So who will be first with an electric pickup. And when.
Ford plans US$11 billion investment for 40 electrified vehicles by 2022. Link below. https://www.bnn.ca/ford-plans-us-11-billion-investment-for-40-electrified-vehicles-by-2022-1.968176
Forum Discussion
A hybrid or electric pickup is very much viable but not as a tow vehicle.
As is often mentioned, most pickups are used as commuter vehicles (aka: Grocery Getters). If you occasionally need to pick up lumber from home depot, it could be a great option.
- To keep a pickup running at 70mph only takes maybe 60-80hp but they typically have 200+HP engines because the acceleration of a 80hp pickup would be horrid. A hybrid would allow you to put in an 80hp engine and allow for decent acceleration with the MPG advantages of a small engine running at near peak efficiency. The problem for towing is you often need twice as much power on a continuous basis just going down the road and if you climb a steep grade it might be 3-4 times as much. The small battery bank in a hybrid would die very quickly under that kind of heavy usage and then you are stranded on the side of the road or limited to very low speeds with only 80hp.
- Pure electric also works as a commuter vehicle. Plenty of room between the frame rails for batteries and if you don't need a lot of cargo capacity it can carry a lot of batteries but let's take the poster boy tesla. The battery bank that gets 300miles weighs in at 1200lbs. An aerodymaic car might need 40-50hp to maintain highway speeds. Pulling a trailer, the engine is going to put out closer to 150hp to maintain speed so figure 3-4 times the battery bank size or around 3400-4800lbs of batteries Ignoring the costs of that massive battery bank, that will eat up all the cargo capacity of a 1/2ton pickup, meaning it can't handle the tongue weight or anything else in the truck bed. The other big difference is a commuter vehicle is assumed to charge at night and then travel a modest distance before being charged again. When you cut thru the hype, cross country road trips are usually stunts. A typical RV towing experience is often north of 250-500miles in a day which leaves range a real issue. Also, dry camping without electricity becomes problematic. Even 30amp outlets can be a problem. If it's hot out and the air/con is running all the time, can the system supply sufficient power to charge the truck (and will the park take issue with you stressing out their marginal system plus without paying extra).
A lot of urban delivery trucks are very much viable. If you do 100 miles of deliveries during the day and bring the truck back to the warehouse to charge at night, that can be done. There are actually electric delivery vans in europe now.
So that leaves us at a marketing dilemma. People buy Grocery Getters because they want to feel they can do anything even if they never will. Once you get them to admit they won't ever put their house on casters and drive it down the road, the whole case for a full size truck goes away. Most could do fine with a small car and a utility trailer or an 1980's vintage 100hp small pickup (not the overgrown midsize of today).
As is often mentioned, most pickups are used as commuter vehicles (aka: Grocery Getters). If you occasionally need to pick up lumber from home depot, it could be a great option.
- To keep a pickup running at 70mph only takes maybe 60-80hp but they typically have 200+HP engines because the acceleration of a 80hp pickup would be horrid. A hybrid would allow you to put in an 80hp engine and allow for decent acceleration with the MPG advantages of a small engine running at near peak efficiency. The problem for towing is you often need twice as much power on a continuous basis just going down the road and if you climb a steep grade it might be 3-4 times as much. The small battery bank in a hybrid would die very quickly under that kind of heavy usage and then you are stranded on the side of the road or limited to very low speeds with only 80hp.
- Pure electric also works as a commuter vehicle. Plenty of room between the frame rails for batteries and if you don't need a lot of cargo capacity it can carry a lot of batteries but let's take the poster boy tesla. The battery bank that gets 300miles weighs in at 1200lbs. An aerodymaic car might need 40-50hp to maintain highway speeds. Pulling a trailer, the engine is going to put out closer to 150hp to maintain speed so figure 3-4 times the battery bank size or around 3400-4800lbs of batteries Ignoring the costs of that massive battery bank, that will eat up all the cargo capacity of a 1/2ton pickup, meaning it can't handle the tongue weight or anything else in the truck bed. The other big difference is a commuter vehicle is assumed to charge at night and then travel a modest distance before being charged again. When you cut thru the hype, cross country road trips are usually stunts. A typical RV towing experience is often north of 250-500miles in a day which leaves range a real issue. Also, dry camping without electricity becomes problematic. Even 30amp outlets can be a problem. If it's hot out and the air/con is running all the time, can the system supply sufficient power to charge the truck (and will the park take issue with you stressing out their marginal system plus without paying extra).
A lot of urban delivery trucks are very much viable. If you do 100 miles of deliveries during the day and bring the truck back to the warehouse to charge at night, that can be done. There are actually electric delivery vans in europe now.
So that leaves us at a marketing dilemma. People buy Grocery Getters because they want to feel they can do anything even if they never will. Once you get them to admit they won't ever put their house on casters and drive it down the road, the whole case for a full size truck goes away. Most could do fine with a small car and a utility trailer or an 1980's vintage 100hp small pickup (not the overgrown midsize of today).
