cross-posted from: https://lemmit.online/post/5691972

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The original was posted on /r/technology by /u/Wagamaga on 2025-04-19 17:06:58+00:00.

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[–] 28 points 1 year ago (38 children)

Another potential Tesla alternative to add to the list: https://www.telotrucks.com/

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  • [–] 11 points 1 year ago (4 children)

    Im personally looking forward to Edison EV conversions.

    The ability to take a vehicle I already have and turn it into an EV or hybrid would be amazing.

    I know they’re a while from full production, but I see that as a win. So many of these EVs are having quality issues because they’re being shit out onto the market as fast as humanly possible. I’d rather a company actually take the time to do R&D, test things thoroughly, and then release a product.

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  • [–] 6 points 1 year ago (3 children)

    The biggest issue with an EV conversion is the weight of the batteries. For a lot of passenger cars, adding 500kg of batteries maxes out or even exceeds the vehicle's gross weight.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago (2 children)

    These conversions replace the entire drivetrain so you'd be losing the weight of the V8, transmission, transfer case, and drivelines and replacing them with a little 4 cylinder engine, generator, and batteries.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago (1 child)

    Considering that even the hybrid cars made by car manufacturers themselves are heavier than their ICE counterparts, I don't think that by retrofitting an older car you'll get a better result.

    For example, 2024 Hyundai Tucson curb weights:

    Heaviest ICE: 3663 lbs

    Lightest hybrid: 3692 lbs

    Lightest plugin hybrid: 4115 lbs

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago

    A hybrid has all the same ICE components with the addition of the generator and battery pack so it's not surprising that it would be heavier than the pure ICE counterpart. These kits will be replacing old iron block engines (along with the other aforementioned drivetrain components) with a small aluminum engine and generator. Even if they are a bit heavier, these are old trucks with poor aerodynamics where a few hundred pounds isn't going to make much difference in the grand scheme of things.

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  • [–] 9 points 1 year ago (16 children)

    Enough with the trucks and SUVs. I'm not buying an EV until I can get a 2 door sports convertible with rack and pinion steering and double wishbone suspension. I don't want to drive a tank of a vehicle with vague, floaty handling. I want a small, light, and nimble EV that's fast as fuck and corners like a dream. For under $30K USD.

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  • [–] 8 points 1 year ago (8 children)

    Look at Telo, their "truck" is the size of a Mini Cooper but with a full 8 ft bed. And it seats 5. That's incredibly compelling.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    That's 3 seats too many. And I rather have a hatch than a bed.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (5 children)

    It's actually the one pickup style truck that might actually be viable in Europe.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago (4 children)

    Personally, being from Europe, I'm not sure why we would need a pickup truck. I get it, insane tax reasons somehow are making those monstrosities quite popular in the Netherlands for example, but you never see the beds used.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago (1 child)

    Vehicles are expensive. Having one for each need is expensive. Renting is expensive (and renting typically comes with no using it as a truck restrictions). If you need a bed for 2% of trips it is often far cheap to own and drive a truck for everything. Particularly if you can use the bike for a lot of trips that makes just owning a truck for everything compelling if you must have a car.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago

    Agreed, but needing the truck for truck stuff 2% of the time is waaaaaay over the typical truck usage. I think most people who have trucks actually do "truck stuff" with them 0.2-0.0% of the time, and in that case, regular car, wagon, or van is a better all around option.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago* (1 child)

    For the same reason people need SUVs, for moving large amounts of stuff around. In my case I would just throw the bike in the back rather than having to faff around laying all the seats flat and then having to put down the tarpaulin so they don't get dirty.

    I could get a van but then I've got a stupid van with all its limited visibility. A pickup truck would actually solve the problem if it weren't for the fact that all the manufacturers are American and seem to think that they need to rival the size and weight of a tank.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago

    Lol, folks don't 'need' SUVs. When I was in NYC 2 years back, after not having been there for a few years, I couldn't believe my eyes. The number of sheer gardensheds on wheels is hilarious. SUVs and 'trucks' are an American car manufacturers invention that have little to no basis in real world needs. All of you have been told you need it. That's something different.

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  • [–] 5 points 1 year ago*

    I'm rocking a kei truck for landscaping and home reno projects, and it still uses more gas than I'm happy with. I'd love for someone to make an electric truck that isn't a massive behemoth intended to prove something about my masculinity. Just give me a clean energy box bed to haul my lumber and dirt.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    It is hard to get a light EV when the batteries themselves are around 1/10 the energy density of gasoline and people want them to have a longer range than a gas car to make up for charging so you end up with a battery that’s 500-1000lbs. To put that into perspective a Miata weighs around 2000lbs

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago

    A small block V8 weights 680lbs. While there are larger engines, that is still a big engine, most cars have much lighter engines. Transmissions have some weight too, So do electric motors.

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  • [–] 8 points 1 year ago (9 children)

    As an European i don't understand at all those open trucks. The back side is completely wasted space, is unusable, stuff will get stolen when you park (or even at the traffic light), or will get soaked in rain. It also lowers aerodynamic efficiency. That one time in my life when i would need to move a fridge or a mattress i could just rent it for 3 hours

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  • [–] 5 points 1 year ago

    Much of America is rural, and pick-up trucks are extremely useful on a daily basis in that world. Then country music made it a metaphor for masculinity, and dopey suburbanites embraced it to enhance their personal brand image as tough guys.

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  • [–] 5 points 1 year ago

    I mean, you can always hook a trailer to a normal car or something like a Subaru Outback if you're going off-road. That's what people do here. Monday to Friday they commute in their normal, affordable, not extremely huge car and on Saturday the trailer comes out.

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  • [–] 0 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    They sell 2 types of covers for the back that solve this. It really depends on what you’re doing. People that are camping or constantly working on projects need that kind of open setup.

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  • [–] 5 points 1 year ago* (1 child)

    Eh, my family camped frequently and reno'd/repaired multiple houses. I think the only time we used a truck was to take a bunch of bathroom tile scrap to the dump. Everything else was done with minivans or a club wagon.

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  • [–] -2 points 1 year ago (3 children)

    As an American I've never heard of a place so dangerous that things get stolen from the back at a traffic light. I know carpenters who leave all their tools in the back when they go to bed and never have a problem. Maybe you need to clean up the crime problem in your country. There are pros and cons to a van vs truck. That you come in on one side does not make the other side wrong, it just means you have lack of vision to understand theirs.

    Have you ever tried to rent a truck? I know many people who tried and discovered the place was all out that day. Then when you find one read the fine print - often you cannot haul your fridge in one. Mean while because I own my truck it is there when I need to do something, no thinking required.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    People stole the wheels off my wife's car, in a lit parking lot, in one of the safest big cities in the US.

    Yeah, you can't leave your nice tools out in the back of your truck bed in most places.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    I've driven a pickup truck for 20 years and never once had anything stolen out of it. "Safest big city" as a phrase strikes me similarly to "most comfortable chest wound."

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  • [–] 4 points 1 year ago

    Oh neat, this is basically an electric Kei truck. The front looks a little weird with the wheels so far forward. Reminds me of a golf cart. I can't really complain though, I'd love a small practical truck.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (4 children)

    Huh, I didn't think it was possible to out-ugly the cybertruck

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  • [–] 3 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    It's no worse than some of the stuff Nissan has come out with over the years. Remember the cube?

    The problem with the Tesla truck is that it is ugly without purpose, all the other oddly designed vehicles look the way they do because they have a particular unique feature (been small, having sliding minivan doors on a vehicle otherwise two small for them, having gull wing doors, removing a-pillars from the design, etc), but the cyber truck just looks like that to be contrarian.

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