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7 hours ago by Karl Furlong Electric Vehicles / 15 Comments

Is it any surprise?

Over the next few years, sales of electric vehicles are expected to rise dramatically as more and more mainstream automakers continue to expand their EV portfolios. Already, Porsche Taycan sales have overtaken those of the Panamera in the US, while EV sales are expected to exceed those of diesels in just two years.

But the real game-changer for the EV market could be the arrival of several electrified trucks. Based on new research by Cox Automotive, consumers are increasingly ready to embrace vehicles like the all-electric Ford F-150, Hummer EV, Rivian R1T, and Tesla Cybertruck. That said, the appeal of each truck differs.

Considering that nearly three million trucks were sold in North America last year, it figures that electric trucks will be a big deal. The Cox Automotive Consumer Snapshot study revealed that close to 2-in-5 consumers intending to buy a truck over the next two years would consider an electric pickup.

Of younger buyers in the 18-34 age bracket, 44 percent said they'd consider both an electric truck and those powered by an internal combustion engine (ICE), with five percent definitely intending to buy an electric truck.

"Our research shows new EV pickup trucks are leading more consumers to consider an EV product," said senior manager at Cox Automotive, Vanessa Ton.

While both ICE and EV shoppers consider price to be a key indicator in the purchasing decision, more ICE shoppers (77 percent) considered horsepower to be important than EV shoppers (58 percent). However, EV shoppers are much more concerned about their truck having the latest technology.

Respondents were also asked to rate how appealing they find upcoming electric trucks based purely on pictures. These images excluded brand and model references. Here, the electric Ford F-150 came out on top with 59 percent of consumers considering it appealing, followed by 41 percent for the GMC Hummer EV. Surprisingly, the Tesla Cybertruck was only found to be appealing by 19 percent of respondents.

However, once branding was revealed, the Cybertruck improved in its standing, with more consumers willing to consider buying one than the Hummer EV or Rivian R1T. The Ford F-150 led the way once more, though. While the Cybertruck should do well based purely on that Tesla badge, it didn't perform as well based on the attributes that truck shoppers consider to be the most important.

Overall, we can deduce that electric trucks are likely to significantly boost EV sales, while Ford looks set to retain its dominance in the truck segment when the electric F-150 arrives.