2021 was the year of electrified trucks
Electrified trucks were the big thing in 2021 and the power shift is set to continue next year, Fox News Autos Editor Gary Gastelu reports.
From the Tesla Model S Plaid to the Ford Mustang Mach-E and Lucid Air, electric cars were all the talk of 2021, but electrified trucks were the really big thing.
Several automakers launched hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric models to improve the efficiency and performance of their largest vehicles.
Ford started the year with the F-150 PowerBoost, the first hybrid version of the full- size truck, and ended it with the Maverick Hybrid, a compact pickup that gets 37 mpg and starts at $21,490, making it the lowest-priced Ford, pickup and hybrid vehicle on sale today.
Jeep also ventured where it never had before with the plug-in hybrid Wrangler 4xe, which can go 22 miles on just electricity and combines the electric motor with a turbocharged, four-cylinder engine for longer trips. It’s power rating of 375 hp and 470 lb-ft of torque made it the most-powerful Wrangler ever until the V8-powered Wrangler 392 arrived with 475 hp and 475 lb-ft and an old-school 14 mpg fuel economy rating to go with it.
The Jeep Wrangler 4xe became the best-selling plug-in hybrid in the U.S. (Jeep)
But it was American startup Rivian that was first to market with an all-electric truck. Its R1T midsize pickup packs a four-motor, all-wheel-drive system with over 800 hp and the ability to tackle the toughest terrain.
Close behind was the monstrous GMC Hummer EV that resurrected the classic brand name on an electric pickup with 1,000 horsepower and a four-wheel steering system that lets it drive diagonally for added maneuverability.
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And there’s much more to come in 2022, when Ford rolls out the F-150 Lighting that’s set to become the first all-electric version of America’s best-selling vehicle when it goes on sale in the spring.