The Chevy Silverado EV is among the finest electric trucks ever made, yet why are sales so low?

      TL;DR The Silverado EV boasts a range of 410 miles and has received positive reviews, yet only 14,000 units were sold last year due to pricing and towing concerns deterring buyers. General Motors reported sales of approximately 14,000 Chevrolet Silverado EVs in the U.S. and Canada last year, while the gasoline-powered Silverado sells more than ten times that number in a single quarter. This disparity highlights the central issue confronting the American electric truck market: despite being hailed as one of the best electric trucks available, actual sales remain low.

      The situation has worsened, with Silverado EV sales dropping 41 percent year-over-year in Q1 2026, and GM’s overall EV demand continuing to decline into Q2. Earlier this year, the company indefinitely halted its development of next-generation full-size electric trucks and SUVs and incurred around eight billion dollars in EV-related charges during 2025 due to scrapped production plans and cancelled battery contracts.

      On paper, the Silverado EV presents as an attractive option. The LT Extended Range trim is estimated to provide 410 miles on a full charge from a 205 kWh battery pack, the largest in any production pickup. It features GM’s Super Cruise hands-free driving system, a Google-powered infotainment setup, and has a list price of approximately $71,000, which is only about $5,000 above the average cost for a full-size pickup, according to CEIC data noted by TechCrunch.

      However, the problems arise when the truck is utilized for its intended purpose. Towing reduces the range by about 60 percent, meaning a fully loaded Silverado EV could only achieve around 160 miles before needing to recharge. Data from Strategic Vision surveys indicate that 75 percent of truck owners only tow once a year, so this limitation is manageable for most buyers, but it poses a significant concern for those who tow regularly.

      Price also serves as a hurdle. The $71,000 LT Extended Range is near the gasoline average, but GM offers an LT Max Range variant that is roughly $20,000 more, adding only 68 miles of range. This pricing puts the Silverado EV in competition with luxury SUVs instead of work trucks, and the federal tax credit that previously eased the financial burden has now expired.

      GM is hoping that its new lithium-manganese-rich battery technology will reduce battery costs by at least $6,000 while maintaining a similar range, but LMR cells are not anticipated to be available in trucks until 2028. The Ford F-150 Lightning faces similar cost and range challenges, and Ram's electric truck has experienced multiple delays. Despite the American pickup market generating hundreds of billions of dollars, electric models still represent a small fraction of sales, pending a shift in the cost structure to match the technology.