Will electric pickups be headed to your work site anytime soon?

Aside from all the buzz about self-driving cars, hybrid and electric technology is probably the most exciting and practical advancement currently in the works in the auto industry. There are a handful of models of cars from different major manufacturers already pumping out these futuristic vehicles, and with new legislation being considered to curb greenhouse gas emissions, we can probably expect many more.

But the buzz about electric vehicles isn’t all over their reduced environmental footprint (though this is a major advantage, to be sure): cars that favor electric technology and higher miles-per-gallon ratings can also save owners money over the life of the vehicle. So in our industry, where our trucks are tools that we use daily, can we expect to get some of those energy savings?

The short answer is yes. Many hybrid pickup trucks are able to take advantage of similar technology to their smaller cousins in order to improve fuel efficiency while on the job. However, because of the size of these vehicles and the jobs they have to perform, don’t expect to get as much out of a pickup as you would out of a Prius. Right now, the highest miles-per-gallon of any major manufacturer pickup is the 2016 Dodge Ram 1500, with about 29 MPG highway. Still, manufacturers are working to improve this, and lighter aluminum frames and more practical, reduced towing capacities are often cited as solutions.

As for electric trucks, you’ll probably have to wait a bit longer there. One company—VIA Motors—purchases GM trucks and outfits them with almost fully electric engines that boast about 100 MPG for normal daily driving. On the whole though, the biggest names in the auto industry haven’t developed a fully viable electric pickup solution that operates on the level of something like Chevy’s all-electric Volt.

There is hope for the future, however, and it may be that in the next decade you’ll be saving a ton of money on fuel costs by driving a truck with incredible energy efficiency. Until then, give us a ring, and see if we can talk you into parking your truck at one of our sites.