Currently, in both the United States, where pickup trucks reign supreme, and China, where new energy vehicles have become the norm, electric pickup trucks are still considered "niche products." However, with technological advancements and policy optimizations, they may soon find a broader market.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla who has now returned full-time, will soon face numerous challenges, one of which is the sluggish sales of the Cybertruck. Recent foreign media reports revealed that due to a significant backlog of unsold Cybertrucks, Tesla utilized a Detroit shopping mall parking lot as a temporary storage site, violating local city regulations. Public data indicates that since production and delivery commenced at the end of 2023, Cybertruck's market performance has been unsatisfactory, with cumulative global deliveries not exceeding 50,000 units—far from Tesla's announced "over 1 million pre-orders." Despite the global potential of the pickup truck market, when it comes to new energy vehicles, electric pickup trucks are niche products in both the US and China, and they urgently need to find a breakthrough.

Pickup truck enthusiasts are not buying into the Cybertruck.

According to Tesla's plans, the Austin Gigafactory in Texas aims to produce 250,000 electric pickup trucks annually, with hopes to increase production capacity to 500,000 units per year. However, estimates suggest that Cybertruck's actual deliveries in 2024 may range between 35,000 and 50,000 units, far from Musk's 2023 prediction that it would become a significant cash flow contributor within 18 months.

To address issues such as underperforming market performance, inventory backlog, and overcapacity, Tesla has taken a series of measures. In January this year, Tesla's US website offered discounts of up to $1,600 for new Cybertruck buyers. Additionally, a small number of Cybertruck display vehicles with only a few hundred miles on the odometer were offered with discounts of up to $2,600. Furthermore, in the fourth quarter of last year, Tesla adjusted the production line at the Austin Gigafactory, reallocating some Cybertruck team members to the Model Y production line. This adjustment underscores Tesla's concerns about Cybertruck's market performance.

Regarding the reasons for Cybertruck's poor sales, industry insiders believe that, on the one hand, its unique "cyberpunk" style appeals to some consumers seeking individuality but limits mass market acceptance. On the other hand, Cybertruck's high pricing and multiple recalls have called into question its cost-effectiveness. Moreover, Tesla has failed to continuously tap into market demand and effectively expand its user base to include diverse groups.

However, the fundamental reason for Cybertruck's underperformance in the US market may not lie in the product or the company itself. Even this product, dubbed "slow-selling" by the media, still ranked fifth in the US electric vehicle sales rankings in 2024, surpassing Ford's electric pickup, the Ford F-150 Lightning, to become the best-selling electric pickup in the US that year. Based on this, the reason Musk seriously overestimated Cybertruck's market sales likely stems from a misjudgment of consumer acceptance of electric pickup trucks in the pickup truck nation. In other words, American consumers prefer traditional pickup trucks and are not interested in electric alternatives.

According to statistics, the US light vehicle market grew by 2.2% year-on-year in 2024, reaching 15.9 million units—the highest annual sales since 2019. However, the main driver of sales growth came from hybrid models, with pure electric vehicle sales amounting to only 1.3 million units, accounting for 8.2% of the market share. The latest annual report released by the American Automobile Association also draws a similar conclusion: American drivers' interest in electric vehicles has not increased but is declining. The survey shows that only 16% of respondents said they are "likely" or "very likely" to purchase a pure electric vehicle, the lowest proportion since 2019. Meanwhile, as high as 63% said they are "unlikely" or "completely unlikely" to consider purchasing one. This is in sharp contrast to 2022, when a quarter of respondents were interested in electric vehicles, with 51% opposed.

Similarly, a "niche market" in China

Unfortunately, even in China, where new energy vehicles are surging ahead, electric pickup trucks currently struggle to achieve significant progress. The main reason is that pickup trucks are still a niche market in China.

According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, annual sales of pickup trucks in China in 2024 were 548,000 units. Among them, Great Wall Motors topped the list with sales of 177,000 units, accounting for a market share of 34.32%. This was followed by JAC (62,700 units), Jiangling (58,900 units), Changan (52,000 units), and SAIC MAXUS (49,500 units). The top five brands combined accounted for nearly 80% of the market share. However, this scale accounts for less than 2% of total automobile sales in China.

Industry experts believe that driven by broader relaxation of road right policies, the promotion of pickup trucks in rural areas, technological innovations in new energy, and consumption upgrades, the demand scenarios for China's pickup truck market have diversified, consisting of four major demand scenarios: passenger use, tool use, off-road use, and specialized use. However, due to factors such as shrinking demand from engineering and individual users and relatively fewer preferential policies for vehicle purchases compared to other market segments, overall sales have declined.

"From the perspective of market capacity, the pickup truck market can only be described as 'taking small steps' and has not achieved breakthrough progress. In the overall automotive market, pickup trucks are still niche multipurpose trucks that play a 'supplementary' role," the analysis notes. Compared to 2023, cumulative sales of narrow-definition pickup trucks from January to December were 274,100 units, with annual sales declining by 16.04%. The market winter in 2024 was the lowest point in nearly 14 years, with the last time pickup truck sales were in the 200,000-unit range dating back to 2009. The main reasons are twofold: first, the lack of policy support has caused the high-end pickup truck market to be "squeezed" by passenger vehicles; second, the rise of alternative models such as new energy small trucks and enclosed vans has diverted some demand from the low-end market.

As a niche market within the already narrow pickup truck segment in China, the market capacity for new energy pickup trucks is even smaller. Data shows that the current rate of new energy adoption in the domestic pickup truck market is less than 5%. According to data released by the China Passenger Car Association, domestic sales of new energy pickup trucks were 13,000 units in 2024, up 59% year-on-year; in April 2025, sales were 2,000 units, up 127% year-on-year; and from January to April, sales were 9,000 units.

On the surface, whether it's in the US, where electric vehicles are unpopular, or in the Chinese market, where pickup trucks have yet to form a consumption wave, pure electric pickup trucks cannot find a way out. However, despite the current small market size, the industry generally believes that China's new energy pickup truck market has enormous growth potential and a promising future.

Electrification and intelligence are expected to become "trends"

At a recent China Pickup Consumption Trend Seminar, Gu Guoquan, Deputy Secretary-General of the Pickup Branch of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, stated that the market share of domestic new energy pickup trucks has been continuously increasing in recent years. In 2024, although the overall domestic pickup truck market declined, the market share and sales of new energy pickup trucks increased simultaneously. The main sales regions for domestic new energy pickup trucks are coastal areas, economically developed provinces, populous provinces, and large provinces in terms of area. In particular, the number of new energy pickup trucks in Hainan has surpassed that of fuel-powered vehicles.

Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the Passenger Car Division of the China Automobile Dealers Association, believes that the multipurpose attributes of pickup trucks are quite suitable for scenarios such as industrial and agricultural production and tourism in China and should achieve comprehensive development in the country. Under the wave of electrification, pickup truck design will become more intelligent and better meet consumer needs. Electric pickup trucks are expected to become an independent third space, providing efficient and low-cost travel options and enhanced user experiences.

Industry insiders consider new energy pickup trucks a "small blessing" in the pickup truck market in 2024. Although total sales of new energy narrow-definition pickup trucks were only 11,200 units, the year-on-year growth rate was as high as 73.25%. This not only reflects consumers' pursuit of environmental protection and economy but also shows the huge demand for low-priced new energy pickup trucks in the market. The insider said that the new energy pickup truck market within 120,000 yuan is almost a blank slate, with only a few models "fighting alone." In the future, this niche market is expected to experience explosive growth. Industry insiders predict that with technological advancements, the pickup truck industry will accelerate the launch of electric pickup truck products, develop new platforms, and create load-bearing bodies with longer range and more passenger-oriented characteristics. Simultaneously, the industry will pay more attention to quality certification and the improvement of overall performance, such as body quality, comprehensive energy consumption, and power indicators.

It should be noted that in addition to pure electric pickup trucks, many people are more optimistic about hybrid models. Ling Shiquan, CEO of Geely Radar, proposed that oil-electric hybrid drive modes can provide users with diversified usage scenarios and have many inherent advantages, meeting users' demands for "both this and that." While fuel vehicles are still struggling with "fuel efficiency," plug-in hybrid pickup trucks have begun to define "convenience." Yu Zhuoping, a professor at the Tongji University School of Automotive Studies and director of the National Collaborative Innovation Center for Intelligent New Energy Vehicles, holds the same view. He believes that the current "composite power supply" is the key to the full electrification of automobiles, and the oil-electric hybrid plug-in hybrid is the main route promoted by automakers at present. In his view, the use of an extended-range powertrain with a smaller displacement and lower cost is the optimal solution in terms of cost-effectiveness and user experience.

Furthermore, leveraging the intelligent technology achievements in the passenger vehicle sector, pickup trucks are also breaking through travel scenarios by incorporating more intelligent technology to attract more consumers. For example, Geely Radar provides various customized solutions ranging from camping and fishing to mobile cafes and administrative law enforcement and port inspections, transforming pickup trucks from "tool vehicles" into intelligent partners suitable for multiple scenarios. Its in-vehicle IoT system can also connect to drones and outdoor equipment, meeting the needs of young users for outdoor living. Changan Pickup also attempts to reshape the value of pickup trucks through the strategic positioning of "intelligent and evolutionary new pickup trucks," evolving pickup trucks from traditional tool attributes to lifestyle carriers.

Still constrained by policies, infrastructure needs improvement

Despite the optimistic market prospects, it is undeniable that new energy pickup trucks still face policy restrictions in China. Traditional pickup trucks are classified as light trucks and are subject to regulations such as compulsory scrapping after 15 years and annual inspections. Meanwhile, new energy pickup trucks lack specific policy support in terms of safety standards and road right management. In recent years, many cities have gradually lifted restrictions on pickup trucks entering the city, but large cities like Beijing still have strict management of pickup trucks entering the city. Pickup trucks are not only prohibited from entering areas within the Fifth Ring Road but are also restricted in many areas outside the Fifth Ring Road, and the same applies to new energy pickup trucks. In this regard, Ling Shiquan appealed: "The handling performance of new energy pickup trucks is no different from that of passenger vehicles, and policies should redefine their attributes to promote the healthy development of the market."

On the flip side, pickup truck users frequently operate in remote areas, whereas charging stations are predominantly concentrated in urban centers, posing significant challenges for recharging in rural and wilderness settings. While hybrid models alleviate range anxiety to some extent, charging efficiency and technological maturity still necessitate further refinement. An industry expert candidly remarked that while hybrid and extended-range technologies can mitigate range anxiety, they incur high research and development costs and necessitate the development of specialized technologies tailored to pickup trucks. For instance, pickup truck chassis must strike a balance between load-bearing capacity and off-road performance, rendering the direct transplantation of passenger vehicle technologies impractical. Furthermore, the expert suggested that pickup trucks, with their dual commercial and passenger attributes, are often employed in complex scenarios such as heavy-load operations, off-roading, and long-distance transportation, placing stringent demands on the torque, range, and reliability of the power system. Consequently, new energy pickup trucks require the development of specialized technologies that cater to the unique characteristics of commercial vehicles (like high-load electric axles and large-capacity batteries), and domestic enterprises should strive for more breakthroughs in the mass production of large-capacity batteries and the R&D of efficient electric drive systems.

Opportunities and challenges are intertwined. Perhaps, with technological advancements and policy optimizations, new energy pickup trucks will eventually shed their "niche" label in China and carve out a broader market presence.

Note: This article was originally published in the "Hot Topic Tracking" section of the July 2025 issue of the "Auto Review" magazine. Stay updated for more insights.

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