The Chevrolet S-10 Electric was an American electric-powered vehicle built by Chevrolet. It was introduced in 1997, becoming the world's first electric pickup truck from the original manufacturer, updated in 1998, and then discontinued. It was an OEM BEV variant of Chevrolet's S-10 pickup truck. The S-10 Electric was solely powered by electricity (batteries) and was marketed primarily to utility fleet customers.

Design

General Motors started with a regular-cab, short-box ( bed) S-10 pickup, with a base-level trim package plus a half-tonneau cover.

In place of a typical inline four cylinder or V-6 internal combustion engine, the electric S-10 EV was equipped with an three-phase, liquid-cooled AC induction motor, based on GM's EV1 electric coupe. The EV1 had a 100kW motor; GM reduced the S-10 EV's motor output because of the additional weight and drag of the truck so as not to overstress the batteries.

Efficiency

Depending on the load and driving conditions the range can vary greatly: For the 1997 model with lead-acid battery pack, city range was ; the mixed city/highway range was ; the highway range was if operating constantly at or less. The acceleration time was listed as 13.5 seconds (at 50 percent battery charge - the published literature stated that acceleration time was "even less" when the truck had a full charge).

Like the EV1, the top speed of the S-10 EV was governed, albeit to , less than its coupe sibling.

The performance is much better for the 1998 model year with the nickel–metal hydride battery, at an approximately range and an acceleration time of 10.9 seconds at 50% charge.

  • 1997 MY GM S-10 EV lead acid: <!--292 Wh/mile in source-->
  • 1998 MY GM S10 EV lead acid: (city driving), and (highway driving, with maximum speed or less).

Note: 1998 GM S10 EV NiMh numbers above are apparently wrong. This page lists the NiMH S10 with a 29-kilowatt-hour battery and range of (EPA) which corresponds to . This corresponds to the NiMH version of the vehicle having a lighter battery pack than the lead-acid model.

  • 1997 MY GM S10 EV lead acid: (J1634)
  • 1998 MY GM S10 EV NiMH: (J1634)

Instruments

Internally, the instrument cluster was exclusive to the electric S-10, and featured only four gauges - a speedometer, a large "charge" gauge which reads from 'E' to 'F' like a fuel gauge, a voltmeter ranging from 220 to 440 volts, and a "power use" meter, which acts as an ammeter of sorts showing discharge during acceleration and charge during regenerative braking. The LCD for the shifter was shortened to display only park, neutral, reverse, and drive, since the S-10 EV does not have the usual transmission.

Additional features

The S-10 EV was developed from the base version of the gasoline-powered S10, and included similar standard equipment. Standard equipment for the S-10 EV included an AM-FM stereo radio with two door-mounted speakers, air conditioning, a vinyl-and-cloth-trimmed bench seat, and dual airbags. For colder climates, a fuel-fired heater was standard, which is similar to an engine block heater, and runs on diesel fuel from a tank positioned where the gasoline tank would normally be, with a small exhaust behind the spare wheel. The heater will operate when ambient temperature falls below .

Because battery performance varies greatly with temperature, the heat pump supplies cooling to the batteries during charging when necessary. Passive air recirculation is used during the driving cycle to equalize variations in battery temperature. The heat pump can be activated during the driving cycle under extreme battery over-temperature conditions over , typically as a result of extreme battery discharge.

History

The S-10 EV was preceded by at least two commercially marketed S-10 electric vehicle conversions performed by third parties:

  • Solectria Corporation E-10 (introduced in May 1993 at the American Tour de Sol)
  • U.S. Electricar Pickup (introduced in 1994)

1998 updates

While the standard S-10 moved to a redesigned front fascia in 1998, the S-10 Electric kept the same front fascia as the '94-'97, with the exception of composite headlamps in 1998 versus the previous year's sealed-beam headlamps. The interior was also updated in 1998 along with internal combustion models, adding a passenger side airbag, a new AM-FM stereo radio, new instrumentation with a digital odometer and trip meter, a new bench seat design, new interior door panels, and a new steering wheel with airbag cover. Aside from this header panel, a unique lower bumper valance, and a stylized 'Electric' decal on the bottom of the doors, there is little difference externally between the appearance of an Electric and a stock S-10. Any changes, however minimal, were reported to have had a positive influence on reducing the truck's aerodynamic resistance. These changes included a closed grille and a front air dam, belly pans beneath the front suspension, a seal between the cab and the pickup bed, and a half-length tonneau cover over the rear of the pickup bed.

Sales

Unlike the EV1, of the 492 S-10 EVs assembled about 60 were sold to fleet customers,

Recent uses

In 2004 GM converted an S-10 EV to rear-wheel drive, using prototype in-wheel electric motors instead of an under-hood motor.

References

Idaho National Laboratory operated for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology:

  • 1997 Chevrolet S-10 with PbA Batteries
  • 1998 Chevrolet S-10 with NiMH Batteries
  • Chevrolet S-10 Accelerated Reliability Report
  • mailing list for Chevrolet S10 electric truck enthusiasts