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If you saw a good friend of yours, someone that you loved, backsliding again into their destructive habits, you’d say something, right? I would. And I have to do it now. America, you’re my friend. And we need to talk about all of these massive electric trucks.

It’s no secret that America has a love affair with massive vehicles, namely trucks and SUVs. But what is a bit less well known is exactly why. As you can probably guess though, it has to do with money, namely profits for manufacturers.

There was a time when the “big family car” in the US was a station wagon. It fit a seven-person family and the dog, plus everyone’s luggage, and became the iconic family road trip vehicle for decades. It was a simpler time, when cars weighed less, held more, and had better visibility.

So why did that change? Mostly it had to do with the US automotive industry successfully lobbying to get pickup trucks and SUVs classified as “light trucks,” a category previously reserved for commercial vehicles, and one that made it possible to avoid regulations. It was possible because this automotive class, as mostly commercial vehicles, was exempt from the more stringent safety and emissions standards applied to regular passenger cars.

So the US auto industry discovered they could sell vehicles that avoided stricter safety and emissions regulations, thus saving them money in manufacturing. And perhaps most egregious of all, automakers even discovered they could charge a premium doing it by pitching such large automobiles as lifestyle vehicles.

Rivian Nasdaq-100 stock index
Rivian’s electric trucks are some of the most powerful and quickest accelerating of them all.

I had hoped that the advent of electric vehicles might finally provide a return to form once avoiding emissions regulations would no longer be a unique advantage of producing in the massive “light truck” category. But I underestimated the inertia of the American automotive industry. The problem is that automakers had already spent two decades telling Americans that if they don’t buy a bigger vehicle than their neighbor, then what were they even doing?

And so it should come as no surprise that in a country where the single best-selling vehicle of any type is a Ford F-150 pickup truck, the last couple years have seen the rollout of the 6,500 lb. Ford F-150 Lightning, the 7,000 lb. Rivian R1S & R1T, the 8,000 lb. Chevy Silverado EV and the gluttonous 9,000 lb. GMC HUMMER EV. All of these are 100% electric trucks and SUVs, and all of them are utterly massive. Listen America, we need to talk. Consider this an intervention.

GMC HUMMER EV next to the GMC HUMMER EV ALL-WHEEL-DRIVE E-BIKE. The HUMMER’s battery could make over 200 e-bike batteries.

It’s not your fault, America. It’s the automakers’ fault. As Americans, we once got by just fine with smaller trucks.

Remember the Ford Rangers and Chevy S10s of the early 1990s? Here’s the crazy thing. A 1993 Ford Ranger compact pickup truck weighed just 2,900 lb. and yet had a longer bed than Ford, Chevy, and Rivian’s massive electric trucks of today. Some comparisons are nearly comical, like Rivian’s 4’6″ bed compared to the 6′ standard and 7′ long bed on the cute little 2,900 lb. Ford Ranger that came 30 years earlier.

And if you think that’s bad, consider that those two trucks have the same payload capacity. That’s right, they are rated to haul the same amount of weight, around 1,250 to 1,500 lb. depending on the configuration, even though that payload is a full half the weight of the ’90s truck and less than a quarter of the weight of today’s massive trucks.

The even smaller 2,600 lb. Chevy S10 compact pickup truck had a 1,216 lb. payload capacity in 1993, which is nearly identical to the 1,300 lb. payload capacity of the 8,000 lb. Chevy Silverado EV pickup truck recently grabbing headlines. One truck weighs over three times as much as the other and yet they can both haul the same amount of weight.

Ford Lightning orders
The F-150 Lightning Lariat

Okay, so if the trucks have the same cargo capabilities, then where is all of that extra weight coming from on today’s massive e-trucks? It’s largely coming from two areas: gigantic powertrains and an excessive amount of fluffy creature comforts.

These lifestyle trucks aren’t just rolling living rooms. They’re also supercars. The Rivian R1T has a 3.1 second 0-60 mph time. The Ford F-150 Lightning does it in 3.8 seconds. Those are competition numbers, folks. There are dudes turning wrenches in their garages right now that could only dream of getting their cars to the mark in 3.1 seconds.

It’s a feat that is possible thanks to that massive torque and low-end power offered by electric motors, but it simply isn’t necessary for most people. There’s no case where the driver of an 8,000 lb. truck needs to get it up to 60 mph in 3.1 seconds, and in fact its ability to do so has been correctly highlighted as a danger in and of itself.

Ford-F-150-Lightning-towing

But what about towing?

Aha! There you go: towing. This is pretty much the only vestige of reasonableness left for these massively oversized electric trucks, and even this one is pretty thin. The extreme power that gives these 8,000 lb. vehicles faster acceleration than many sports cars also translates into impressive towing. It’s the one area where they best compact pickup trucks from 30 years ago, offering much higher towing capacities.

But here in lies the rub: Most people don’t need that kind of towing power. At least, they don’t need it very often. If you live south of the Mason-Dixon line, take a closer look at the sea of pickup trucks driving around every day. How many of them are towing anything? Almost none of them, that’s how many. In fact, how many of them have literally anything in the bed? Very few of them, that’s how many.

I’d wager that mosts Honda Civics have more junk floating around their trunks than most modern pickup trucks have in their beds. Next time you’re in the parking lot at Lowes or Home Depot, take a peek at how many of the pickup trucks have nice, shiny tail gates without a scratch on them.

But I digress, we were talking about towing. The standard argument is “but what if I need to tow something?” And the correct answer is, “most people rarely do.” Sure, some people live out of an Airstream trailer that is permanently connected to their truck. But most truck owners tow something heavy a few times a year, maximum. More common towing operations are smaller, lighter jobs that could be performed with a much smaller vehicle. In Europe, it is common to see people towing a camper behind a small family car.

Don’t get me started on you, Tesla Cybertruck.

Now if you’re a truck owner, I’m not saying that you specifically don’t use your truck. Or that you never tow or never haul. I’m just saying that almost every time you’ve used your truck recently, it’s probably been for a job that could have been done by a much smaller vehicle, or even… gasp! A compact pickup truck weighing a third as much.

And yes, I’m generalizing here. On average, most trucks on the road right now aren’t doing “truck” things. But not all of them. If you run a landscaping business and you have a 16-foot enclosed landscaping trailer behind your truck, then carry on, this isn’t about you. Thank you for your service. If you’re a diving instructor and pull a boat to the marina or two dozen scuba tanks as part of your job, then have at it. If you’re a plumber and have a bed full of pipes, ladders, and other assorted fitting gear, then go for it. There are people that use their trucks for trucking each and every day. That’s all good, go to town. Because yes, there are real uses for big trucks, so I’m not saying those trucks shouldn’t exist. But what I am saying is that most truck owners don’t actually need them and could instead use a much smaller truck, if they still want to be in a truck. These are the recreational truck owners. The lifestyle truck owners. The majority of truck owners, the majority of the time.

Most people that need “truck capabilities” end up needing to move a couch or a refrigerator once in a blue moon. It’s just like how many electric car owners will say they like knowing they have over 300 miles of range, but you’d be hard-pressed to find many that have actually driven over 300 miles in the car recently.

Silverado EV towing
Out of all the trucks you saw this week, how many were doing this?

And if that’s you, the occasional “I need to move a couch or my dirt bike” truck owner, then first of all that could be done in a compact truck. And second of all, it could also be done in a rental truck, not one that you drive every day while wasting energy and putting both yourself and others in harm’s way with the increased size, diminished safety (fewer safety regulations for light trucks!), and reduced visibility.

I’m not trying to point fingers, but if I’m doing, then I’ll look inwards as well. I can even see it in my own family. My sister runs a furniture refinishing business and so she bought a Silverado (not the EV one). It’s massive. And yes, once in a while she moves a dresser or a table. But for every trip that she has furniture in the bed, there are probably 20 trips where she’s picking up a gallon of paint or a box of nails or dropping her kids off at school. All of those trips could just the same be performed in a compact truck or a family sedan or even on a bicycle. I love my sister and I hope she never reads this, but even in her case as a blue-collar small business owner, she’d be better off with a small car and just renting the occasional truck. Or even putting a trailer behind a small car. An expensive truck that actually “trucks” infrequently is simply a waste of money, energy, and resources. It’s also a waste of space, especially when you look at parking. Many parking lots simply can’t accommodate today’s larger trucks into existing parking spaces.

America needs to reform its microcar laws

One of the reasons we likely don’t see compact electric trucks (or really any compact trucks in serious numbers) anymore is because there just isn’t much profit in it. Automakers have already “sold” Americans on the idea that they need a bigger vehicle, and so now all of the profits are in producing those bigger vehicles and squeezing more add-on cash flow out of them in the form of accessories, servicing, etc.

But what could finally make a dent in that would be new electric mini-truck laws.

telo parked street

We almost had a true highway-capable electric mini-truck in the form of the recently unveiled TELO mini-truck, but there too the designers ended up screwing the pooch by chasing after the high-end market.

They gave it a top speed of 125 mph, which is ridiculous considering you can’t legally do anywhere close to that in the US. They gave it 500 horsepower, which is ridiculous in a freaking mini-truck. They gave it a 0-60 second time of 4.0 seconds, which again, is ridiculous in a mini-truck. And they gave it an estimated $50,000 price, which since no automaker has yet stuck to their estimated price, means it will be north of $50K if it ever makes it to market.

No one buys a mini-truck as a lifestyle vehicle or to make a statement (unless your statement is that your manhood is so appreciable that driving a mini-truck is doing the opposite of compensating for any, ummm, insufficiencies you may be hiding). People use mini-trucks for getting work done. They use them for hauling crap around town, making deliveries, and generally going about real daily work.

The problem is that the US’s microcar laws, which created a class known as Low Speed Vehicles to remove nearly all of the safety regulatory hurdles of larger cars, also has the unfortunate stipulation of limiting speeds of these vehicles to just 25 mph. That’s too slow for most people to feel comfortable driving a truck in a city or suburb, even if in actuality traffic often moves at far less than 25 mph in many cities and suburbs.

electric mini-truck
My electric mini-truck does 25 mph, though I only use it off-road for farm work.

But if the US finally created a similar class of vehicles to quadricycles in Europe, a group of four-wheeled vehicles that have fewer regulations but are limited in speed to around 45-55 mph, then an entire new industry of electric mini-trucks could spring up nearly overnight.

Automakers could enjoy quicker paths to market and lower development costs, and consumers could enjoy lower-cost, smaller, and more convenient electric trucks. Because let’s face it, as much as you’d like a new 450-mile range Chevy Silverado EV truck, you don’t have the $77,000 for it.

But you might have $35K for a modern day Chevy S10 pickup compact pickup truck that just reaches highway speeds or $25K for an electric mini-truck that can hit city/suburb speeds.

I even tow with my electric mini-truck, and it’s got a 5 hp motor for crying out loud! This stuff isn’t rocket science.

As much as I’d like to see a new class of mini-truck and not-as-low-speed-vehicle laws, it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon. But that doesn’t mean it’s any less important of a goal to work toward. Electric mini-trucks are common in Asia and Europe precisely because they have laws that create a framework for their production and use.

That’s what the US needs. It needs electric mini-trucks that can legally reach 45 mph to more comfortably traverse suburbs and larger city streets. It needs automakers to return to the concept of compact pickup trucks, offering us electric versions that top out at 80 mph yet can haul as much as massive flagship electric trucks over twice their weight.

I’m not sure how we achieve that, but it seems like it needs to be an outside force. The automakers have demonstrated that they aren’t interested in doing it themselves. Weight-based vehicle registration fees have been presented in New York and other areas, and perhaps parking should be prioritized for smaller, more space efficient cars. There’s plenty of ways to help guide drivers towards cars that are smaller, safer, and more efficient.

I’m not saying the existing group of massive trucks need to go, though part of me wishes they would be relegated to commercial use as they were once intended. But we need to provide better offerings that more accurately match what drivers actually need, not what automakers tell them they need. Because for every pickup truck or SUV out there towing a boat right now, there are triple digits of pickup trucks and SUVs hauling a gallon of milk and little Timmy’s soccer bag. A more American road image, unfortunately I can not imagine.

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All the EVs you can buy with 0% financing in July, 2025

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All the EVs you can buy with 0% financing in July, 2025

The feces-filled freight train of dystopian horrors rolls on with the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill and the untimely demise of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit. But if you’re ready to pull the trigger on a new EV this month, you’re in luck! There are plenty of great options with zero interest financing to choose from … and one with zero interest in general.

You know how we usually do these lists – some pictures, a few punchy paragraphs, and an invitation to explore local deals.

We’re doing things a little differently this month. Instead of brief write-ups, we’re highlighting the most significant 0% deal of the month (yes, that is largely opinion-based – thanks for noticing), and an “honorable mention” that doesn’t quite fit the 0% EV deal template … but might still be worth checking out.

Enough talk! Here are the deals.

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Most significant new 0% offer


Tesla Powerwall 3 Cybertruck
Cybertruck and Powerwall; via Tesla.

Demand for Tesla Cybertrucks has been a long, long way from the “conservative” 250,000 per year projections Elon was making just a few years ago. Demand for the low-poly electric pickup is so dismal, in fact, that Tesla is offering 0% financing on a new Cybertruck for up to 60 months – if you’re willing to spring for the company’s Full Self Driving (Supervised) level 2 ADAS.

Not quite a 0% EV deal


Volvo-EX90-price
Volvo EX90; via Volvo.

Don’t act surprised – my Twitter handle is VolvoJo, after all, and I’m on my fifth consecutive long-roof Swede as I type this. As such, when trying out a new format for this monthly column it made perfect sense to check out the Ironmark’s offers … and I found a good one: a new, not perfect but getting there seven-passenger EX90 at 1.99% financing plus $1,000 in “Summer Safety Bonus Cash.”

Is zero interest financing good enough to overcome the fact that most people seem to have zero interest in buying a CT these days? Is the Volvo worth a look at 1.99% with an additional $1,000 cash back? Let us know your take in the comments – but before you do that, check out the full list of 0% interest EV deals for July 2025 and click the links for additional local deals.

July 0% interest EV deals


Disclaimer: the vehicle models and financing deals above were sourced from CarsDirectCarEdge, and (where mentioned) the OEM websites – and were current as of 07JUL2025. These deals may not be available in every market, with every discount, or for every buyer (the standard “with approved credit” fine print should be considered implied).

Check with your local dealer(s) for more information.


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Lectric XP Trike2 launched as the affordable new electric trike every senior needs!

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Lectric XP Trike2 launched as the affordable new electric trike every senior needs!

The new Lectric XP Trike2, just unveiled today, is the hands-down winner in the best-bang-for-your-buck category of electric trikes. And as perhaps the longest-running electric bike reviewer in the industry, I can say that with confidence. I’ve seen a lot of electric bikes in my time. I’ve spent a lot of butt-in-saddle hours on e-trikes. But I’ve never before seen a value like this roll by on three wheels.

As an able-bodied, mid-30s electric bike rider (and writer), I’ll be the first to say that electric trikes aren’t just for older folks. They’re fun e-bikes in their own right. But let’s face it – the vast majority of the market for electric three-wheelers are those who just aren’t as comfortable on two wheels due to age, accessibility, or other reasons. And so if you’re a senior or otherwise on the hunt for a fun and affordable electric trike, the Lectric XP Trike2 is probably the one you’re going to end up getting, and deservingly so!

If you don’t know Lectric eBikes, they’re the Phoenix-based e-bike company that took the US by storm in the early 2020s, quickly growing into the #1 best-selling e-bike company on the continent. They started with the ultra affordable, high-value XP line of e-bikes, and then took that same recipe to other types of e-bikes, from cargo bikes to off-roaders, and now to trikes.

The new XP Trike2 is the latest generation of their best-selling e-trike, and it’s absolutely better than ever.

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First of all though, let’s look at what stayed the same. The ultra-affordable price of $1,499 remains untouched, keeping this not only one of the best e-trikes on the market, but also the most affordable. It also keeps the low step-over height for easy mounts and dismounts, the folding frame to help riders transport it more easily, and the powerful motor that makes it a great hill climber.

Other than those features, basically everything else has received an upgrade.

First of all, we now get included suspension with a 50mm suspension fork up front. The frame has been redesigned with a new hydroformed aluminum downtube and a more stable footprint. The stem angle has been modified to make it more comfortable and allow a more upright, relaxed riding posture. A more powerful and longer-range version of the Trike2 is also available, upgrading the motor with 50% more power for even better hill climbing, as well as including a torque sensor for more responsive pedaling and a longer-range battery.

The included TFT color screen is a major upgrade over the older model, and there are even six new colors to choose from, which is a major improvement over the original XP Trike’s color option list of… one.

Base model versus the long-range upgrade

Both the base model (Lectric XP Trike2 500) and the higher-spec option (XP Trike2 750) are compelling options, but they’ll likely serve different types of riders.

Even the base model comes with a reasonably large 13 Ah (624 Wh) battery, which is already going to give most riders at least 30 miles of range (or a claimed 50 miles if using low power pedal assist and riding slower). Plus, the 500W motor is actually much more powerful, likely peaking at closer to 1,000W of actual power. That’s the “oomph” that riders will feel when climbing hills. And for many folks, that’s plenty. Plus, the $1,499 price of the XP Trike2 500 is quite attractive.

But riders who want to upgrade to the XP Trike2 750, the higher price of $1,799 does come with some nice upgrades. First of all, the higher power 750W motor will be that much better at climbing hills, helping riders up steeper inclines, or just maintaining higher speeds up the same slopes. Next, the larger 17.5 Ah (840 Wh) battery is going to give more range, to the tune of nearly 50 miles with mixed riding (or the claimed 70 miles if using lower power pedal assist and staying off the throttle). The other benefit of a bigger battery is that it simply doesn’t need to be charged as often. Even if you’re riding around at 10 mph for an hour each day, that’s a week of riding before you have to think about recharging the battery.

The last significant upgrade on the 750W model is a torque sensor, which is a more refined pedal assist sensor that results in a more natural feeling ride when pedaling. For riders who only use the throttle, there’s not much benefit to a torque sensor. But for anyone who actually wants to pedal along and get a bit of fitness in, the torque sensor means the acceleration and the riding just better mimic the natural feel of bicycle pedaling, making it more like real pedaling – albeit if you had the legs and muscle definition of a professional cyclist.

All of this is to say: The base model with 500W of power is likely sufficient for most riders, but that extra $300 does offer better hill climbing, more power, longer range, and a nicer pedaling experience – which may be important for some riders.

Lectric may have announced the XP Trike2 today, but they aren’t quite ready to ship. In something of a throwback to Lectric’s early days, the bikes are available on pre-order. Orders placed now get priority, with the 500W model shipping later this month (July 2025). The 750W models will take a bit longer, with current orders expected to ship by September.

It’s a bit of a delayed gratification situation, but if the XP Trike2 is anything like the original (and it looks to be even better), then these bikes are absolutely going to be worth the wait!

Electrek’s Take

Once again, Lectric has left all the other e-bike makers fighting over second place. My hat is off to the company – time and again they have surprised us with increasingly better e-bike generations at increasingly the same price. Each time they roll out a bike, they give us more and more, all without touching the price tag.

The XP Trike2 follows that strategy perfectly, though it definitely looks like they’re hoping the XP Trike2 750 will bring slightly fatter margins – perhaps making up for just how ridiculously affordable the XP Trike2 500 is. And while I think the lower power model will be sufficient for most people, that bigger battery, beefier motor, and nicer torque sensor do sound like a tempting upgrade.

I haven’t ridden the XP Trike2 yet, but I will be on it soon and I can’t wait to share the experience with you guys. In the meantime, let’s hear what you think about the new e-trike in the comment section below!

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E-quipment highlight: Kubota mini excavator goes from diesel to EV and back

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E-quipment highlight: Kubota mini excavator goes from diesel to EV and back

Japanese equipment giant Kubota brought 22 new or updated machines to the 2025 bauma expo earlier this year, but tucked away in the corners was a new retrofit kit that can help existing customers decarbonize more quickly, and more affordably.

No matter how badly a fleet may want to electrify, harsh economic realities and the greater up-front costs typically associated with battery electric remain high hurdles to overcome, but new retrofit options from major manufacturers are popping up to help lower those obstacles.

The latest equipment maker to put its name on the retrofit list is Kubota, who says its kit can be installed by a trained dealer in a single day.

That’s right! By this time tomorrow, your diesel-powered Kubota KX019 or U27-4 excavator (shown) could be fitted with an 18 or 20 kWh li-ion battery pack and electric drive motors and ready to get to work in a low-noise or low-vibration work environment where emissions are a strict no-no. Think indoor precision demolition or historic archeological excavation.

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Then, if necessary, it can go right back to diesel power.

From diesel to electric and back again


U27-4e electric retrofit; via Kubota.

If that sounds familiar, that’s because we’ve talked about a similarly flexible power solution from ZQUIP. The battery packs and diesel engines are much larger in that application, but the basic sales pitch remains the same: electric when it benefits your operation, diesel it doesn’t.

Kubota says its modular retrofit kits is a response to the increasing global demand for sustainable alternatives by focusing on making machinery that’s flexible and repairable enough to be “reusable,” and offer construction fleet managers a longer operational lifespan, superior ROI (return on investment), and lower TCO (total cost of ownership) than the competition.

Kubota’s solution also notably reduces maintenance costs and operational overheads. With no engine and associated components, servicing time and expenses are considerably reduced, saving customers both time and money. Additionally, with electricity costing far less than fossil fuels, it offers a highly economical advantage.

KUBOTA

International Rental News reports that other changes to the excavators include a more modern cab controls with a digital instrument cluster, a 60 mm wider undercarriage for more stability, and an independent travel circuit allows operators to use the boom, dipper, bucket, and auxiliary functions without an impact on tracking performance.

Kubota’s new kit, first shown at last year’s Hillhead exhibition in the UK, will officially be on sale this summer – any day now, in fact – though pricing has yet to be announced.

Electrek’s Take


If you’re wondering how it is that we’re still talking about bauma 2025 a full quarter after the show wrapped up, then I haven’t done a good enough job of explaining how positively massive the show was. Check out this Quick Charge episode (above) then let us know what you think of Kubota’s modular power kits in the comments.

SOURCE | IMAGES: Kubota, via International Rental News.


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