If I could build a tractor that would cost .25-.30/mi (fuel),would you buy it if it cost 75k-100k more to build?
Would you pay 75k-100k, to retrofit the vehicle you already own?
I am only asking an opinion.

7 Mpg / $4.3 a gallon = .61 Per mile to operate X 2500 miles per week= $1525 a week in fuel

.3per mile X 2500 miles per week = 750 per week to operate

$1525
-$750
=$775 per week savings

$100,000 more for a truck / $750 in savings per week = 133.33 weeks to pay off

133.33 weeks / 52 weeks = 2.56 years to pay off extra cost of $100,000....


2500 miles X 52 weeks a year X 2.56 years = your truck would have 332,800 reading on odometer

2.56 years with a truck that has 332,800 miles on it before you could recoup a $100,000 in additional cost...

(Edit: Just wanted to add that the numbers are based on a 7 MpG average, almost impossible to run a 7Mpg average 2.5 years strait..)

based on simple numbers.. and assuming I'm not too tired to think straight... probably.

assuming $5/gallon and 7mpg... most trucks today would cost about 75 cents per mile in fuel

Assuming you can get to the 25 cent per mile mark.. the savings over the course of 750,000 miles would be $375,000. At the 33 cent per mile rate, it would save the owner $315,000 over 750,000 miles.

(I'm assuming that 750,000 miles is an average life expectancy for a truck)

The issue is going to be one of affordability. Sure, Swift and the like can afford something like that... but how would Joe Onwerop make it? He's probably stretching to qualify for the loan at $70,000.. double that, and he's out of the market.

Sure, he'd save at the pump - probably enough to make the payment difference.. it's the getting qualified for the loan that would be hard.

If you can do that, and do it for 40 to 50 grand.... that might be workable.

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Keep the big doors at the back!

I wanted to see an honest reaction to the numbers.
It can possibly be built for 30k-40k more than a standard truck, but the lower price means refueling more often.
I have no idea on what the range might be.
This is still all theoretical.
The fuel cost could be anywhere between .15 and .50/mile.
It might not even cost more than any other truck to build.
But retrofitting a used truck would definately cost at least 20k.

If you could come up with something that would only cost $20-$30 grand and can get fuel cost down to .3 per mile, you would have them lined up to buy it from you...

If, a BIG if......
If I can get this built, the powerplant WOULD last more than 750k miles.
The first ones might look like your typical truck.
The later ones would not look like any truck you have seen before.
It would be electric, but not chemical battery. It would be aerodynamic, and if you were hauling a box trailer, its range could be increased, and a greater fuel savings by installing solar panels on the box.
You would be able to refuel anywhere there is an electrical source, and electricity is a lot cheaper than diesel fuel.
So, it would be greener, and not reliant on the price of a barrel of oil.
No oil needed other than for lubrication.
Low maintenence as well.
The big cost increase is the power supply, which would also affect range. I don't know if the company that designed and built the power supply is still in business.
One of the many hurdles I have to jump, before I can build even a prototype.

If you can get all those ifs worked out, you might be bigger than Bill Gates.

OK.. Some glaring errors here. Just because a vehicle is electric does not mean it's going to be greener. How is the electricity generated? You're just trading one pollution maker for another.

Solar panels aren't the answer and I highly doubt you will be able to generate enough power to make a difference. And solar panels make absolutely no sense on a trailer, especially during the winter as they'll most likely be covered with snow.

I don't think going electric is the answer for this. You're going to have to be able to generate enough power to haul a full load with the same distance between "fueling/recharge" stops. It's my understanding that this can't be done with electric batteries as yet. Unless someone has made a huge breakthrough with electric storage, this isn't the route to be exploring.

While exploring alternative methods for transport is admirable, I see this particluar avenue hitting a dead end fairly quickly. Alternative fuel sources should be the key element here, such as biodiesel. There's promising research being done on this, and the resulting product will have a far more lasting impact on the environment than by attempting to go all electric.

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Electile Dysfunction - The inability to get aroused over any of the presidential candidates.

Someone already made a breakthrough in electrical storage, years ago.
I'm still trying to get in touch with the patent holder.
As for the comment about the solar panels, I was just throwing out a possibility to extend that.
As I had also stated, this would not be a chemical battery system.
As for the HOW the power would be generated to fuel this, I have some ideas on how to do that too.
I am not discussing that topic here.
Getting the U.S. off foreign oil is the only the first step.
Few errors, many omissions.