Rendering of the Workhorse W-15 pickup, which is expected to be in production by 2018.Workhorse Group announced it has received a Letter of Intent (LOI) from Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA) for 500 W-15 plug-in electric pickup trucks.
Having already received LOIs from Duke Energy, Portland General Electric, and the City of Orlando and others, SCPPA is the latest LOI Workhorse has received from fleets.
The Workhorse W-15 light duty platform design is an extension of the E-Gen electric technology used in Workhorse medium-duty delivery trucks. With expected all-electric 80-mile range using Panasonic 18650 Li-ion batteries, the battery pack is expected to cover the vast majority of miles driven in a day by fleet owners of locally driven trucks.
A gasoline generator will operate after battery power has been depleted, allowing the driver unlimited range to complete the day’s tasks. Once production commences, Workhorse expect the W-15 to have a $52,500 MSRP. The W-15 electric pickup trucks demonstrate SCPPA’s continuing commitment to a green, sustainable fleet.
“We will be testing the truck to confirm our expectation that the W-15 Electric Pickup may save utilities money over the life of the vehicle, when compared to a conventional gasoline-powered pickup,” said Michael Webster, SCPPA’s Executive Director. “SCPPA and our publicly-owned utility members are committed to sustainability, the safety of our drivers and the communities we serve. The Workhorse W-15 could assist in all of these areas by reducing emissions, as well as reducing fuel and maintenance costs.”
The W-15 will also feature the ability for utility fleets to power equipment directly from the battery power source, allowing a work crew to complete their tasks without having the truck running. With the goal of being the safest pickup truck in U.S., the truck’s safety features are expected to include an extra large crumple zone, and lower center of gravity while still providing ground clearance. The W-15 is also expected to offer crash mitigation technologies that include automatic braking and lane centering.
“We discussed the needs of utilities and designed the W-15 to meet those needs,” said Steve Burns, Workhorse CEO. “We believe this will be the first plug-in range-extended electric pickup truck built from the ground up by an OEM in America. Our existing electric medium duty, delivery truck business has demonstrated that low Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is compelling to fleets.”
The W-15 electric pickup will be unveiled at the ACT EXPO show in Long Beach, California, on May 2. Fleet managers are invited to attend and drive the working W-15 which will be at the show.
Fleet managers who would like additional information are directed to contact Jeff Esfeld at [email protected] or 206-228-5400.
