to copper.
Where do you draw the line? Putting in a ceiling fan?
I wired a 22×24 addition to the old house, the 50 amp run for a hot tub, and more recently new circuits for two bathrooms, a new 30 amp line for a dryer and a couple of other miscellaneous things.
Next up, we’re planning on building a new house, and I’m looking into doing that entire wiring job myself, panel and all. That one is hopefully going to have a generator interlock and an EV charger for the garage, depending on material costs.
Lines? What lines? 🙂
The only people who talk (or even think) about gender and trucks are the hateful types who are just mad not everyone likes the same things they do.
Because they’re so smart and “rational”, anyone who has other priorities in their vehicle shopping must be “ignorant” or “compensating for something”. Never mind that it’s the same crowd who would throw a fit if anyone dared call a Miata a “woman’s car”.
Meanwhile 99.9% of truck owners are just out here enjoying life.
The haters are telling on themselves.
I think you’re mistaken there. I’d bet 80-90% of private truck purchases were bought because they make the owners feel good, same as 80-90% of any other purchases. Pickups get picked on because there are more negative effects when people are jerks behind the wheel, but their drivers are people same as anyone else.
I don’t really think we are saying anything different from each other, it’s just no one psychoanalyzes the purchase of a Camry, a Mustang, or a Rav4 and/or claims they are making a political or gendered statement when someone buys one.
As a two time mustang owner, they most certainly do, but I get your point.
Pickups get picked on because there are more negative effects when people are jerks behind the wheel
That can happen even when nobody is behind the wheel. Usually when some poor soul bangs their shin on the &%@# shiny new trailer ball sticking out of the hitch or when someone can’t get into their car because the giant truck or SUV is spilling out of the adjacent compact spot.
I can only upvote your comment once, so I figured I would also reply to say I agree 100%.
It is frustrating that every post about trucks on this website includes the same dumb comments about truck owners being assholes or people who are overcompensating for something lacking in their character or anatomy.
I happen to like pickup trucks. I drive my trucks safely and respectfully. It is unfathomable to me why that bothers some people so much.
I have more thoughts on this, but in the interest of harmony in the comment section I’m going to leave it here for now.
I will say I hope some of these people get a chance to meet my very liberal, very feminine, very lovely wife when she’s driving our crew cab long bed F350 around.
The clothes fit.
One nice thing about this site, though, is that at least the writers aren’t participating in that. I got really tired of reading truck reviews at the old site where the author was the one making all the tired jokes.
Exactly. Sometimes unique requirements push us into a “big truck”.
A mid size truck does everything I need. But my wife wears pants with the 37″ inseam, so if I plan to have my daughter or dog in the back seat, a mid size cab doesn’t work for me as there’s no leg room.
So I end up going up to a half ton just due to space.
I love my Ford Maverick, but I have found it’s limitations several times. My next car will likely be a half ton also. Ironic that the Maverick has more backseat room than all of the mid-sizers (and it’s already tight with a backwards facing car seat).
I see what you’re saying, but there’s more to it. Here in the cityburbs, most of the the pickups are owned by people (in actual experience of the people I know, not by guessing) with
Does any of that have to do with gender or compensation?
I’m not saying everyone needs to like trucks, just quit the weird Freudian shit in every comment section.
I was addressing the other part of your post, that said that people who find problems with pickups are pretending to be smart and rational. There are rational reasons to find issue with a vehicle that causes friction for other people, needlessly. Needlessly in the case of large urban vehicles that receive the same usage through their lives as Kia Niro.
Wow, we hit a nerve, didn’t we?
Buddy, it’s not me going around talking about other men’s genitalia in comment sections. I’m going to sleep pretty well tonight.
Apparently yes, a nerve was hit.
I think I agree with you that genitalia isn’t nearly as big of a factor as critics usually say. The over compensators are very conspicuous, so this skew perception.
But I disagree with “99.9%” are just enjoying life, and this is why: are big pick up trucks what people want, or all that there is for sale? It seems to me that the US market is very warped with loopholes and categorizatios so that trucks/SUVs are all that manufacturers will make, and all that there is to buy. I’m not from or in the US, so I’m looking from outside, but it seems to me that the one TRULY enjoying life ate the people making and selling those enormous trucks to people that would’ve been much better served by a sedan or even a hatch.
Sedans and hatches have always been available and Americans have bought trucks instead.
The crew cab truck is superior in a land of cheap gas and abundant space, and has (mostly) won its market share through true preference.
There is absolutely a value problem for EV trucks. The aero sucks, so either the range is garbage (non starter in the USA) or they need to load it up with capacity (and then the rocket fuel problem). Now it’s too expensive. And it was a mistake to think that just because people would drop that kind of coin on a King Ranch or Denali trim that they’d do it for an EV (this was of course the entire damn industry getting bamboozled by Model S sales). Those people all already bought a Rivian.
Even Scout, who I think will have the most compelling truck option on offer (I have an erev Terra reservation) say that 2/3 of the reservations are for the SUV, which means 2/9 are erev trucks and 1/9 EV trucks. There needs to be probably both a capacity and price breakthrough to make the segment work.
I have a buddy who leans right, but he doesn’t wear a red hat. He owns a small business, and within the past year he has traded 2 of his 3 company-owned trucks for Silverado EV.
His “boss’ truck” was a loaded and lifted Tacoma TRD 4×4, and the worker’s truck he traded was a plain Jane F-150. Both of the EV trucks he got were the mid-trim Silverado EV, because the Work Truck doesn’t have the midgate (dumb move, Chevy.)
My buddy claims (not that I’m looking at his books, but I believe him) that what he’s spending on payments plus fuel has actually gone down significantly vs the gas trucks. He also notes that both of the EV were too expensive to get the tax credit.
There are indeed specific use cases that work.
I live in a right-leaning area and I’ve been surprised by the amount of the GM twins I’m seeing around lately. I’ve already become accustomed to the Lightnings, so clearly as you say they are speaking to people.
Also live in a rightish (probably purplish now since a bunch of people fleeing Chicago) and there are a ton of EV trucks around me from the Lightning and Silverado up to the gucci people in their hummers and lots of Rivians also. I really think the whole the right hating EV thing is more of a online thing then anything lots of people I work with lean that way and would consider driving an EV due to saving money on fuel and not having to deal with as much maintenance. Hell I drive an EV and I would consider myself more center right then center left.
And wanted to make note I do not think the tax credit being gone will really affect the trucks since I think most of them were to expensive to qualify anyways,
As with many EVs, as long as they fit your use case range wise they’re better in almost every metric. It’s no surprise that the people making choices where the money matters (fleets, small businesses) are increasingly choosing EVs
In terms of range, the Lightning is basically an F150 with a 5-gallon tank.
It’s a bit better than that. The Lightning has 2 battery options – 98 kWh and 131 kWh (usable). A gallon of gasoline has 33.7 kWh of energy, but an ICE engine is only 20-30% efficient… let’s be generous and say 30% efficient. 33.7*.3 =10.11. So, a gallon of gasoline has about 10 usable kWh of energy. Then, the 98 kWh battery truck is similar to a 10 gallon gas tank, and the 131 kWh battery is similar to a 13 gallon gas tank. Not great, but also pretty decent for folks who drive around locally and plug in at home. And, while fast charging is slower than filling a gas tank, I did a road trip in a Lightning and wasn’t disappointed.
This guy maths.
To me it’s all about having the right tool for the job.
Big businesses, seeking high margin products, don’t want to push the right tool for the job, but the highest margin tool for the job. That includes fads that they can charge more for.
Reasonable people could debate the exact categories, definitions, and best solutions, but given current energy-densities (battery vs gasoline) I’m comfortable with something like this:
*Small commuter car only driving less than ~50 miles a day? – Small electric
*Commuter / family car / CUV, typically less than 50 miles a day, but frequent mid-range roadtrips (to the city, to grandma’s house, etc.)? – electric with REX
*Large family CUV / SUV with significant highway miles? – hybrid
*Pickup Truck as a commuter? (as most are used) – electric with REX, but likely hybrid due to carry vehicle weight
*Pickup Truck for hauling/towing? – hybrid
In no scenario is a pure electric truck the right tool for the job.
And unfortunately, IMHO, a pure electric car with 300 miles of range is not the right tool for any job right now either.
I think any consumer who is informed and open-minded probably sees this too.
(Open minded meaning not locked into one brand or solution, i.e. “I have to drive a truck.”, “It has to be a Ford.” or similar.)
Perception is more important than reality. I agree a great deal with your very good list. People are emotional creatures that want a do all status symbol vehicle and do not choose wisely and big corps chase quarterly profits.
That is very true.
I do think those people will let their “best tool for the job” decisions be pushed quite a bit based on their emotions, but there’s a limit to that.
Will people decide that that a pickup truck is a good commuter car?: Yes.
Will they decide that they need that giant SUV to fit stuff for their one child? Yes.
That an $100k electric Pickup is good at anything? Obviously not. 🙂
There’s still a perception out there that 300 mile range EV’s can’t road trip. They absolutely can. If they charge fast enough. At a 250 kW charger, my EV takes about 10 minutes to get from 10% to 50%. That’s long enough to use the bathroom and stretch before getting in for another few hours. Besides, most families will stop every few hours anyhow. Unless they’re an iron bottom family who has to get there without breaking for anything.
We take two major round trips each year from Michigan to Hilton Head in our Model Y. This is year five of that and it’s easy. Yes, you have to stop, and yes, it does take a little longer to charge then fill for gas, but it’s not THAT much longer and you plan your trips appropriately. It’s also much cheaper, even with Supercharging, and the car is quiet, comfortable, and eats up the miles. These trips are completely do-able and my wife prefers them to my old “banzai” runs of stopping when we run out of gas (300 miles). I have to actually enjoy the trip now.
Again, not saying you can’t. Just saying it’s not the best.
And then there are situations like this, where people relize that a hybrid is probably a better , cheaper, solution for the job:
https://www.theautopian.com/man-does-the-math-to-brag-about-ev-road-trip-savings-but-finds-it-would-be-just-as-cheap-and-a-full-day-quicker-in-a-hybrid/
Well, this is where we’re going to get into “Reasonable people could debate.”
I didn’t say that 300mi EVs CAN’T do something. I just tried to label the BEST tool for the job.
You’re EV roadtrip assumes that someone only wants to travel 120miles between stops (40% of 300mi), that they are traveling in an area dense with 250kW chargers, and that those chargers all work when they arrive. That last one seems to be especially risky based on articles posted here and elsewhere. Those are all caveats, limitations, and travel risks, which a Hybrid/ICE doesn’t have to deal with.
So, I’m not saying you can’t, just saying it’s not the best choice for that job.
In my experience on the US east coast, the Tesla Supercharger network has been incredible. It just works. They’re also updating the chargers to 250 kW or better chargers. Some locations that don’t see a lot of use have the old 150 kW chargers. Even those are fine since a modern EV can sustain that charge rate for a good while. Certainly for most of a 10-50% charge.
Other networks like Electrify America are nowhere near as reliable (uptime or speed) as the Supercharger network. That network is by far the best EV charging network at this moment in time.
That’s great.
But I’m not sure what point you keep trying to make? Especially as it relates to my “best tool for the job” discussion.
You’re saying that IF I drive a Tesla, and IF I’m on the US east-coast (or otherwise only near Superchargers), and IF I only ever travel 120mi or less at a time; THEN an EV can road-trip.
I am NOT anti-EV, but I think my previous two points stand:
1) “Those are all caveats, limitations, and travel risks, which a Hybrid/ICE doesn’t have to deal with.”
2) “I’m not saying you can’t, just saying it’s not the BEST choice for that job.”
I COULD roadtrip hundreds of miles on bicycle. It doesn’t mean it’s the best tool for the job.
Thanks for the nudge to re-read your post in light of what we typed out down here. Seems like I’m more comfortable road tripping an EV than you are.
The point I was trying to make was that it’s entirely doable with zero downsides to a liquid fueled vehicle in the right conditions. I happen to live in the right area for this to occur. So I do it and would rather take the EV on road trips than our ICE vehicle. That doesn’t mean we’ve stopped road tripping the ICE. It happens much less frequently.
Yeah, we don’t have an EV but it could easily work for our trips. We usually stop every hour or two to stretch, hit the restroom, and smoke a cigarette (no smoking in our cars!). By the time we do that, it’s been around 10 minutes and a fast charging EV could have added meaningful range in that time.
My issue is charging locations. Unless I need fuel we pretty much exclusively stop at rest areas because they’re so convenient. And of course there’s gas stations everywhere if you need to stop. I just want to see more charging infrastructure along the Intetstate, so I don’t have to get off and then go to a charger somewhere 10 minutes off the highway. Depending on the location there may not even be a restroom nearby. But, that’s something that should improve over time! I’d love to see chargers at rest areas as well. That’s even easier than going to a gas station.
Replying to myself because I can’t edit, and that’s to add the commercial space:
*In-town delivery, fixed-routes, fixed staging areas (USPS, UPS, FedEx, School buses, City buses, etc.) – Electric
*Out-of-town hauling and delivery – … I don’t know enough to say.
It’s the perfect truck for a construction worker, (things like framing, roofing, etc.) rarely do you need to travel more than 30 miles to the job site and having a huge power bank when you get there is very handy. The problem is they rarely are able to afford a new truck and are less likely to have a place to charge at home or be able to install an L2 charger.
That’s true.
I actually added a reply to myself in order to add the category “In-town delivery, fixed-routes, fixed staging areas: – electric” and it does seem that local construction vehicles would fit into that area nicely, and I can see the benefit.
However as you point out, for some, the logistics would be an issue, and the cost may be an issue. However most contractors I see around here are driving the $120k top tier trim anyway.
As you mentioned most consumer pickups are used as commuters and an electric version is perfect for that, assuming you have a place to charge at home or work.
For small business like those in the building trades or landscapers, once again the EV version is perfect. I’ve seen a number of Lightnings with ladder racks and tool boxes being used mostly just like a regular F-150, but with power to run corded tools and a place to charge the batteries of the cordless tools w/o having to bring them in the house every night. The guy that works on the trucks for the company next to the one I work for uses a Lightning and has the frunk set up for his commonly used tools, to charge the batteries for his cordless tools and has a drop light he plugs in as well.
I remember a few years ago spending time alone the Minnesota – Ontario border camping and sight seeing. I went hours only seeing pick up trucks. Everything is spread out and every bit of those guys lives are gas powered, all their work, hobbies, toys etc. They are just not the EV truck people.
Gas and diesel are getting cheaper, electric rates are going up.
So psychologically the trend favors ICE.
Also the early years of depreciation on these battery trucks appears to be very high.
I’m not surprised EV pickup trucks haven’t sold well. As others have commented already, these trucks are too expensive. Unfortunately, high price tags are probably out of necessity rather than product planning. To be useful as trucks they need ginormous, expensive batteries. I don’t see 1/2 ton or larger pickup trucks selling well until technology progresses to a point where batteries are considerably cheaper. Few people may want an $90k luxury EV pickup, but even fewer want a $60k short range work-spec pickup.
I wonder if they would sell more to fleets and trades people if they were cheaper and aimed at them instead of the luxury truck market?
Ding!
I doubt that. Realistically, the limitation is battery cost and not luxury features. You might be able to reduce the price of a base F150 lightning a few thousand dollars by stripping out some features, but then you would have a $50k work truck with ~180 miles of useful range (which will decrease over time) and rapid depreciation (this will be a $15k used truck in 5 years).
If you are running a business, I don’t see how you can justify that purchase when you could buy a $40k F150 XL with no range issues and far lower depreciation. The EV might save money on gas and maintenance, but when you factor in purchase price, depreciation, and downtime for charging it is hard to see these trucks making sense in most situations.
Around here most of the GMs wearing the Bow Tie are in big commercial fleets and a couple being used by smaller businesses, personal users aren’t nearly as common. For the Ford most are personal use, but there are a lot being used by small businesses and in gov’t fleets. The rest are all personal use.
The problem seems to be that the Venn diagram of people willing and eager to drop 70-100k on a new quarter ton truck and EV buyers are two circles with nearly no overlap.
“It Turns Out That Americans Don’t Really Want Big Electric Trucks That Cost $100,000”
ftfy
The problem with the Cybertruck is that it’s entirely a status symbol, but it’s a status that most people don’t want.
False.
I would absolutely love a new F150 Lightning.
There’s just no way I can afford it.
As someone who sells the GMC EVs, we just don’t have a lot to sell. I have a gray one and a black one that will probably both be gone by the end of the month and I have no Hummers. I can’t sell what I don’t have.
Toyota did the same thing with the Supra. The sales numbers were low but that was an inventory thing. Hardly any dealership had any to sell!
If these EVs were stacking up on lots, I’d understand but as it is now, there just isn’t enough inventory
That makes the Cybertruck’s showing even worse since those are stacking up.
Tesla should simply have their backstock Cybertrucks wrapped to look like other EV pickups.
or put a new face on it:
https://www.theautopian.com/not-enough-cybertruck-owners-are-taking-advantage-of-putting-different-car-faces-on-the-fronts-of-their-trucks/
The problem with stacking Cybertrucks is the pile starts to lean immediately and the third one just slides right off. The rear gigacasting breaks on impact, and then you’ve really got troubles.
Yeah, stacking Cybertrucks (like Cybertrucks in general) is best to be avoided.
Nonsense, you just need the right music!
Wow. I’d never considered Tetris as a metaphor for the proletariat, but that kinda works!
Careful, listen to it more than once and every time you hear Korobeiniki you’ll start singing “I am the man who arranges the blocks” 😉
Nonsense, Cybertrucks are perfect for stacking, you just have to turn every other layer upside down and then they will nest perfectly.