Recently, every major truck manufacturer has joined the race to put out the next great electric pickup. Pickup trucks have historically suffered from some of the worst fuel economy of all vehicle types. What gas engine trucks have offered in power, they’ve usually sacrificed in MPGs. That’s just what happens when you have a hefty V8 chugging away beneath the hood to boost those towing and payload numbers. For decades, truck owners have dealt with the reality that if they wanted a truck that could do a lot, they’d better not hope to take it far because that would cost a small fortune in fuel. So, the world was shocked and impressed when, in 2021, Ford, the creator of the ever-popular F-150, created the F-150 Lightning, an all-electric rendition of its beloved full-size, light-duty pickup.
Ford’s competitors quickly followed suit. Chevy put out the Silverado EV just one year later, in 2022. Tesla has been pushing to release its Cybertruck, ready for pre-order but not officially out. Ram is also expecting its EV truck, the Ram 1500 REV, by 2024. The introduction of all of these new EV trucks has meant that nearly every Ford F-150 Lightning dealer in the country has faced the question: is the F-150 Lightning still all it’s cracked up to be? The Tesla Cybertruck is not out, so there is limited information on it. The Ram 1500 REV also has yet to be available, but there are far more details available than on the Cybertruck. Soon enough, drivers can choose from all four of these trucks, so it’s a good idea to get a lay of the EV pickup land now.
The F-150 Lightning
Let’s start with the original before we look at the other EV trucks. The Ford F-150 Lightning combines the classic functionality drivers already love from this truck with an EV powertrain. It comes in four trims: the classic Pro work truck, the XLT with a few more bells and whistles, the luxury Lariat, and the towing-forward Platinum. Many drivers are already familiar with these personalities of the F-150 and will be glad to see them still a part of the EV offering.
The F-150 has an estimated range of 320 miles. By today’s standards, that’s not fantastic or embarrassing. It’s average. However, here is where the F-150 does shine in the electric range department: Intelligent Range. The F-150 Lightning has an intelligent range system that accounts for weather, payload, towing heights, grade, and other factors when determining your real electric range. As conditions change, the system will update you if your range has changed. This is very useful for planning charge stops on long drives.
Drivers will get the drive modes they already loved, too, of normal, sport, tow/haul, and off-road. It’s ready for a multitude of environments. It will also have the renowned Ford CoPilot 360, Ford’s excellent suite of driver assist features.
The top stand-out feature of the F-150 Lightning, however, has to be Ford’s BlueCruise hands-free driving technology. Many regard it as the best hands-free driving technology to date, capable of genuinely taking over braking, steering, and accelerating. An assisted driving system like that, combined with EV technology, is the perfect marriage of futuristic technology, and only the F-150 Lightning has it for now.
The Tesla Cybertruck
There has been much buzz about the Tesla Cybertruck since Musk’s company released some preliminary videos and images. Many people anticipating the model noted something undeniable about the Cybertruck: it is, for lack of a better word, hideous.
The Cybertruck doesn’t look like a truck. It barely looks like a vehicle at all. It seems more like some odd military spaceship. For some, the Cybertruck’s bizarre appearance might be enough to turn them off to the vehicle. Some truck drivers love the classic look of a pickup, with its lifted body, traditional bed, and two- or four-door cab options.
If you notice a bed missing when you look at the Cybertruck, that’s because the “roof panel” on the back flips up and opens—eventually tilting back behind the truck, creating a ramp and revealing the concealed bed. It does offer constant protection against the elements of your cargo. However, it’s also a forced bed cover, and only some people want one.
The Cybertruck is said to have up to a 500-mile range, which is admittedly impressive. It has three powertrain options: a single motor with a 250-mile range, a double motor with a 300-mile range, or the top-tier Tri-Motor, which gets the desirable 500-mile range. On the power front, the Cybertruck is reported to tow up to 14,000 lbs, which are solid numbers for any truck, EV or not.
While the Cybertruck looks more suited for the inside of a museum than any rough roads, it actually has an adjustable air suspension that gains it up to 16 inches of ground clearance, and it has some formidable departure and approach angles. So, it is ready for some modest off-roading. Plus, it’s fast. It can go from zero to 60 in an alleged 2.9 seconds.
The Silverado EV
The Silverado EV definitely needed to bring some heat to the table because the Silverado has always been a direct competitor of the F-150. Not surprisingly, it has the same maximum towing ability as the F-150 Lightning, at 10,000 lbs. GM estimates that the Silverado EV has a 400-mile range. So, it does have the F-150 Lightning trumped in that regard. The trim options of the Silverado EV are different, too. They aren’t better or worse, just different. The Silverado EV will get the popular off-road Silverado trim, the Trail Boss. It’s been a highly sought-after trim among off-roaders as long as it existed in the gas-engine Silverado, so Chevy was wise to keep it going for EV drivers.
Now, we can’t discuss the Silverado and not praise its highly versatile tailgate, the Multi-Flex Tailgate. It can be set to six positions, including a load stop for longer items, a full-width step, a work desk, and more. The EV variant will have it, plus a multi-flex midgate. This midgate is highly useful because it expands the bed’s load floor into the cab, creating even more space for extra-long items.
The Ram 1500 Rev
The Ram REV 1500 is also not yet out, but there is a good deal of information available about it. It gets a range of 350 to 500 miles, so it competes with the Cybertruck. It can tow up to 14,000 lbs, so if you need serious towing abilities, the Ram 1500 outshines the Silverado and F-150 and is on par with the Cybertruck. It also gets a total of five trims, giving drivers with different needs some more personalities to choose from than in the other trucks.
The Ram 1500 REV is a truck for tech lovers. It has massive tablet-like screens in the dash area and an available front passenger touchscreen so your co-pilot can add requests to the navigation, change the music, check the weather, and more. Additionally, the Ram 1500 REV can be your generator when you run out of power at a worksite. Overall, it’s a high-tech truck with serious towing abilities, so it’s suitable for those who have to work hard in and out of their truck.
